O’Dessa (2025)
Directed by: Geremy Jasper
Premise: A retelling of the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. In a post-apocalyptic future, a guitar-playing farm girl (Sadie Sink) travels to a city controlled by a television host who keeps citizens entranced with a variety show. She uses her music to make a statement for freedom.
What Works: Some of the press and promotional materials for O’Dessa describe it as a rock opera. It’s technically not that—this is a book musical, not a rock opera—but it definitely shows influence of the rock opera films of the 1970s and 80s, namely Tommy and Pink Floyd’s The Wall. Many of those films commented on life in the post-war era through the lens of rock and roll and often with surreal imagery. O’Dessa is more literal than that but it has a dramatic style and takes place in a fantastic setting that merges retro technology with contemporary anxieties about societal collapse. It’s also about freedom, a theme that is at the heart of rock and roll. O’Dessa’s cinematography and production design are very impressive. The world imagined here may not be totally original but the city feels like a real place inhabited by these people and it is realized vividly on screen. O’Dessa is a musical and that is where it really impresses. The songs by Geremy Jasper and Jason Binnick are great. The songs create a sense of scope and gravitas, making the world of O’Dessa feel bigger than it is, and there is a soulfulness to the songs that is in keeping with the mix of rock and folk music. The music is well performed by Sadie Sink and others. The filmmaking itself is also quite musical, communicating plot, theme, and character development into the imagery and editing.
What Doesn’t: A lot of rock opera-esque films tend to be silly and that’s certainly the case with O’Dessa. It imagines a totalitarian wasteland saved by a renegade with a guitar. It’s a ludicrously simplistic idea and O’Dessa’s literalist limitations (a stylistic choice that defines most contemporary American filmmaking) keeps it superficial. The film’s imagery and commentary are reminiscent not only of the rock operas of the 1970s and 80s but also of the science fiction films of that era such as The Running Man and They Live. A lot of this feels very familiar and there’s nothing in O’Dessa that’s groundbreaking or challenging. The love story is underserved in part because the male lead played by Kelvin Harrison Jr. is underwritten. He’s not a very interesting character which handicaps the love story. The climax depends on O’Dessa going on a limb to save him but the stakes aren’t so involving because the love story isn’t that involving.
Disc extras: Available on Hulu.
Bottom Line: O’Dessa may be a superficial work but it is a beautifully crafted surface. It’s got some great songs, impressive cinematography and production design, and a musical sensibility. There’s not much to it but it is entertaining.
Episode: #1041 (March 30, 2025)