Tenet review

Director: Christopher Nolan

Rating: 12A

Running time: 2 hours and thirty minutes

I am in the minority of people who doesn't like most of Christopher Nolan's movies, my personal favourite is Batman Begins (of which I also consider to be one of the best comic book adaptations of all time). His others leave me feeling indifferent, they are all wonderful in concept but lacking in the execution department. I do confess to have never seen Inception and Dunkirk, which are two of his more recent movies.

Tenet is the first movie I've seen in the cinema since the middle of March, which was about a week before the national lockdown happened here in the UK. So I was more than pumped to watch the first major release since they reopened, which makes it even more of a shame that I left disappointed and deflated by the movie. Aside from watching the first trailer, I went in knowing almost nothing about Tenet.

The incomprehensible plot revolves around an agent (John David Washington) who has to stop a Russian oligarch (Kenneth Branagh) from using a time bending device that could lead to world war three. It ought to make for a thrilling story, but no cohesive or engaging narrative develops from any of it. Most of it is described through heavy exposition by characters that aren't particularly interesting. That's not to say that there aren't smart moments in the story that blindside your expectations, but the overall package is missing a spine that holds anything together and a central mystery to keep it intriguing.

The movie would be best described as a spy thriller, with elements of the science fiction in the background. It's in the science fiction area of the movie where it showcases some clever moments of visual story telling, but they are in small doses. Not to spoil anything, but the plot does not play out in a typical A to B straight line.  

There's a lot more action than you would expect from a Nolan movie, and like the story, it falls flat when all said and done. From the previous movies that I have seen of his, action scenes are not one of the director's strong points. I appreciate the fact that they are generally edited so that the audience know what's going on in each shot, which is not the case in most action scenes in modern movies. But for me they lack any form of flair that generates excitement. Some of his other movies could get away with this because we cared about the characters, which in turn creates tension. And action without any form of tension is just not effective.

What makes these action scenes even worse is the dreadful, head banging sound mix. Every moment of action or potential tension was ruined by a listless thumping sound that repeated over and over. It happened during character dialogue as well to make things even worse, I honestly cannot remember a sound mix so obnoxious in my life. And I say that as someone who rarely takes much notice of the sound in movies unless it is noticeably good. A movie score should immerse you in the experience regardless of what emotional effect it wants to have on you. This is the first time I've seen a movie where the sound mixing actively hindered my enjoyment. 

Tenet is an above average movie that feels like a wasted opportunity, it's not without its merits, there's a lot of ambition and the story for all of its faults does come full circle and end in a satisfying way. And I thought Robert Pattinson and Elizabeth Debicki were pretty impressive in their significant, albeit supporting roles. But I have little intention of going back for a re-watch any time soon. However, I would not be surprised if I might find myself appreciating it a little more on a second watch.

Verdict: 2.5/5