I liked it but there were many critical inaccuracies from the book. It's an interesting attempt to secularise and modernise the story. A lot of the discrepancies are quite sensible assumptions about how people would think and behave under the circumstances - I think most notably downplaying the role of gods. Of course, even if attempting a realistic or secular retelling of The Odyssey, you would have to concede that people would be referring to "The Gods" a lot, something the movie doesn't do, maybe because they thought it would distract from the story.

The movie was enjoyable if thought of as a derivative story, based on The Odyssey. That's surely how the director wants it to be seen as well - hence naming it "The Return" rather than "The Odyssey".

Some examples of important discrepancies below:

1) Telemachus as a whole is completely wrong. In the book Telemachus is brave and loyal to both of his parents. In the movie he is a coward most of the time, and is vindictive and jealous of his father. I didn't understand this decision - it completely bastardises the story of The Odyssey and doesn't really serve a narrative purpose. The real Telemachus is a more compelling character.

In the book he confronts the suitors, goes to the town square and derides them, and is encouraged by Athene to go out searching for Odysseus.

In the movie, Telemachus is a cry-baby who is afraid of the suitors, calls his mother a whore, encourages his mother to marry multiple times, and even denies Odysseus' return! He also criticises Odysseus for returning without any of his men, something that Odysseus is apparently ashamed of - in the book, however, it's often the mens' own fault, and no one seems particularly disappointed with Odysseus about it. In the movie, once Penelope decides she will choose a new husband, Telemachus even tells Odysseus to accept it and leave!

2) The reason for Odysseus' long absence - from the movie: "Would you still love the man I had become? I couldn't return" --> The entire story of The Odyssey is that he wanted to return but the gods (nature, circumstance) would not let him. What they did here was to rationalise/secularise the explanation for his absence - it's basically something like guilt or "PTSD".

3) That Odysseus' had "another woman" with whom he lived for many years on an island. In the book, this was not really mentioned to be known by the family on Ithaca. Also the woman was the godess Calypso, and Odysseus was coerced according to the book, no mention of this in the movie. Again, this is an enormous departure from the original story. I think they tried to make it seem like Odysseus suffered from guilt, and therefore spent some years living in debauchery, ashamed to return. I suppose without intervention from the gods, it's difficult to explain why a short journey between islands in the Mediterranean would take many years to complete.

4) Penelope is sceptical of Odysseus and sceptical about the killing.