'Tenet' Review
PG-13: Intense sequences of violence and action, some suggestive references, and brief strong language
Runtime: 2 Hrs and 30 Minutes
Production Companies: Warner Bros. Pictures, Syncopy
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Director: Christopher Nolan
Writers: Christopher Nolan
Cast: John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Dimple Kapadia, Michael Caine, Kenneth Branagh, Himesh Patel, Fiona Dourif, Aaron Taylor-Johnson
Release Date: September 3, 2020
Armed with only one word, Tenet, and fighting for the survival of the entire world, a Protagonist journeys through a twilight world of international espionage on a mission that will unfold in something beyond real-time.
There’s no denying that Christopher Nolan is one of the best visionaries of our time. Say what you will about his features, but he’s great at immersing his audience in the scene with action set pieces and his filmmaking. Like many of his previous features, Tenet sees Nolan utilizing practical effects, which help add weight to the action sequences. There’s no green screen; everything is shot on location with epic stunts. Warner Bros. gives the man money to blow shit up with because he’s Christopher Nolan. And because he’s Christopher Nolan, the movie looks cool by default. The majority of the action sequences are absolutely exhilarating in choreography and craftmanship. From the exciting opening heist action sequence, the film throws you right into the frenzy, grabbing your attention with such a masterful set piece that rivals those of The Dark Knight. The more I think about how amazing the set pieces are, the more frustrated I get over the film’s lack of soul.
As far as being a director goes, Nolan is amazing, but lately, he’s been lackluster as a storyteller. Take Dunkirk, for example, which is great from a technical standpoint but hollow in terms of character and story. The same applies to Tenet. The film boasts John David Washington in the lead role as an agent named “The Protagonist” (I kid you not) who gets recruited to save the world from a Russian arms dealer by using time inversion. Early in the film, Robert Pattinson’s character Neil tells JDW, “Don’t try to understand any of this.” You can tell that this piece of dialogue is basically Nolan telling the audience to leave their brain at the door, but as the narrative progressives, he hypocritically has characters — spies who somehow act like they have a friggin’ college degree in physics — go on five-minute rants about how time inversion works. It doesn’t help that the sound design is terrible where his characters mumble every line and are competing over the bombastic, yet epic, score by Ludwig Goransson. It feels as if Nolan is constantly talking down to the audience by having his characters explain the plot or the theory of time inversion rather than giving us other essential storytelling tools to give this action spectacle any substance.
The narrative itself is very much on par with a classic Bond film, but with a sci-fi angle. However, at least Bond had personality and the tone for the films ranged from being playful to over-the-top, which helped make the franchise as iconic it is today. Tenet takes itself too damn seriously and tries so hard to be intellectual as an excuse for its bland storytelling. Many consider the plot confusing, but I find it to be straightforward. The plot applies the hero’s journey template and by the midpoint, it continues everything the viewer has just seen, but in reverse. When you take this puzzle of an action story at face value, the result is pretty weak story-wise due to the lack of personality.
While I think John David Washington has the potential to be a charismatic leading man, he’s not given much character or personality, which prevents the audience from investing in him. He certainly has the chops and charm for the job, but the film’s overall tone is too stern and straight-laced for its rather absurdist plot, so he doesn’t make a valuable impression. It’s great to have a Black lead and the film doesn’t even mention race at all, yet he acts very much like a token character. For God’s sake, HIS NAME IS “THE PROTAGONIST.” He's the central character, but he’s given material equal that of an NPC in a video game. The person who steals his spotlight is the dashing Robert Pattinson.
Pattinson plays Neil, who is The Protagonist’s assistant. He’s like the Kato to The Protagonist’s Green Hornet, for he has some sliver of a personality, is given some of the best lines, and actually makes for an enticing character. Plus, he’s oh so pretty. Whenever JDW and Pattinson are on screen together, there are some signs of life due to their natural chemistry.
The only character who is given at least some sort of an arc is Kat (Elizabeth Debecki), who is the estranged wife to the antagonist Andrei (Kenneth Branagh). Her arc is breaking free from being a domestically abused housewife.
Oh, Nolan, one day you’ll write a decent female character that isn’t a victim to some sort of torture or motivation for the antagonist. While Debicki serves a decent performance and Nolan lets her be the tall queen that she is, it’s such a thankless role for such a talented actress. Seriously, Debicki’s acting credits include being a hot villain in Guy Ritchie’s The Man From UNCLE, a woman realizing her own worth in Widows, and a high priestess in the MCU, so it’s a major waste of her talent to cast her as a damsel in distress.
As someone who really wanted to enjoy Tenet, I was completely let down. Once again, from a technical standpoint, the film is a marvel to look at. But there comes a point where Nolan's attention to detail as a visionary filmmaker fails to compensate for his current lack of storytelling abilities. Despite its original concept, the fact that the film doesn’t display any liveliness or personality outside of its exciting action sequences makes Tenet such a chore to sit through, especially given its excruciatingly long running time. For a film that is meant to play with the concept time, it sure wastes a lot of time before delivering any sort of genuine enjoyment. Whatever. Sorry, Nolan. This wasn’t the movie to unite the world and send people to theaters during this crucial time. Have fun trying to recoup the lost money through home video sales!
