Revisiting Tenet

 

Photo: Gabriel Kutcha/ Getty Images

This past weekend I went to see the release of the highly anticipated 2020 film, Tenant, in theaters. Given the current pandemic I chose to wait it out a month or so before heading to theaters and was pleasantly surprised by the social distancing measures and precautions taken by the staff. There were not more than 10 people in the lobby when I went and each section of the theater was labeled and secured off so that there was minimal interaction between visitors and employees. These measures were especially present in the viewing theater as there were rows upon rows of empty seats between each person. This could have been due to the crowds thinning out over time, but it definitely eased my movie-going experience to have the space and accommodations necessary while I was there. Overall, I would say to those who are still concerned about the risk of attending movie theaters that it is not nearly as dangerous and would greatly recommend the experience. 

I went with high expectations given the movie’s performance at global box offices and high online ratings, but there are some critics that argue the film plot suffers due to its complexity. From the opening sequence, the viewer is placed in a non-linear story which is only further complicated by the time-travel aspect of this film. But I think that this was the intention of Nolan. The cinematography and editing was on point and effectively messes with the notion of time, which is thematically reminiscent of Nolan’s 2010 release Inception. However, this film stood out to me because of its highly choreographed action sequences that have legitimately messed with my mind trying to unravel how certain scenes were done. And this goes against the argument of the film’s complexity because the more that you try to understand it the less you will enjoy the film. Taken at face value, the plot is interesting and captivating enough to view several more times. But ultimately the plot’s layers will reveal itself which is why I think this film accomplished exactly what it set out to do and continues to do after viewing.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *