There’s a ‘ghastly’ AI generated The Odyssey movie and I wish I was joking

This was bound to happen sooner or later: Just as Christopher Nolan’s epic is making its way to cinemas, a fully AI generated The Odyssey movie has been made. Its title is rather aptly Odysseus: The Fall.

The debate surrounding the use of artificial intelligence rages on and divides Hollywood. Creators like Backrooms’ Kane Parsons and Pluribus’ Vince Gilligan have made it clear they’re dead against it, while filmmakers George Lucas and Martin Scorsese have surprisingly expressed support for its use. 

Ultimately, the conversation is nuanced and, for the most part, many agree that it’s fine for certain tasks (de-aging being a recent example) – it’s when AI bleeds into the art itself that we enter troubling territory. 

Nonetheless, there are still multiple projects being made using the technology, including those by futurist Ash Koosha. Following on from his AI-generated docudrama Dreams Of Violets, he’s now collaborated with AI-led film studio Fountain 0 to develop a tech-driven interpretation of Homer’s 3000-year-old epic. 

Odysseus: The Fall is a 135-minute film said to retell the Odyssey “as the fractured memory of a drowning man in his final minutes, a voyage that is really a trial, where every monster wears his own handwriting.”

The announcement teaser was released on Tuesday, July 14th, just days before Christopher Nolan’s (very) human-made movie lands in theatres. It will be available to rent or buy from Fountain 0’s site later this summer. 

The film was created using the AI video generator Kling, and the script, so to speak, was written and provided in note form. 

Speaking to Variety, Koosha said he’s been “obsessed” with the Odyssey since he was a child. 

“One of the things that really drove me towards this story was the character of Odysseus himself, and my take on it – the feeling that I’ve had over the years reading different takes on it, and different translations – and my take was something that I just wanted to tell,” he added. 

“And recently, when we did the first film, I realised this is the best time given the public discourse that exists out there as well.”

In a separate interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Koosha explained, “We very much hope that Christopher Nolan’s film, The Odyssey, is a raging success at the box office. 

“And in some way that our version of the journey of Odysseus might further that success by bringing to theaters those who might not otherwise come out to see the film, simply because they are curious to see the ultimate in human creation and compare it to one man’s collaboration with AI.”

Despite his clear interest in the source material, it’s safe to say that the project has not gone down well online – many have branded it the latest in the “slopbuster” era. 

“We are entering the era of the slopbuster. The mockbuster’s final form,” wrote one commenter, while another said, “I f**king weep for humanity. This is absolutely ghastly.”

“I can’t wait for the AI bubble to burst and sh*t like this turns to dust,” added a third, with a fourth writing, “The horse had the best emotions in this trailer!” A fifth quipped, “I can see Temu Studios becoming a thing in the not too distant future.”

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Featured images credit: Foundation 0