O'Dessa

A ridiculous Frankenfilm, swinging for the fences with other movies’ imaginations.

Everything about the messaging and plotting of “O’Dessa” is shallow.

Too often it seems as if “O’Dessa” the film is striking the same note.

More akin to watching a really long trailer. There’s a distinctive eye here, and a promising sense of ambition. But in its current form, there’s not enough meat on its bones to justify its 106-minute run time.

O’Dessa feels less like a new movie and more like an old lost gem, finally uncovered. It’s an intoxicating pastiche of color and sound, joy and pain.

The fundamental concept and potential of O'Dessa are far more intriguing than the result.

It feels as if [Jasper] deliberately set out to make the contemporary equivalent of the notoriously garish futuristic rock musical The Apple and has unfortunately succeeded in that dubious task.

O’Dessa is ambitious with seemingly endless potential, but in the end, it’s one of those distractions characters in the film routinely talk about, except the only revolution it will inspire is someone looking for something else to stream


Contains some wild world-building and Tomorrowland touches, joined by an excellent soundtrack, which turns this deeply flawed offering into “The Apple” for Generation Z.

There’s a lot of talent on the screen, some catchy music, and some wonderful visuals and design choices, but none of it ever quite adds up to something bigger, leaving us with a film that’s ambitious but strangely hollow.