Tenet Movie Review: Christopher Nolan’s Espionage Thriller, Starring John David Washington and Robert Pattinson, Garners Mixed Response From Critics

Christopher Nolan's Tenet is one of the much-awaited films of the year. The espionage thriller has a terrific cast comprising John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Clémence Poésy, Michael Caine, Kenneth Branagh and Dimple Kapadia. The reviews are out and can say that the reaction is a mixed one. The flick was initially set to release on the silverscreen on July 17 release, but due to the pandemic, it got postponed several times. Now, looks like internal IMAX screening of the film has led to some early reviews and we bet it will help the audience to choose whether to go and watch the film or not. Dimple Kapadia's First Look from Christopher Nolan's Tenet Gets LEAKED - Check out Pictures. 

While the trailer and teaser of Tenet made fans go gaga over it, the critic's verdict highlights an altogether different tale. For some, it's dud, on the other hand, for a few it is entertaining, Finally, the choice to buy a ticket for Tenet will be yours and so here are a few reviews hand-picked for you. Tenet Actor John David Washington Reveals He Never Spoke About Denzel Washington Being His Father During Auditions. 

"What’s really there to untangle, beyond loops of string and a whole lot of smoke rings? Anyone ready to obsess over a doodad on a backpack as they did over the spinning top of “Inception” can cling to the illusion of Nolan as the movie messiah. On this evidence, though, he’s become a very trying, ungenerous, ever-so-slightly dull boy, " writes Indiewire.

However, for Empire Online, Tenet is wow, as the critic says, "If you’re after a big old explosive Nolan braingasm, that is exactly what you’re going to get, shot on old-fashioned film too (as the end credits proudly state). By the time it’s done, you might not know what the hell’s gone on, but it is exciting nevertheless. It is ferociously entertaining."

"This film is a lot, to be sure. But it’s a film worth engaging with, benefiting by not getting too caught up in the straw diagrams and leaning more heavily on the visceral thrills of it all. As such, Tenet should exclusively be experienced on the biggest screen possible, which, admittedly, is no small feat given our current COVID circumstances," reports Slash Film.

NY Times compares John Washington to Bond and says, "Washington is basically James Bond, forward and backward, a kind of 00700, right down to the occasional wry one-liner. And if it takes megastar charisma to be able to memorably inhabit so vaporous a role, he is also blessed to be playing off an equally unflappable Pattinson — their chemistry, rather than the sexless semi-flirtation between Washington’s hero and Debicki’s damsel, gives the film whatever romance it has."

And finally, The Guardian calls it a dud, "You exit the cinema a little less energised than you were going in. There’s something grating about a film which insists on detailing its pseudo-science while also conceding you probably won’t have followed a thing. We’re clobbered with plot then comforted with tea-towel homilies about how what’s happened has happened."

Reportedly, Tenet will first release in the international market on August 26 in more than 70 countries that include Japan, Russia, much of Europe, Australia and Canada. It has been shot by Nolan’s Interstellar and Dunkirk cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema. Stay tuned!

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 21, 2020 11:23 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).