If you ask anyone who their favourite film director is, or at least who one of their favourites is, Christopher Nolan is someone who is most likely to come up. He has gained a reputation for making clever, complex, thought provoking, and thoroughly enjoyable films over the last twenty years or so, attracting the attention of many. I've always admired him as a filmmaker, but have recently come to love a lot of what he's made, including The Dark Knight trilogy, The Prestige, Inception, Interstellar, and Dunkirk. So, a new film of his is always welcome.
Having been stripped of cinemas and generally good films from the year 2020, my excitement for Tenet kind of went through the roof. The intriguing look from the trailers as well as the general idea of time being played around with once again was enough to get me on board. However, I was also conscious of the fact that many had said this was Nolan's most complicated and plot-heavy films to date, and that this could weigh the film down, especially for someone like me who is generally rubbish at following along with films. Nevertheless, I was keen to see exactly what Tenet was with hardly any knowledge of what it was actually about.
The plot essentially centres on a man, simply named The Protagonist, who is recruited by a secret organisation to use futuristic technology in order to prevent world war three.
As I hoped, this film is extremely enjoyable. Like all of Nolan's other films, the action stands out as being so different from what we're used to in other blockbusters. The way rewinding time is used is very effective and it gives way for some inventive sequences, including one-to-one fight scenes as well as vehicle chases. There are also many sequences, similar to the climax of Doctor Strange, where characters interact with things that are going a different direction in time to them, creating some very engrossing visuals.
The film also had some terrific performances. John David Washington was great as the protagonist, being very likeable and charismatic, he is definitely an actor with a big future if this and his work in BlacKkKlansman are anything to go by. Robert Pattinson also gives another solid performance, somewhat reminding me of Tom Hardy's character in Inception, that being the extremely British and witty member of the crew. He's also someone who, despite already being well-established, has a big future ahead of him, especially with the upcoming Batman movie. Everyone else such as Kenneth Branagh and Elizabeth Debicki did a good job too.
One thing that concerned me going in was that the film wasn't going to have the usual Hans Zimmer music we've come to expect in a Nolan movie. Fortunately, Ludwig Göransson did the job phenomenally. The score, while occasionally overbearing, was excellent. It set just the right mood / atmosphere and was varied enough from generic action / blockbuster scores to be considered memorable and unique. It's no Inception or Interstellar, but still very impressive.
As far as other things I liked go, one of my favourite things was the themes that the film plays around with. There are so many interesting ideas explored throughout Tenet, such as freewill, predestination, causality and effect, and more. It really leaves you with so much to chew on and think about, much like the best Nolan films do.
Despite all this, there are some issues I take. The most notable is the fact that this is an unbelieveably complicated and very intricately structured film. You really have to pay attention very closely or the film will begin to just feel very confusing, just missing a single line of dialogue could sacrifice your enjoyment of the next twenty minutes or so. While Nolan always does a good job of keeping you entertained even when you're unsure of exactly what's happening, it is nicer to have a strong understanding or the film can feel less engaging. Granted, it took me multiple viewings and a bit of research to fully understand some of Nolan's other films, so this may be less of an issue with the more I look into / rewatch this film.
Also, the film is paced quite clunkily. A lot of the first act and parts of the second feels very rushed and as if the film is just jumping from one set piece to the next with little to tie them together. There is a plane crash as you may have seen in the trailers, and it occurs a lot sooner and with not as much build up as I was expecting. It eventually made sense but it still felt a bit unjustified, almost as if it was just happening for its own sake.
The one other key problem I have is with the stakes, which didn't feel very prominent. The film is about the prevention of a third world war, but aside from that technically being a big deal, I never felt like a lot was on the line. The performances were all great, as I said, but the characters themselves were a bit one note. Compare this to Inception, which I rewatched just before seeing this. That film doesn't have an amazingly fleshed out cast of characters either, but it does have an emotional throughline with the central character of Cobb. It is explicitly clear that much is at stake for him, and once we are shown this, there is a lot of tension created. Additionally, that film was paced and structured a lot better, so the lack of proper character building outside of Cobb was perfectly excusable. Here, there doesn't seem to be much reason to care about what is happening, aside from the threat of war, which is only a threat by default.
The only other thing I'd say was kind of an issue was the style. While the film was visually stunning and always doing something creative, once you strip away the rewinding time gimmick, it feels a tad bit dull. All of Nolan's other films have a distinct style and always something unique going on, to the point where any frame could tell you which one you're watching. Here, it seems more like a generic action spy movie at times without any of Nolan's fingerprints.
All things considered, Tenet wasn't quite the excellent return for Christopher Nolan that I hoped it would be. Fortunately, despite its excessively convoluted story, lack of emotional investment, somewhat weak pacing and slightly bland style, it is still a very enjoyable film. The bold and eccentric action, strong acting, spectacular score and fascinating themes make it something definitely worth thinking about. It'll always be nice to see a mainstream filmmaker doing something genuinely interesting and demanding with everything they do, so even if I didn't love this movie, my respect and appreciation for it is very large. I'm sure I'll probably go back to see this soon, but until I do, I doubt I'll stop wondering what exactly it was. I mean, it's without a doubt the best 2020 film I've seen so far, as if that needed pointing out.
I'm going to give Tenet a 7.5/10
Also, this was my third trip to the cinema post-lockdown, and it was the first time where I was in a room with many other audience members. It may not have been the most safe environment, but it was jolly good to be in the presence of many others absorbing the magic of the big screen. I can't wait to see how this does at the box office this weekend, hopefully it'll save cinemas as we know them!
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