By George & Josh Bate
‘Stressful’ isn’t a word that immediately comes to mind when wanting to define what it’s like to watch a movie, but that is certainly the most apt characterization of Odyssey. Premiering at this year’s SXSW, the new film from director and co-writer Gerard Johnson is an anxiety-provoking, seedy London thriller that captivates despite somewhat aimless storytelling and an out-of-place final act.
Odyssey stars Polly Maberly as Natasha Flynn, a sharp-witted, coke-fueled and dangerously over-her-head London real estate agent. While outwardly Natasha wears fancy clothes, owns a high-end office, and parties lavishly, secretly she hides mounting debts to all sorts of people (some of which are far from kind lenders) and a business that is deceptively on the brink of collapse. Eventually, Natasha’s debts catch up to her and she is forced to finally confront her inner demons when her livelihood and life are threatened.
Odyssey unfolds over the course of a week in the life of real estate agent Natasha Flynn. The film is broken apart into days of the week, each of which becomes increasingly chaotic and decreasingly stable than the last. The terms ‘anxiety-provoking’ and ‘stressful’ come to mind in reviewing Odyssey as watching the film is akin to being in close proximity to someone making bad decision after bad decision and finding themselves deeper and deeper into a hole they dug for themself. There’s a palpable discomfort that comes about in following Natasha as her life unravels before our eyes. In some cases, such unravelings lead to empathy, but, in the case of Odyssey, the resulting emotion is more frustration than anything else. Natasha isn’t a particularly likable character, nor does she do much to make her situation better, which creates an unsettling viewing experience as the audience is left to grapple with the introspection and possible self-criticism that comes from not rooting for someone you see is struggling. Whether this was the intended experience from director and co-writer Gerard Johnson is unclear, although it certainly provides the audience with an intriguing moral question to contemplate.
Much like Natasha’s life, Johnson’s film lacks much structure and organization, instead proceeding more aimlessly. Characters frequently talk over one another, Natasha is often speaking to people on her old-fashioned earpiece with poor audio quality, and the camera always seems to be moving somewhat, collectively creating a disorienting effect that mirrors Natasha’s inner experience as her world collapses around her. Unfortunately, this storytelling approach means the film grows tiresome as it progresses as there is only so much stress and discomfort an audience can hold before interest dwindles.
As the film progresses though, the film tightens its focus by honing in on a more specific plotline. Natasha owes money to a loan shark, who ropes her into a treacherous kidnapping scheme. The addition of this plot adds much needed structure to Odyssey, albeit it comes a bit too far into the runtime.
Johnson’s film is entirely situated in a seedy and gritty London. Even when opulence and wealth are presented on screen, there is always an accompanying sense of discomfort and sleaziness that is elicited. It is throughout its seedy depiction of the metropolis setting that Odyssey most excels as being situated in this world and around these characters is interesting to say the least.
Unfortunately, the film derails with a final act that feels entirely out-of-place in the context of the movie that preceded it. What is a grounded and grimy urban thriller turns into a bloody action movie in a manner that feels neither earned nor appropriate. While the inclusion of Mikael Persbrandt (Sex Education) as The Viking is welcomed, one can’t help but feel this is the final act to an entirely different movie. The violence that characterizes the final act is well filmed and tension-filled, albeit decidedly ill-fitting. Additionally, Natasha’s problems are resolved with dissatisfying ease and, rather than see her dig herself out of the hole she dug for herself, she is saved by an old ally, thus depriving our lead character of autonomy and responsibility for her actions.
One can’t review Odyssey without praising Polly Maberly, who is superb as the lead character Natasha. The English actress known for her roles in Foyle’s War and the 1995 Pride and Prejudice mini-series delivers a stunning performance that perfectly and authentically captures a person’s deteriorating mental health. Without such a strong performance, investment in Odyssey would be near-impossible. But with such a strong performance, Johnson’s film manages to captivate even as it navigates stumbles.
VERDICT: 6.5/10
Purposefully stressful and chaotic, Odyssey is a SXSW 2025 premiere that gives its audience a front row seat to the complete unraveling of a lead character. The film manages to foster some interesting moral introspection given how dislikable our struggling lead is and the lack of empathy that comes with being so dislikable, and the grimy London setting gives the feel an authentic and lived-in atmosphere. Unfortunately, aimless plotting and a completely out-of-place final act render the accompanying stressfulness unworthy of investment in. A superb lead performance from Polly Maberly warrants particular commendation given how authentic she is and how vital this performance is in retaining audience attention even as the film stumbles. Those seeking a chaotic, even immersive, viewing experience akin to Safdie brothers’ films like Good Time or Uncut Gems may enjoy the frenetic energy Odyssey offers, although, for us, there was little substance to and investment in the lead character, making this particular odyssey more stressful than entertaining.