Running Time: 110 Minutes
Starring: Polly Maberly, Jasmine Blackborow, Guy Burnet, Ryan Hayes, Mikael Persbrandt, Rebecca Calder, Tom Davis, Peter Ferdinando
Since his feature debut with 2009's Tony, writer/director Gerard Johnson has made a name for himself crafting visually enticing British thrillers. After receiving much praise for Muscle, a 2019 feature set in the world of bodybuilding, the filmmaker returns with Odyssey, a thriller set within the world of real-estate. It may not sound like a cinematic premise, yet the reality is far more compelling than one may expect.
What viewers first see is a tooth extraction, with this trip to the dentist used to introduce London estate agent Natasha Flynn (Polly Maberly). While faced with a hefty sum to pay afterwards, she avoids this by utilising a declined card and her utter swagger. This moment tells audiences what they need to know about the protagonist, as she propels herself through life via her sheer confidence.
Natasha has big plans for her company, including securing a deal with a rival real-estate company, developing an app, and moving into a bigger office. But these are actually attempts to mask a spiralling mess which involves cocaine addiction, mounting debts, and increasing danger as more people see through her deception. When loan sharks make an offer to hide a kidnapped estate agent for cash, Natasha is left with little alternative as she is dragged into London's seedy underworld.
What Johnson crafts is an intriguing character piece around a duplicitous figure that wishes to reach greater heights. She weaponizes her words to her gain, making the most unappealing properties seem desireable with a carefully chosen vocabulary, but struggles to keep her head above water as the pressure piles on. Key to it all is an engrossing performance by Polly Maberly, conveying Natasha's arrogance which masks increasing worries about losing everything she has built, and the sharp-tongued ways she tries maintaining control throughout.
As consequences rear their ugly head, it becomes clear that Natasha is hurting inside from a traumatic childhood which shaped her. These revelations feel like a misstep, as the character's beguiling mystery was a welcome wrinkle which feels dismissed in favour of a by-the-numbers explanation of her. In fact, the feature was more interesting and unique when it focused upon the estate agent business. When it moves past that into a criminal enterprise, the story feels interchangeable from other tales of someone getting in too deep with law-breakers.
There is also the near-two-hour runtime, a choice which feels unneeded when the story struggles to sustain that length. While it is understandable to have the story unfold across a work week, with the pressure rising as matters worsen with each passing day, the repetitive elements leave it struggling to maintain that interest. Regardless of how long the film is, the stylish direction and enticing cinematography breathes life into it, with the neon lighting offering a slick visual style. While a tighter edit would have been beneficial, Odyssey remains a compelling work led by a fantastic performance.
Odyssey had its UK Premiere at EIFF and London Premiere at FrightFest. Icon Film Distribution presents Odyssey in UK cinemas from 7 November
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