Tenet
Christopher Nolan’s latest mysterious thriller delivers exactly what you’ve come to expect from this visionary filmmaker – mind-bending sci-fi concepts coupled with spectacular action set-pieces, and carried by an all-star cast. In a world saturated with reboots and sequels, Nolan continues to stand out as one of the greatest directors of original-concept blockbusters.
Premise: An ex-CIA agent (John David Washington) finds himself recruited into a secret mission to prevent World War III, armed with only one word: “Tenet”.
Review:
Writing a non-spoiler review for a Christopher Nolan original film is easier said than done. In a world where film studio’s marketing departments like to give as much away as possible in trailers to hook audiences into seeing their latest releases, Nolan has a reputation for fighting tooth and nail to keep the details of his films as secret as possible; and I certainly don’t want to spoil that with my review.
What I can say is that if you’ve seen Nolan’s previous original films (especially Inception) you probably have a good idea of the tone of Tenet, even if not its plot. Like Inception, you could categorise Tenet as a “sci-fi espionage” film (if such a sub-genre even exists outside of Nolan’s back catalogue), and like Inception, you get dropped into the action from the opening sequence, with very little idea (initially) what is going on. But like Inception, once you get through the opening section, the concept behind the film is explained by one character to another, and the pieces start to fall into place. That said, just like Inception, there may be places during the film where you’re not entirely sure what’s happening, but you have faith that it will all make sense in the end – and by the time the end credits roll, you finally see the whole picture. When all’s said and done, I did find Tenet a lot easier to follow on my first viewing than I did Inception, probably because Tenet at least is exploring more familiar sci-fi concepts, whereas Inception was building the rules of its dreamscapes from scratch.
“…Tenet is in many respects an out-and-out spy film, just with a Nolan twist…”
I can also say that, even more so than Inception, Tenet feels like it’s Nolan’s heightened version of a Bond movie. Whereas Inception took elements from the spy genre, Tenet is in many respects an out-and-out spy film, just with a Nolan twist. So it has all the trappings of a spy movie – international espionage, tailored suits, exotic locations, shady arms dealers, luxury yachts, and impossible heists. It’s just that with Nolan, you get all that and some mind-bending sci-fi concepts as well, developed in conjunction with theoretical physicist Kip Thorne, who also previously worked with Nolan on Interstellar. All I will say in this regard is that the fact that the word Tenet is a palindrome is not without meaning.
Another of Nolan’s trademarks is his all-star casts, and Tenet doesn’t disappoint on that front either. John David Washington plays the former CIA agent who’s trying to figure out what’s going on just as the audience is, and his blend of charisma and intensity carries the whole film. Following his breakthrough role in HBO’s Ballers and his award-nominated role in BlacKkKlansman, Tenet solidifies John David Washington’s status as a leading man who picks interesting projects (and he’s so much more than just Denzel Washington’s son).
“…sit back and enjoy the spectacularly well staged action set-pieces…”
John David Washington is surrounded by an exceptional supporting cast, some of whom might just appear for a scene or two (Michael Caine, Clémence Poésy, Himesh Patel and Martin Donovan, for example), while others play more substantial roles. Robert Pattinson brings a surprising amount of dry, sardonic humour to his role as a fixer who is recruited by Washington’s character, while Elizabeth Debicki is great as an asset that Washington needs in order to advance his mission. On the one hand, her character is perhaps a little too similar to the characters she played in The Night Manager and Widows (which makes me worried that she might become typecast), but on the other hand, she brings so many shades and layers to her architype character, it’s hard to criticise her casting. Later in the film, Aaron Taylor-Johnson is almost unrecognisable in his role, while Kenneth Branagh gets to indulge his villainous side.
Similarly to Inception, even if you get completely lost when it comes to following the plot (which, in fairness, you shouldn’t do), you can still sit back and enjoy the spectacularly well staged action set-pieces. The film opens with an apparent terrorist siege, and from there Nolan throws in car chases, a break-in at a heavily guarded skyscraper, a raid on an impenetrable vault, and various other action tropes, all of which are dialled up to eleven with Nolan’s typical flair.
“…it’s impressive that ‘Tenet’ pays off all of the various mysteries by the end of the film…”
Overall, there’s a lot to enjoy about Tenet, although some may be put off by what they see as a “confusing” plot. But without wishing to sound sanctimonious, the plot really isn’t that confusing if you’re paying attention, and the parts that are confusing at the time are meant to be confusing at the time, but become clear later on as more information becomes available. In that respect, it’s particularly impressive that Tenet’s script is able to juggle all of the various mysteries and then have them all tied up and paid off by the end of the film, so that a random line said two hours ago near the start of the film has a completely different meaning by the end.
Tenet is undeniably an “intellectual blockbuster”, and what I mean by that is that it’s designed so that you have to pay attention. This certainly isn’t a “popcorn action flick”, and you can’t half-watch it while playing on your phone – and there’s nothing wrong with that. But it’s also a film where the plot is more intellectually satisfying (in terms of how cleverly everything is weaved together) than it is emotionally driven, unlike, say, Interstellar and Inception, which arguably had a bit more heart.
“…a satisfying puzzle-box of a movie, boasting impressive action scenes & mindbogglingly original visuals…”
But these are observations rather than criticisms – Tenet is precisely the film Nolan intended it to be. While you have to pay attention, and while it may lack the emotional impact of Cooper’s relationship with his daughter in Interstellar or Dom’s relationship with Mal in Inception, Tenet is a satisfying puzzle-box of a movie, boasting some of the most impressive action scenes (filmed in IMAX) and mindbogglingly original visuals you’re likely to see this year.
