In a Guardian opinion piece, composer Tom Smail assesses Ludwig Göransson's score for Christopher Nolan's blockbuster The Odyssey, arguing it is technically accomplished but ultimately fails to leave a lasting impression, mirroring what he sees as the film's own emotional flatness. Smail, who has personal experience composing in a similar vein, praises the ambition of Göransson's approach while suggesting the result doesn't quite achieve the emotional resonance it aims for.

Nolan reportedly asked Göransson to avoid using a conventional orchestra, instead seeking a "recognisable but unfamiliar" sound world built from bronze gongs, struck metal objects, reconstructed ancient instruments such as the aulos and early lyres, plus synths and intimate vocal groupings. Smail draws parallels with his own work on Jonathan Nossiter's Last Words, which used a similarly earthy "stone, wind and metal" brief, and notes that while he admires Göransson's meticulous, research-driven method, many viewers reportedly found the score emotionally unmemorable, even if that isn't necessarily a flaw since a score's job is to serve the film rather than to be catchy.