Interstellar, Dunkirk, and now this year's Tenet. Designed as being an action-thriller mixed with elements of science fiction, the film has seen its released date pushed back twice before finally landing in theaters as the first major blockbuster released during the Covid-19 pandemic. One of Nolan's signature trademarks as a filmmaker, is his ability to craft unique storylines that revolve around the concept of time with events in the story jumping back and forth in the form of a puzzle with the audience being left to put all the pieces together. While Tenet isn't as groundbreaking as Inception nor as well-told of a story as Memento, the film still stands as being a visually stunning and well-executed heist thriller, that acquires all the classic trademark elements which audiences have come to know and love about Nolan as both a writer and director along with the film currently standing as being one of the best films of 2020 thus far. Given that the film is being positioned as one of the first big event films released in hopes of slowly bringing audiences back to theaters as the cases of Covid-19 continue to prove, its strong quality helps in reassuring audiences a promising and hopeful future for Cinema with a film like this being made specifically for the theater experience.
The plot for Tenet centers around a clandestine CIA agent (Played by John David Washington), who teams up with another operative (Played by Robert Pattinson) in trying to save humanity from complete and total annihilation. In addition to saving the world, they attempt to rescue a young beautiful woman (Played by Elizabeth Debicki) from her murdering Russian oligarch husband (Played by Kenneth Branagh). In order to achieve both parts of their mission, they must move forwards and backwards within time, using technology from the future that's been left in the past. For Christopher Nolan fans as well as audiences in general, Tenet serves up another explosive action spectacle and cleverly plotted story that audiences have become accustomed to with his style of filmmaking. The film boasts fantastic action set-pieces with strong performances from its main cast and direction, that's both steady-handed as well as being expertly well-crafted. As an action film, Tenet stands out as being more complexed in regards to story but thrives on the level of delivering terrific popcorn entertainment. Out of all the screenplays Nolan has written thus far, Tenet stands as being is his most ambitious and challenging concept with audiences being required to watch the film more than once to catch everything as they most likely won't be able to upon their first initial viewing. What this film does along with others that Nolan has directed, is not just show him as being an auteur type of filmmaker but also a magician type in the sense that he keeps his audience guessing on what's happening in the story with them becoming ultimately involved with the plot . Nolan once again abandons the conventional form of storytelling and dares to take his audience on a rollercoaster ride, that dazzles and makes them unlock the mysteries regarding the plot. The film has everything that Nolan fans desire from enjoying his past films while presenting a unique type of action film, that revolves around the concept of time-bending mixed with a James Bond style plot combined with insane action sequences, including one involving a 747 Jet crashing into a hanger. Whereas audiences may not fully understand what's happening in Tenet, they'll be engaged in the action unfolding on the screen as well as impressed by Nolan's ambitious nature of storytelling that once again attempts to pull the rug from underneath its audience while reaching for the stars. Tenet is a pure example of top-notch filmmaking that dares to take its preferred genre in a unique direction with its filmmaker at the helm continuing to expand his craft while utilizing the most out of his hugely talented cast. Although Tenet doesn't rank among Nolan's finest work, it has enough elements drawn from those movies to blend together into another brilliantly written and masterfully directed action spectacle.
One of the key aspects of Nolan's films that helps make his stories so believable and convincing, are the different types of actors and actresses that he chooses for his roles. The cast for Tenet is extraordinarily talented with Nolan helping advance the careers of appealing young talents such as John David Washington and Robert Pattinson. One of the most interesting approaches that Nolan takes in regards to conducting the casting for his films, is his ability to take well-established actors and cast them in roles that generally go against the type of films or characters they've played before previously. With the lead role, John David Washington proves to be a bold and fantastic choice as the films main protagonist, a CIA agent who manipulates the flow of time in order to prevent World War lll. Washington is fantastic here along with showing charisma as the films leading man. He plays a James Bond style character with strong action and dramatic appeal, that manages to keep the audience engaged in the story. One looks forward to his steadily rising career with a great deal of interest. Robert Pattinson also manages to impress here with him playing Washington's characters handler Neil. Pattinson once again puts his charm on full display with him continuing to display his skills as a more serious actor outside of the Twilight universe (Which most audiences would prefer to forget when looking at Pattinson). Both Washington and Pattinson are engaging when placed together on screen along with them displaying strong chemistry. Elizabeth Debicki impresses as Katherine Barton, the estranged wife of the films antagonist Sator, whom both the protagonist and Neil work to save as well as the rest of the world. Debicki does well with her part and conveys the right levels of emotion that her role requires, along with working great off Washington. Kenneth Branagh continues to demonstrate that he's one of the most talented actors in Hollywood with him proving to be highly effective in the role of being the films main villain Andrei Sator, a Russian oligarch who communes with the future. Branagh is calm, calculated, and menacing in his role with him appearing to play what could easily be a fantastic bad guy in a classic 007 movie. His moments with Debicki's character are extremely memorable and effective with their characters being shown to bounce off each other with their estranged marriage. The rest of the supporting cast delivers notably effective performances with Dimple Kapadia as arms trafficker Priya, Martin Donovan as the protagonists CIA boss Fay, Fiona Dourif as leader of Blue Team Wheeler, Yuro Kolokolnikov as Sator's bodyguard Volkov, Aaron Taylor-Johnson as military commander Ives, and Sir Michael Caine in a minimal yet charming role as British Intelligence Officer Sir Michael Crosby. As a whole, the cast for Tenet is well-assembled and plays a large part in the film being both exciting and thrilling to watch with everyone bringing their A game to the project. There isn't one performance in the film that feels lackluster nor disappointing with everyone appearing to be genuinely thrilled to be apart of it. The charismatic talents of both John David Washington and Robert Pattinson are put on full display here with both young actors clearly shown to have bright futures in store for them with Elizabeth Debicki delivering a strong female supporting role on the side. With Tenet, Nolan once again puts together a well-rounded and extremely talented cast that goes above and beyond in helping bring his unconventional story to the big screen in a larger-than-life fashion.
The films directing by Nolan once again earns praise for his continued display of being a filmmaker in complete and total command of his masterful craftsmanship as a director. Nolan's style of directing is all about giving audiences the most cerebral and complexed moviegoing experience possible when telling his stories with Tenet proving to be no exception. Here he shoots the film in a fashion that gives the story an epic feel to it with Nolan once again utilizing an IMAX presentation. The films cinematography is breathtaking with the set locations being beautifully shot along with the action sequences being marvelously filmed, particularly when they're shown going backwards in time. The latter gives audiences instant flashbacks to Inception with the time-bending style of action being displayed on the screen . The films cinematography is portrayed as appearing frentic with the filming of action sequences carrying a blink and you'll miss it approach, along with Nolan conducting his traditional in-camera approach with key moments in the story. The most appealing aspect in regards to the films camera work are the forward and backwards filming of the films action sequences, which are not only visually dazzling as well as incredible to watch on the big screen, but will leave audiences questioning how Nolan and his team were able to pull it off. One sequence in particular that's both visually striking and incredible to watch is a scene in which Washington's character goes backwards in time with his character being shown to move forward while everything else in the scene either reverses or repeats. His character also wears a mask to conserve the air he brought with him in an approach similar to James Cameron's Avatar with the humans wearing Oxygen masks on Pandora due to the lack of air. Such a sequence is mesmerizing because of all the different cuts and editing techniques, that went into pulling off such a stunning moment. The films score by Ludwig Goransso is well-handled and effective in regards to enhancing both the tension and drama unfolding throughout the story. Goransso's work not only feels inspired but serves as being a worthy fill-in for Hans Zimmer's absence as the longtime music collaborator of Nolan's work is busy scoring the much anticipated remake of Dune. The films editing keeps the story moving at a rapid pace while doing a solid job of portraying time running both backwards and forward with the audience getting moments to exhale during the quieter character moments shown. Much has been said about the films technical elements, particularly its sound effects which often becomes so overpowering in terms of volume that audiences have noted having trouble hearing the actors dialogue during the films intense action sequences. While it can be said that the sound mixing is more enhanced in comparison to Nolan's other films, the strong criticisms regarding the difficulty hearing the characters dialogue appears to be a bit exaggerated as the noise never becomes louder than the actors voices. The impact of the films action scenes however, are further emphasized and driven home by the power of its top-notch sound mixing. In terms of the films visual effects, Nolan once again opts for less CGI and more practical effects to enhance the realism of the action. Some of the films fantastic set-pieces include a car chase on the freeway that includes vehicles driving backwards and flipping over along with an actual 747 Jet crashing into a hanger. What's most impressive about Nolan's directing is his determination to outdo his previous efforts, as well as providing another visually captivating puzzle for audiences. With Tenet, he manages to push the boundaries of technology again in regards to what's possible to show without overdoing it in terms of CGI. In terms of storytelling, Nolan feels like a modern version of Stanley Kubrick in taking his audience on a bizarre and wild experience which makes little to no sense at first, but ends up being both a stimulating and rewarding experience that draws audiences back to it with repeat viewings.
The films screenplay by Nolan is written in a form that isn't designed to spoonfeed the plot to audiences, but allows them to become immersed in the main characters experience along with them trying to put together the pieces regarding what's happened in the past, what's happening in the present, and what's going to happen in the future with the main characters. John David Washington's character is given minimal background information with the audience never being given his name other than him addressing himself as "the protagonist" in the story. The same also appears to be the case with Robert Pattinson's character Neil. Whereas the audience never truly get to know the lead characters on a more personal level, they find themselves being engaged with them anyway with the scenarios they're shown being thrown into regarding the saving of mankind while time-bending. The concept of Kenneth Branagh's character mastering his plot to take out the world through his dealings in the future is a compelling one, along with the subplot involving his wife trying to free both herself as well as her son from being forcibly bound to him, which gives his character more of a complex. The storyline for Tenet feels like the greatest imitation of a James Bond film that Nolan has made thus far, with it probably being the closest hell ever get to making one. The plot for Tenet plays out more than being just a mindless popcorn blockbuster, it blends shades of other genres into its plot structure such as science fiction with the whole time-travel and bending concept as well as boasting a complicated heist plot in the mix. The audience is given just enough information about the characters to become connected with them with the plot having numerous twists and turns to keep the audience on their feet in regards to figuring out what's happening within the story. The plot for Tenet is one that requires a great deal of patience and thought from its audience in regards to putting all the pieces together. While its almost certainly not possible to fully grasp the films main concepts and themes upon first viewing, it carries enough intrigue with its plot and entertainment value to make audiences revisit it in the same style as Inception and Memento. As a screenplay, Tenet is brilliantly written with dialogue that's sharp and a plot that holds the audiences interest with the writing meshing together numerous plot elements such as time travel, World War lll, fulfilling one's duty, estranged marriages, terrorism, and the concept of free will with an end message that effectively says that what has happened, happened. Or has it.
As Hollywood becomes more and more reliant on franchise-driven stories, Disney remakes or comic book films, the presence of Tenet feels like an occasion that feels more rare in today's mainstream Hollywood. The film is not for everyone and will generate a divisive response like some of Nolan's previous work such as The Prestige and Interstellar, largely due to the fact that the plot is too confusing to follow with the whole time jumping concept. It doesn't rank among Nolan's best as the script needed more elaboration on the characters, but it's also not one of his worst. The film falls somewhere in the middle of an unusual yet remarkable resume of a director who continues to demonstrate his impeccable talents as a filmmaker. Regardless of how one feels about the film, they cannot deny that Tenet excels in delivering an experience that's not only exhilarating but combines all the strongest traits of Nolan as a filmmaker. While Tenet may not be the film to save Hollywood during the Covid-19 pandemic, it shows that there's still value with the theater experience along reassuring that boldness and originality in regards to storytelling isn't completely extinct. Tenet serves as a perfect representation of top-notch filmmaking with the audience being blown away by the sheer spectacle placed on the screen. Even though the story may be too difficult to understand with audiences being left scratching their heads, it's an highly enjoyable piece of Cinema that stands as being a striking action-thriller with a heavy dose of brain and intelligence incorporated. On a visual note, the film is a stunning masterpiece with Nolan crafting another unique experience that demands to be seen on the big screen (Appropriately when it's safe). Although the film may leave a bit to be desired with audiences in regards to more character exploration and a straight-forward narrative, others will be blown away and puzzled by Tenet's desire to make the audience figure out the clues regarding the films storyline. It's a film that absolutely lives up to its promise of both entertaining and dazzling its target audience, but will require them to figure out the mysteries regarding the plot themselves with stellar performances and solid action to make the experience more enjoyable. As far as action and heist films go, Tenet proudly stands above the others and further challenges the conventional way of thinking in regards to what's expected from those respective genres. For those who are able to see the film in a nearby theater that's reopened or a drive-in, they are encouraged to do so as the film will ultimately prove to be a hugely rewarding experience on the big screen.
Final Verdict: For both movie lovers and Christopher Nolan fans, Tenet is a richly thrilling experience that serves as a must see (Under the right safety conditions).
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