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Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey Storms Box Office with $264M Opening Despite Criticism Christopher Nolan’s epic adaptation of Homer’s The Odyssey delivered a massive $264 million global opening weekend, including $124.5 million domestically. Despite widespread criticism over woke casting choices, the star-studded film (featuring Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway,...

45,698 次观看 • 2 个月前 •via X (Twitter)

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Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey is not just ridiculous because it’s woke, it falls flat even from an artistic, cinematographic perspective. Watching Ellen Page try to depict an ancient Greek soldier running through the desert, is as visually absurd as watching an elderly Robert De Niro in Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman, playing a young Frank Sheeran. Ellen Page as a male Greek soldier, carries the same level of absurdity as watching the Grocery kicking scene in The Irishman, where Robert De Niro is supposed to be depicting a male in in his 30’s, while he’s visibly and mechanically in his late 70’s. Every kick stiff and old, the same way “Elliot” flops through the desert like an adolescent child. Every time we have to call Ellen, Elliot, every time we’re supposed to pretend Lupita Nyong'o represents Helen of Troy, and every time we’re supposed to pretend The Odyssey looks like ancient Greece, it hits home with the same level of absurdity as watching Joe Pesci say “What’s the matter, kid?” to a 76 year old Robert De Niro. In both instances, there is a common theme. The theme is selfishness and self-centeredness. Sure Robert De Niro could have given a portion of his role to a young up and coming actor, and sure Christopher Nolan could have used this film to promote some talented Greek actors, but that would be too rational, too audience-focused. Who care what the audience wants? Who cares how absurd this is visually, and conceptually, it’s what we want — and we’ll force feed it to you! We live in the world of “truths”, where everyone’s “truth” is more important than the actual truth.

ThePatrioticDog

30,910 次观看 • 2 个月前

#DC : Movie Review 💥🍿 Arun Matheashwaran is the real show-stealer. Despite the low expectations after his previous outing, I always wondered why someone as talented as him hadn't achieved bigger success. With DC, he has proved that he belongs among the top league of directors. The writing and screenplay are beautifully crafted. Both halves of the film kept me thoroughly satisfied in every aspect. Lokesh Kanagaraj, despite being trolled for his looks and other reasons, has silenced the criticism with his performance. What an impressive act! He absolutely shines, especially during the interval block, which is a complete banger. Kollywood has found another hero, and he is more than welcome. Anirudh—wow! He has absolutely blown me away. The background score and songs are the heart and soul of the film, elevating every moment to the next level. This is pure musical madness from him for his friend Loki. Sanjana's screen time is limited but highly impactful. On the other hand, Wamiqa Gabbi literally carries the film alongside Lokesh with an equally strong presence. The supporting cast, especially those who share screen space with Lokesh, have all done a fantastic job. The head cop's character is perfectly written and aptly portrayed. DC carries a simple social message beneath its action-packed revenge drama, but it's the treatment that makes it truly worth watching. Final Verdict: Super Hit Rating: 3.75/5 ⭐⭐⭐✨ Arun Matheswaran Anirudh Ravichander Lokesh Kanagaraj Wamiqa Gabbi

Deon X

42,320 次观看 • 1 个月前

It’s harvest season now, and in Ukraine, it’s an extremely difficult one. This video is from Zaporizhzhia region. Farmers are putting out a fire caused by drone debris. What’s happening with the harvest in Ukraine right now? This year, Ukraine has a good harvest - in some areas, better than expected: around 64 million tonnes of grain, including roughly 23 million tonnes of wheat, 32 million tonnes of corn, and more than 5 million tonnes of barley. Together with oilseeds, the season’s export potential exceeds 50 million tonnes. The problem is harvesting it: Russian forces continue to attack farmers and agricultural machinery. Then there is the challenge of getting the harvest out through the ports of Greater Odesa. Russia is striking them with unprecedented intensity: more than 180 attacks on port infrastructure in the first half of the year, compared with around 150 during all of last year. In a single month, 28 civilian vessels were attacked. As a result, around 90% of shipping operators have suspended port calls; foreign vessels have not entered major ports for weeks; and the largest terminals have halted purchases. The next problem is storage. If the wheat cannot be exported now, grain elevators will be full right through September-November, when the harvest of 32 million tonnes of corn begins. For Ukrainian farmers, this creates a squeeze: domestic prices are falling because there is a surplus of grain with nowhere to go, while global prices are rising at the very same moment. Additional pressure comes from the energy sector: Russian strikes on Ukraine’s power grid and fuel infrastructure are driving up the cost of drying and transporting grain, just as Ukrainian strikes on refineries are doing the same for Russian farmers. This front works both ways. And most importantly - the time horizon. If Ukrainian farmers cannot properly sell their 2026 harvest, they will cut spending on seeds, fertilizer, and fuel for the 2027 harvest, while some farms will reduce the amount of land they cultivate. This year’s logistics crisis becomes next year’s production crisis. The sooner Russia loses its ability to continue its aggression against Ukraine, the sooner markets and global food security will begin to recover.

Anton Gerashchenko

98,276 次观看 • 1 个月前

This is one of the most expensive silent movie stunts of all time. This shot from Buster Keaton's "The General" (1926) cost $42,000 (equal to $600,000 today). The production company left the wreckage of the train in the Row River, south of Cottage Grove in Oregon. The site became a tourist attraction until 1944 when the wreckage was finally salvaged and scrapped during World War II. "The General" went way over budget, costing $750,000 (equal to $11 million today) in total. Some of the unforeseen costs included "Keaton being knocked unconscious; an assistant director being shot in the face with a blank cartridge; a train wheel running over a brakeman's foot, resulting in a $2,900 lawsuit; and the train's wood-burning engine causing numerous fires. The fires often spread to forests and farmers' haystacks, which cost the production $25 per burnt stack." In the end, the film only made $500,000 at the box office and was panned by film critics. Despite failing financially and losing his artistic independence, Keaton considered "The General" to be his crowning achievement. "I was more proud of that picture than any picture I ever made," he said. Today, "The General" is regarded as one of the greatest films of all time. Roger Ebert gave the film 4 stars and listed it on his top 10 in 2002. He had this to say about Buster Keaton: "Today I look at Keaton's works more often than any other silent films. They have such a graceful perfection, such a meshing of story, character, and episode, that they unfold like music. Although they're filled with gags, you can rarely catch Keaton writing a scene around a gag; instead, the laughs emerge from the situation... And in an age when special effects were in their infancy, and a 'stunt' often meant actually doing on the screen what you appeared to be doing, Keaton was ambitious and fearless. He had a house collapse around him. He swung over a waterfall to rescue a woman he loved. He fell from trains. And always he did it in character, playing a solemn and thoughtful man who trusts in his own ingenuity."

Historic Vids

24,255,446 次观看 • 2 年前

Times Square - New York City 🇺🇸 The origin of this place was known as Long Acre Square, but it was renamed Times Square after being located in 1904, at the intersection of 42nd Street, the offices of the New York Times. In 1913, the newspaper’s offices moved to 229 43rd Street, and the building was renamed 1 Times Square in 1961. History of Times Square, at the beginning of the 20th century, Times Square became one of the most important places in New York City, with the construction of theaters, restaurants and luxury and first class hotels. The site began to change in the 30’s where it became a dangerous place with prostitution, crime and drugs, this lasted for more than half a century. History of Times Square During the 1980s, Mayors Ed Koch and David Dinkins began a redevelopment project for Midtown Manhattan that included Times Square. In the 1990s, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani tackled the project to clean up the area with the closure of pornographic theaters, sex shops and the purchase of the nine historic theaters on 42nd Street by the State of New York. Times Square is located between 7th Avenue and Broadway, and 42nd and 47th streets, it is currently the heart of the city in general and of the New York theater district in particular. The entire area is illuminated day and night by large illuminated signs and huge television screens, this has made it famous throughout the world, as well as the descent of the Crystal ball every December 31 from the top of 1 Times Square announcing the new Year. Up to two million people flocked to Times Square to ring in the year 2000 with the lowering of Waterford’s Millennial Crystal Ball, a huge Swarovski crystal ball made specifically for this event. The north end of the square, between 46th and 47th Streets, is known as Duffy Square in honor of Father Francis P. Duffy, chaplain of the New York Regiment of Infantry during World War II. Half-price same-day Broadway show tickets are available at the TKTS Box Office, located in the center of Duffy Square. The ticket offices, renovated in 2008, are covered on its roof with wide steps in the form of a staircase that allow visitors to sit or enjoy a panoramic view. On May 25, 2009, the city council temporarily closed the section of Broadway that runs through Times Square to pedestrian traffic. The experiment was a great success and it has become a permanent pedestrian plaza where the place is more enjoyable with new metal benches, chairs and tables. Times Square has its own police station, its street cleaning company, and its tourist office that has all the information about the city, and it is also a small museum dedicated to this important square. Times Square wouldn’t be recognizable without its amazing illuminated signs. An image that is admired by two million people who pass through this square every day and many millions more in the world who enjoy it through photographs, paintings, cinema and television. Times Square began to fill with large advertisements in 1916, when the City Council encouraged its installation in this part of the city. Since then there are many who have passed through here, some true works of art. In addition, they played an important role in the remodeling of the square during its most decadent period: as a measure of pressure on the city’s rulers, one night their neighbors turned off all the signs for 15 minutes. The measure had excellent results and the negotiation was carried out. Today, a municipal ordinance obliges the buildings in this area to give up their facade for the installation of such advertisements. 🎥 : Times Square in 1932 (Colorized) 🎥© lostintimevid (IG) #archaeohistories

Archaeo - Histories

39,490 次观看 • 1 年前

#Bangladesh: India's Reckless Actions Are Worsening the Flood Crisis in Southeast Bangladesh For the first time in generations, Bangladesh's entire southeastern region is facing its worst flooding in history affecting millions of people. The cause? Indian authorities opened the gates of the Dumbur Reservoir in Tripura for the first time in three decades, releasing massive volumes of water into an already rain-soaked region. (Read: Could there have been flooding without India opening the Dumbur Reservoir gates? Perhaps yes, but on a significantly smaller scale. The sudden release of water from the dam has inundated the region to an extent it hasn't experienced in generations. International law obliges India to notify Bangladesh of any actions that could cause significant harm downstream. Yet, India's failure to notify Bangladesh before opening the gates has caused significant distress and damage. Unfortunately, the Dumbur Reservoir is just one of many dams India has built on the rivers that flow into Bangladesh. Of the 54 transboundary rivers shared between the two countries, India has constructed dams on at least 30 of them, with the Farakka Dam being the most infamous for its catastrophic impact on northern Bangladesh. India's unilateral construction of dams and its arbitrary control of water flows have become a constant threat to Bangladesh, causing either drought or flooding downstream. This reckless behavior has devastated millions of lives and wreaked havoc on the environment. For example, over 80% of Bangladesh's 20 million small farmers depend on water flowing through these transboundary rivers to grow rice. (Source: By inflicting such widespread damage, India is effectively breaching international law on a regular basis. Here are some of the key obligations that India is failing to uphold: 1) Under Articles 5 and 6 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses (1997), upstream and downstream countries have the right to equitably and reasonably utilize shared waters. 2) Article 7 of the 1997 Convention, along with customary international law, obliges upstream countries, like India, to prevent significant harm to downstream nations, such as Bangladesh. 3) The Espoo Convention (1991) and customary international law mandate that upstream countries notify and consult with downstream states before undertaking any activities that could significantly affect shared waters. Yet, India has consistently ignored these obligations and has never acknowledged the rights of Bangladesh and its people under international law. Despite these hostile actions, Indian officials continue to claim that they are friendly neighbors—yet they wonder why Bangladeshis hold such deep resentment against them. Is India truly a friendly neighbor to Bangladesh? Their actions speak louder than their words.

Sultan Mohammed Zakaria

321,145 次观看 • 2 年前

In Remembrance of Hedy Lamarr. Born | November 9, 1914 in Vienna, Austria. Died | January 19, 2000 aged 85 in Casselberry, Florida, USA. Hedy Lamarr, the woman many critics and fans alike regard as the most beautiful ever to appear in films, was born Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler in Vienna, Austria. She was the daughter of Gertrud (Lichtwitz), from Budapest, and Emil Kiesler, a banker from Lemberg (now known as Lviv). Her parents were both from Jewish families. Hedwig had a calm childhood, but it was cinema that fascinated her. By the time she was a teenager, she decided to drop out of school and seek fame as an actress, and was a student of theatre director Max Reinhardt in Berlin. Her first role was a bit part in the German film Geld auf der Straße (1930) (aka “Money on the Street”) in 1930. She was attractive and talented enough to be in three more German productions in 1931, but it would be her fifth film that catapulted her to worldwide fame. In 1932 she appeared in a Czech film called Ekstase (US title: “Ecstasy”) and had made the gutsy move to appear nude. It's the story of a young girl who is married to a gentleman much older than she, but she winds up falling in love with a young soldier. The film's nude scenes created a sensation all over the world. The scenes, very tame by today's standards, caused the film to be banned by the U.S. government at the time. Hedy soon married Fritz Mandl, a munitions manufacturer and a prominent Austrofascist. He attempted to buy up all the prints of “Ecstasy” he could lay his hands on (Italy's dictator, Benito Mussolini, had a copy but refused to sell it to Mandl), but to no avail (there are prints floating around the world today). The notoriety of the film brought Hollywood to her door. She was brought to the attention of MGM mogul Louis B. Mayer, who signed her to a contract (a notorious prude when it came to his studio's films, Mayer signed her against his better judgment, but the money he knew her notoriety would bring in to the studio overrode any moral concerns he may have had). However, he insisted she change her name and make good, wholesome films. Hedy starred in a series of exotic adventure epics. She made her American film debut as Gaby in Algiers (1938). This was followed a year later by Lady of the Tropics (1939). In 1942, she played the plum role of Tondelayo in the classic White Cargo (1942). After World War II, her career began to decline, and MGM decided it would be in the interest of all concerned if her contract were not renewed. Unfortunately for Hedy, she turned down the leads in both Gaslight (1940) and Casablanca (1942), both of which would have cemented her standing in the minds of the American public. At the beginning of World War II, along with composer George Antheil, Lamarr co-invented a radio guidance system for Allied torpedoes that used spread spectrum and frequency hopping technology to defeat the threat of radio jamming by the Axis powers. This approach, conceptualised as a “Secret Communication System”, was intended to provide secure, jam-resistant communication for weapon guidance by spreading the signal across multiple frequencies. Similar technology was used in operational systems only beginning in 1962, which was well after World War II and three years after the expiry of the Lamarr-Antheil patent. Frequency hopping, which existed and was utilised before the Lamarr-Antheil patent, is a foundational technology for spread spectrum communications. Its principles are utilised for secure wireless networking, including Bluetooth and early versions of Wi-Fi, which use variants of spread spectrum to protect data from interception and interference. In 1949, Hedy Lamarr starred as Delilah opposite Victor Mature's Samson in Cecil B. DeMille's epic Samson and Delilah (1949). This proved to be Paramount Pictures' then most profitable movie to date, bringing in $12 million in rental from theatres. The film's success led to more parts, but it was not enough to ease her financial crunch. She made only six more films between 1949 and 1957, the last being The Female Animal (1957). The 1970s was a decade of increasing seclusion for Lamarr. She was offered several scripts, television commercials, and stage projects, but none piqued her interest. In 1974, she filed a $10 million lawsuit against Warner Bros., claiming that the running parody of her name (“Hedley Lamarr”) in the Mel Brooks comedy Blazing Saddles infringed her right to privacy. Brooks said he was flattered. The studio settled out of court for an undisclosed nominal sum and an apology to Lamarr for “almost using her name”. Brooks said that Lamarr “never got the joke”. In 1981, with her eyesight failing, Lamarr retreated from public life and settled in Miami Beach, Florida. A large Corel-drawn image of Lamarr won CorelDRAW's yearly software suite cover design contest in 1996. For several years, beginning in 1997, it was featured on boxes of the software suite. Lamarr sued the company for using her image without her permission. Corel countered that she did not own rights to the image. The parties reached an undisclosed settlement in 1998. For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Lamarr has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6247 Hollywood Boulevard adjacent to Vine Street where the walk is centered. Lamarr became estranged from her older son, James Lamarr Loder, when he was 12 years old. Their relationship ended abruptly, and he moved in with another family. They did not speak again for almost 50 years. Lamarr left James Loder out of her will, and he sued for control of the US$3.3 million estate left by Lamarr in 2000. He eventually settled for US$50,000. In her later years, Lamarr lived in Altamonte Springs, Florida, before moving to Casselberry, Florida, in the final months of her life. She communicated with family and friends almost exclusively by telephone. However, after moving to Casselberry, two friends who lived nearby would visit her at home to check on her a few times a week. On January 19, 2000, Lamarr was found dead at her home in Casselberry at the age of 85; the cause of death was heart disease. Her son Anthony Loder spread part of her ashes in Austria's Vienna Woods in accordance with her last wishes. In 2014, a memorial to Lamarr was unveiled in Vienna's Central Cemetery. The remainder of her ashes were buried there.

Hollywood Golden Age of Cinema

21,096 次观看 • 8 个月前

The problems in Russia’s oil and gas sector are already becoming systemic. Russia is refining less oil, transporting it at a higher cost, facing problems with export infrastructure, and already losing oil and gas revenues. Let’s take a look at what exactly is happening inside Russia. First, the Russian authorities themselves are no longer treating the shortage as a short-term disruption. A complete ban on diesel exports was introduced in early July, and it is quite likely to be extended through the end of the year. Gasoline exports are banned until January 31, 2027, and jet fuel exports until the end of November. Russia has also started importing additional petroleum products from Asia and Belarus. Second, Russia is physically refining less and less oil. According to Kpler, Russian refineries processed around 3.8 million barrels per day in July - the lowest level in more than two decades. EA Analytics estimates the figure even lower, at approximately 3.6 million barrels per day. For comparison, the normal level for this period in 2020-2025 was 5.3-5.6 million barrels per day. Third, Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries are continuing. A cycle has effectively formed: strike - repairs - partial recovery - another strike. Following the August 21 attack, the Perm Oil Refinery, with an annual capacity of 13.1 million tonnes, was completely shut down. Since August 2025, at least 25 Russian oil refineries have been targeted. Fourth, the diesel shortage is making the economy more expensive - increasing the cost of harvesting, reducing the resilience of Russia’s logistics system, and consequently affecting prices overall. Fifth, even the oil Russia manages to produce is becoming more difficult and expensive to export. In the first half of August, exports from western ports amounted to around 2.3 million barrels per day instead of the planned 2.7 million. Novorossiysk was particularly affected: shipments fell to around 400,000 barrels per day, compared with 800,000-1 million in June-July. Previously, problems at refineries could be partially offset by increasing crude oil exports. But when refineries, ports, terminals and tankers are all being targeted simultaneously, this becomes much harder. Exports have not collapsed, but they have become more expensive and less predictable. The same applies to petroleum products: in July, seaborne exports of fuel oil and vacuum gasoil fell by around 12%, to 2.4 million tonnes. The situation with gas is structurally worse. The Power of Siberia pipeline has already nearly reached its contractual ceiling - around 38.8 billion cubic meters per year. Power of Siberia 2 is primarily constrained by price: China wants gas at a significantly lower price than Russia is willing to sell it for. LNG faces even more problems: the EU has already begun phasing out imports, while redirecting supplies to Asia means longer and more expensive logistics. China is increasing its purchases of Russian gas, but it has not replaced Europe and will not replace it quickly. The most serious problem is the budget. In the first half of the year, Russia’s oil and gas revenues fell by 22.7% year-on-year, and by 16.8% over the first seven months. By January-April alone, the federal budget deficit had reached 5.88 trillion rubles, exceeding the planned deficit for the entire year. On top of this come the costs of refinery repairs, air defense, fuel imports, alternative routes, freight and insurance. Despite all these losses, we can see that Russian oil and gas revenues have not yet collapsed, although adaptation is becoming increasingly expensive. For now, the Kremlin is being helped by the crisis around the Strait of Hormuz, which is keeping oil prices high. At the same time, Russia’s ability to refine and export this oil is deteriorating. So far, high prices are offsetting these losses. If the situation around Hormuz stabilizes and Brent prices fall, the current logistical and fuel problems could become much more serious for Russia.

Anton Gerashchenko

39,422 次观看 • 25 天前

My brother doesn’t get excited about much, so when he sent me a link with the word “ace” written before it, I knew it deserved my time. “Ace” from him translates to “This is the best thing ever!!!” in my language. Our favourite Spanish team, Real Betis, had posted what I would argue to be the greatest thing a football club has ever put on social media—a near shot-for-shot reconstruction of the opening credits to the US Office. The best thing about it, though, is that it’s not in honour of a sexy new signing or the return of Joaquín. No, it’s a contract extension, and that’s it, really. Just a good, loyal player in Aitor Rubial, putting pen to paper for a few more years with Los Verdiblancos, and in a world where very intense kit launches dominate social feeds, this is a lovely, silly change of pace. Aitor Rubial is perfect as Michael Scott and you can tell that he A) LOVES The Office and B) has been given full creative control of the film, taking casting and direction extremely seriously. He’s got his best mate, Héctor Bellerín, as Dwight Schrute, menacingly flaming the office door handle because “today smoking saves lives”. Héctor reappears as Prison Mike in a bandana later on, presumably voicing his concern in Spanish about the threat of dementors. Big, handsome Marc Barta’s there too, relishing his role as Andy Bernard but then popping up as Dwight doing Hannibal Lecter in the ski mask later on. You can tell they all want to be Dwight, and I do, too. Me and my brother have been Beticos since we saw Joaquín and Denilson harassing defences on either wing in those pingy, green Kappa kits of the mid-2000s. Our TV consumption back then was a rotation between Revista de la Liga, WWE, and boxsets of The US Office to wean us through football-less summers. Twenty years on, we both still follow Betis; I still fall asleep to whatever’s happening at Dunder Mifflin, and he sleeps in a bed with his girlfriend. That’s by the by, but anyway he was right. This is ace. Maybe not the best thing ever, but it is definitely ace. Words by Tommy Stewart.

MUNDIAL

12,230 次观看 • 2 年前

Hey gm crypto and AI community, I’ve been following SocialFi since the early days, and I have to say Frog Defense is changing the game for Web3. This isn’t about short-term hype but about building long-term value. Powered by the Kaia blockchain and partnered with LINE Next, the project uses LINE’s massive reach with over 95% penetration across Asia to open the gates for real Web3 traffic. Let’s look closer. Kaia now has more than 45 million unique wallets and around 59 million dollars in transaction volume from payments alone. Frog Defense, currently the number one DApp on Kaia, is driving mass adoption by integrating Mini Apps directly into LINE chats. No extra downloads, no friction, just instant access for millions of users. Unlike TON’s global approach, Kaia focuses on localization. It started with 30 Mini DApps, and Frog Defense was among the first, launching on January 22, 2025. The FOFO token powers the ecosystem, distributing rewards through the Free-Gacha Center. It also integrates DePIN to verify real user activity and AI to optimize rewards. Over 10 million wallet users have turned everyday social interactions into on-chain value, helping Kaia surpass 150 DApps within months. The expansion plan follows an Uber-style model that starts in Taiwan, then expands to Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia. With verified users through KYC, this creates a strong and trusted foundation for growth. Frog Defense isn’t just a game; it’s a platform designed to build a genuine Web3 community and eliminate fake traffic. You can join by registering on BingX here for a chance to win rewards from the 8,200 dollar prize pool: Submit your UID in-game and fill out the Season 2 Qualification Form. Invite friends to boost your airdrop potential and grow the ecosystem together. What do you think of this localization first approach? Drop your thoughts below. #BingXSpotBlast #FrogDefense

Lynn

33,611 次观看 • 10 个月前

A Roman emperor ate his meals in a sea cave, a few feet from a massive marble sculpture of the moment Odysseus blinds the Cyclops. Eventually it lay shattered in thousands of pieces on the floor of that cave, and stayed there until 1957... The emperor was Tiberius, who ruled Rome after Augustus, and the cave is at Sperlonga, on the coast between Rome and Naples. It was a natural grotto opening onto the sea, and he turned it into a private dining hall, with pools of water reaching into the mouth of the cave and a platform where he and his guests reclined to eat, the waves echoing off the rock around them... Definitely not a bad place to host dinner. The sculpture stood at the deepest point of the cave and it showed the most terrifying scene in Homer's poem, when Odysseus and his men are trapped inside the cave of Polyphemus, a one-eyed man-eating giant who has sealed them in with a boulder too heavy to move and is eating the crew alive, one by one. Odysseus cannot simply kill him in his sleep, or they will be entombed with the corpse forever. So he gets the giant drunk, waits for him to pass out, hardens the tip of an olive-wood stake in the fire, and drives it into the Cyclops's single eye. The sculptors depicted the instant just before the stake goes in... The colossal figure of Polyphemus sprawls backward, drunk and unaware. Odysseus, the one closest to the Cyclops, and three of his men strain upward with the spike. It was carved larger than life and set in shadow at the back of the grotto, so that as the lamplight shifted, the whole scene seemed to move over the emperor's dinner. The Roman historians Tacitus and Suetonius both record that in the year 26 AD, while Tiberius was dining there, rocks fell from the roof of the grotto, crushing several of his attendants and nearly killing the emperor, who was shielded and dragged out. In that collapse, or in a later one, the great marble scenes were smashed into thousands of fragments. There they lay, at the bottom of the cave, until 1957, when workers building a coastal road cut into the ground and found them. Among the rubble they pulled out the colossal head of the giant himself, and slowly, piece by piece, the scene was put back together. The cave gave up two more secrets: the first was an inscription, ten lines of Latin verse, praising the grotto and saying that only a new Virgil could do justice to its statues of Scylla and the blinding of the monster by the man from Ithaca. It told the archaeologists exactly what they had found. The second was carved into the base of the neighbouring ship: three names, Athenodoros, Agesander, and Polydorus, the same sculptors the Roman writer Pliny had named as the creators of the Laocoön, the statue I wrote about yesterday. Homer's Odyssey is one of the oldest stories in the world, and it has outlived the emperor, the civilization that first told it, and every person who has ever loved it. Nearly three thousand years later, we are still telling the story of a man lost far from home, because some part of us always is... I started my newsletter because the past is full of stories like this one, and so few people ever stop to tell us why they matter. Every week I try to. If that is something you'd like to be part of, you can join through the link in my bio, and if you'd like to support my work, a paid subscription is what makes it possible. Thanks for reading.

James Lucas

399,527 次观看 • 2 个月前