Movie Poster

I'll see you in the beginning, friend.

# Review

A CIA operative (John David Washington) is recruited by a secretive organization known as “Tenet”. The organization’s goal is to prevent the future from destroying its past (the present). The future tries to destroy the present by sending back in time artifacts which have reverse entropy, in other words artifacts which move backwards in time.

Washington plays a laconic and stoic Protagonist. While it’s not a particularly expressive performance, his action scenes are some of my favourite scenes of the film. His one-liners and energetic movements remind me of a calmer Tom Cruise. Elizabeth Debicki’s Kat is emotional while Kenneth Branagh’s Sator feels like a classic super villain. My favourite character, however, has got to be Robert Pattinson’s Neil, who can only be described as extremely likeable.

The film is incredibly cerebral; people expecting to watch a generic Hollywood action blockbuster will be disappointed. The story isn’t really a story, it’s more of an exploration of a paradox (you’ll understand if you watch the film). The cinematography is one of my favourite aspects of the film. The shots are very bleak and elegant; sometimes it feels that many of the plot points are written with the shots in mind. This is especially the case with the time elements. The sound is very good, especially the use of the rhythmic synthesizers.

# Conclusion

2020 was a bad year for movies due to COVID, but this was one of the few shining stars.

# Overall rating: 8.0

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