With Hollywood struggling in China, can the Odyssey draw a crowd?

Emma Thomas, Charlize Theron, Matt Damon and Christopher Nolan attend the premiere of the Odyssey at the China National Film Museum in Beijing in July. Photograph: Yanshan Zhang/Getty Images for Universal Pictures

The Odyssey, Christopher Nolan’s summer blockbuster juggernaut, has overcome an onslaught of attacks from the world’s richest man and stared down criticism from a classicist who translated the poem, to become one of the year’s most celebrated and highest-grossing films.

But this week, the film faces one of its biggest challenges yet.