Tenet
Starring: John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Kenneth Branagh, Michael Caine, Martin Donovan, Dimple Kapadis, Laurie Shepherd, Himesh Patel
Directed by: Christopher Nolan
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Science Fiction, Thriller
2020

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: A man (John David Washington) becomes involved in a global chase to retrieve a device that could destroy the world.

Review:

Tim: Christopher Nolan is one of the rare directors where nearly everything he does is an event. Tenet definitely falls into that category. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and while I do have several issues with it, it's still a very entertaining film. It'll always hold a bit of a soft spot in my heart because it's the only film I saw in theaters in 2020. Amidst a global pandemic, only one film got me to brave theaters (with a face mask and during a weekday to minimize contact). I wouldn't have risked my health for many films, but a Christopher Nolan one counts.

I felt similar about Tenet to how I felt about Interstellar. Both films are brilliant but flawed stories. There's something so elevated, so challenging about both films. You appreciate that Nolan refuses to dumb his movies down, to simplify them for audiences. He tells the challenging, complex story that he wants to tell. Now, while Interstellar fell just across the line of greatness, I think Tenet falls just short.

On the plus side, Tenet offers some wonderful, thought-provoking scenes. It plays with your concept of time and forces you to think non-linearly. I certainly never expected to see a movie whose climax is based around a "temporal pincer movement", but here we are. The idea of inverted people or bullets is a complicated and cool concept. Nolan offers some stunning imagery- a backwards car chase, an airplane smashing into a building, a final battle that features two branches of a military force moving forwards and backwards in time simultaneously. Few directors would have the audacity to try such a convoluted, aggressively unique story. For that reason, Nolan crafts another must-see film.

However, Tenet also has a dark side. Upon further scrutiny, much in the movie doesn't quite hold up. I know Nolan attempts to explain it all during dialogue-heavy scenes, but it's not always believable. I thought a lot about this movie after seeing it the first time and I read a lot of reviews, too. It's ambitious and intellectual and it's also a bit of a mess, too. Stories need more than to just be explained- you have to trust the internal logic of the story. Tenet tries to explain things, but the whole film kind of feels like building a castle out of a deck of cards. It's flimsy. The best way to watch the movie is to not think too deeply about the time travel aspects. The idea of a gun "catching" a bullet sounds super cool, but it doesn't actually make any sense. Nolan crafted a screenplay that was oozing with coolness and it sacrificed a lot of believability to do this. Contrast this with Inception, another Nolan movie that might have had some internal logic issues. It felt like much less of a problem there. Nolan convinces the audience to go along with him, to enjoy the ride. That's much harder with Tenet. It's confusing and occasionally borders on nonsensical. The second viewing helps for sure, but there's deeper issues with the script than with the audience understanding Nolan.

The movie is also quite frankly too long. Had the movie been a bit more accessible and less convoluted, maybe we could have sat happily for 2 hours and 30 minutes. The film certainly drags in places and could have easily been tightened up.

Nolan always assembles impressive casts and that's the case here. John David Washington is a wonderful actor and I love how his career has skyrocketed in recent years. He has a lot of his father's star quality, but he is his own person and I love that he embraces all sides of him as a performer. He's likable, charismatic, and comes across as authentic. He makes a great Protagonist. Robert Pattinson has been doing terrific work for years. It was fun seeing him in a big blockbuster here. He again shows his talent and range as an actor. It was interesting that he spends much of the film as "the sidekick", but he wins the audience over. I felt a strong emotional connection to his character by the end of the film. Elizabeth Debicki wasn't nearly as good. I've enjoyed her in other films, but something about her performance bothered me here. I was never as invested in her character or story as I needed to be. Her scenes are among the slowest of the film and bog the movie down. Kenneth Branagh is fantastic as the villain and delivers a truly menacing performance. I love Michael Caine, but his exposition-heavy role here felt forced. Dimple Kapadis gives a strong performance and I really enjoyed Himesh Patel's small supporting role. As a whole, Nolan elevates the cast for sure.

Tenet plays with some truly mind-boggling, incredible ideas. I love the way Nolan plays with time. The visual effects are outstanding and there are so many cool moments throughout the film. We see a fight scene twice, from two different perspectives separated from time. Nolan crashed an actual airplane into a hangar (which is cool because it was real, the actual scene is just okay). The backwards-and-forward car chase was incredible. The finale is pretty spectacular as well. He just creates all these wonderful moments that are far better than most directors working together. These elements all push the film towards greatness. Unfortunately, the film's flaws hold it back. Even after two viewings, I still can't truly articulate the plan of those in the future. It doesn't actually make a whole lot of sense. I likewise struggle to explain the bulk of the film- it sort of makes sense while you're watching it, but afterwards it feels like logic starts to dissipate. Nolan could have made this a great movie, but he didn't quite get there.

That being said, Tenet is still a great success. If Nolan's "off" movies are this good, there's no doubt he is one of the greatest directors of all time. He continues to push the craft and our expectations. This might not be a great movie, but it's an ambitious, entertaining one.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Interstellar, Inception, Dunkirk