TENET (PG-13)
Released by Warner Brothers Pictures
Review by Adam Mast
“TENET has…the…wh…but…is…He…But…And…Jus…Be…Nolan…Coronavirus!
If you’re having trouble understanding what I just said in that opening sentence then that should give you a little idea of exactly how I felt throughout important (and excessive) exposition-heavy stretches of Christopher Nolan‘s latest time-bender, TENET, because, yes…The sound mix in this picture is just as irritating as you’ve been hearing. Or not hearing. On the other hand, given that we currently live in a time when a great deal of the population is wearing masks, it only seems appropriate that our first major tent pole movie release to drop in theaters during the pandemic, would feature characters that sound as if they’re actually talking through masks.
Now that I’ve gotten that frustrating sound mix stuff out of my system–matters that aren’t helped much by Ludwig Goransson‘s bombastic and intrusive score (it feels as if said score is laid over 99% of the film)– it should be noted that while TENET isn’t Nolan’s worst movie (that dubious honor still goes to an incredibly disappointing THE DARK KNIGHT RISES) it’s a far cry from his best. That said, I’ll forever be a Nolan fan because, at the very least, this is one brainy storyteller who always swings for the fences. There’s something to be said for that.
In TENET, John David Washington (BLACKKKLANSMAN) is the Protagonist, a CIA operative commissioned by a secret organization to bring Russian baddie, Andrei Sator (Kenneth Branagh), to justice before he can start World War 3. Along the way, this mysterious op teams with suave Neil (Robert Pattinson) and bonds with Sator’s lady friend, Kat (Elizabeth Debicki), in what could be best described as a sort of time inversion take on a globe-trotting Bond adventure. Yes…Time inversion. As you’ve probably seen in the trailers, the concept of time is played with throughout TENET but to a much less interesting degree than, say, INCEPTION deals with dream logic. Speaking of which, while I don’t want to go into a bunch of spoiler territory here, I will say that if you were hoping that the rumors of TENET actually being an INCEPTION stealth sequel were true, you’ll walk away sorely disappointed, because this film is not part of that universe. Maybe spiritually, but certainly not in the literal sense.
Clearly, Nolan is working on a different wavelength than the majority of his contemporaries and that’s why he’s one of the most celebrated filmmakers of the last 20 years. But with TENET, he’s crafted a film that’s far more interesting from a visual standpoint than it is from a story or character standpoint. Look no further than a plethora of breathtaking inversion sequences in which we experience hand on hand combat sequences in reverse and we see buildings imploding, exploding, and reconstructing themselves. Cool looking stuff. If only the story or characters were as remotely interesting. If only the rules as presented in TENET made more sense. If only we could hear and understand all of those rules.
This time around, it feels as if Nolan is trying too hard and the end result is a film that’s not as intriguing as it aspires to be. And it’s unnecessarily complicated where similarly themed movies like THE MATRIX, THE TERMINATOR, and even Nolan’s own INTERSTELLAR, take a more accessible approach. One that simply makes more sense. This isn’t to say I need everything spelled out for me but TENET too often feels as if it’s more interested in confounding viewers instead of engaging them.
In terms of performances, as strong as Washington was in Spike Lee‘s Oscar-winning BLACKKKLANSMAN, perhaps he wasn’t quite ready to carry a film of this size on his shoulders. The physicality is there. He can kick ass with the best of them. But his Protagonist is seriously lacking in charisma and quite honestly, he has almost zero chemistry with Debecki. Because of this, he’s less dynamic and less interesting than his obvious inspiration; 007! But then, a lot of that is simply the character as written and that’s on Nolan. Branagh proves to be an entertaining antagonist bringing a bigger than life persona to his role that might remind some of Gary Oldman’s menacing blowhard baddie in Luc Besson’s THE PROFESSIONAL. Pattinson is fun here. There isn’t a whole lot to his character but I’ll be darned if Pattinson isn’t likable and that carries his Neil a long way. Elsewhere, TENET is populated with terrific actors who aren’t really given a whole heck of a lot to do. Be it a sorely underused Michael Caine, who shows up for about 3 minutes, or a virtually unrecognizable Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who feels as if his character should be far more important than he actually is, none of these smaller supporting characters end up leaving much of an impression. If there’s a standout performance in TENET, it’s Debecki as a woman who finally decides she’s had enough. This wonderful actress refuses to let her scorned Kat devolve into second-rate Bond babe terrain and TENET is all the stronger for it.
As for the concept of time, the trailers for TENET were quick to point out that this isn’t a movie about time travel but more of a story about time inversion. To that, I say yeah, right…And the aliens in INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL weren’t actually aliens. They were interdimensional beings. Whatever the case may be, when I walked out of INCEPTION, THE PRESTIGE, and MEMENTO, I was so engaged that I wanted to rush right out and watch them again. This wasn’t the case after TENET came to a close. This isn’t to suggest I won’t feel differently about it later, but at the moment, I’d much rather go see BILL AND TED FACE THE MUSIC for a second time. It might be a far less brainy movie but it has a lot more heart, I found it more engaging, and it most certainly goes a long way to suggest time is more of a friend than an enemy. All of that said, again, I don’t want to give the impression that I don’t appreciate and respect Nolan’s artistry and intelligence. I’ll always be first in line for a Nolan movie! As I said at the top of the review, this is one ambitious storyteller who always swings for the fences but where he often hits a triple or knocks it out of the park, TENET feels more like a hit-by-pitch.
