TENET. This movie has been the talk of the year in 2020. Christopher Nolan’s creation. One could consider it in the list one of the most awaited films of all time. The movie held a special significance to movie-goers in trying times like COVID. Theaters were closed and many counted on Tenet’s release as something that could change the game, and help reopen the theaters.
TENET is the brainchild of Christopher Nolan, the genius who wrote its screenplay. Legend says he worked on it for 5 long years.
Tenet received mixed reviews from Nolan’s fans and assorted critics. I loved Nolan’s work with Interstellar and Inception and was patiently waiting to watch Tenet. This is my take on the 2020 movie of the year.
In my opinion, Nolan wanted the movie to be a visual spectacle rather than diving into nitty-gritty science details.
Let's see if TENET is a ten-on-ten...
1. ACTION VS EMOTION:
Unlike Nolan’s previous films like Interstellar and Inception, Tenet lacked emotion. I couldn’t understand Neil and the Protagonist’s bond and neither could I understand his affections for Kat.
That being said, if the overall theme of the film is to show us how complex a time loop can be, it is understandable that the Protagonist did not know what was going on and hence was in an emotionless state. That same confusion was displayed by the audience.
2. CINEMATOGRAPHY:
The spectacle of this movie was the inverted sequences. It led to curiosity to see how they were made. Every frame was reversed to ace the effect. Not only the action sequences but also the background score was reversed to produce an immersive effect.
3. POP CULTURE REFERENCES:
Aah! This was my favorite part. From Bollywood music in the streets of India to the fact that we let out a chuckle when “We live in a twilight world” and Robert Pattison were mentioned in the same frame.
4. SYMBOLISM:
Protagonist: The choice of naming the protagonist noting but just the protagonist, suggesting that they could be anyone.
The inversion of the bullet: The movie was built on this fascinating visual as said by Nolan.
Reverse Entropy: Though this concept doesn’t exist scientifically (yet), it was pretty cool to explore.
Examples of such symbolism and hidden meanings are romanticized throughout the movie. However, their charm may not be as appealing as Interstellar’s library or Inception’s spinning top.
Overall, the movie is fun to watch and is helpful if you want to exercise some grey cells. It may not be Nolan’s best work… but it is certainly pleasing to the eye and worth a watch… two or ten.
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