My initial experience watching Tenet in cinemas left me disappointed. While I enjoyed the experience, I struggled to keep up with the plot. By the third act, I was utterly unengaged with the story and was simply admiring the visuals. However, upon multiple rewatches, I've come to appreciate Tenet more and find it increasingly rewarding.
Tenet is undeniably Christopher Nolan's most challenging film and stands as one of the least accessible mainstream blockbusters I've seen. It not only benefits from repeated viewings but actually requires them. While some may consider this a failure on the part of the filmmakers, I found it intriguing. Tenet is undoubtedly one of the most ambitious and original blockbusters in recent memory.
Arguably the most confusing sequence in the entire film is the opening. While I understood the general plot, it was unnecessarily complex. To add to the confusion, the dialogue is tough to hear in several scenes, which has become the norm in Nolan films. The fact that the characters are wearing masks also makes it impossible to lip-read. Because this opener is so dense with its plotting, it does feel like you are playing catchup from the beginning. Nevertheless, it is an astonishing action sequence with incredible stunts, cinematography and music. The imagery of trains moving forwards and backwards simultaneously perfectly captures the film's core ideas.
Breaking from tradition, Christopher Nolan enlisted Ludwig Göransson as the composer instead of Hans Zimmer, and Göransson delivers an outstanding score. It possesses the same level of intensity as previous Nolan-Zimmer collaborations while having its own quintessential Göransson touch. As the story becomes more complex, with certain characters moving backwards in time while others move forward, the score follows suit, incorporating compositions played in reverse. Overall, Göransson has crafted a classic score featuring standout compositions like "RAINY NIGHT IN TALLINN," "MEETING NEILL," "747," "SATOR," "TRUCKS IN PLACE," and "POSTERITY."
Kenneth Branagh's portrayal of the villain, Sator, is a standout performance. Although the character may seem generic on paper, Branagh brings him to life with a wonderfully over-the-top performance and a sinister Russian accent that surprisingly works.
While the movie's main talking point is the use of time and, more specifically, inversion, the first half of this film plays out like a James Bond-type spy thriller, albeit an incredibly complicated one. Once inversion is fully introduced, the movie becomes insane, with characters going forward and backwards in time simultaneously. Like Nolan's other high-concept sci-fi films, such as Inception and Interstellar, he excels at grounding these seemingly fantastical concepts in reality through practical effects and realistic action sequences. The first inversion scene, seen from The Protagonist's perspective (played by John David Washington), effectively immerses viewers in this extraordinary concept.
And while the film's second half deals with inversion and time travel, it is less complicated than the first hour. Along with the score, which helps distinguish forward and backward scenes, the colours of red and blue are also used to brilliant effect here. Nolan's colour palettes are often awash with browns and greys, so the use of reds and blues is pretty startling.
While grounded in reality and featuring familiar scenarios, the action sequences gain a refreshing uniqueness through the element of inversion. Whether it's a one-on-one fight or a car chase, the aspect of time travel adds an entirely fresh and original dimension. By the final act, the action becomes pure chaos, as armies battle in an urban setting while simultaneously moving forwards and backwards in time.
While I enjoy all the characters in this film, it's mainly due to the compelling and charismatic performances of the wonderful cast, including John David Washington, Elizebeth Debicki and Robert Pattinson. Nevertheless, this wasn't a massive problem for me, especially on rewatches, as I was so wrapped up in the plot. If the story loses you, however, the characters themselves may not be strong enough to hold your interest. The film heavily emphasises making Kat (played by Debicki) and her son the emotional core, which sometimes feels a little forced.
Overall, Tenet is not perfect. For a film with such high concepts, the overall narrative plot points are a little too complicated, especially in the first half. The characters may lack depth, and it may take multiple viewings to fully comprehend the plot. Despite these issues, Tenet remains an incredibly original and awe-inspiring film that respects its audience's intelligence. Even if the story proves elusive, the visual experience alone is worth the watch. As Clémence Poésy's character wisely suggests, "Don't try to understand it. Feel it."
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