Stanko's Stance

Tenet
Director: Christopher Nolan
Writers: Christopher Nolan
Staring: Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Kenneth Branagh, Michael Caine, John David Washington
Release Date: July 27, 2020 (Maybe)

TENNET TRAILER ALERT!!!

Alright first 20 seconds in we get the time moving backwards as shown in the previous trailer, as well as John David Washington just kicking some bad guy butt. The wide shot of the tug boat in the ocean with the wind air turbines is unique, never seen that setting better specifically. Actor Martin Donovan (character unnamed) is basically giving Washington’s character (again unnamed) a verbal key…”Tenet”. He foreshadows that it will open both good and bad doors.

The 25 second mark brings with it a significant mood change with the music changing in the background of Washington voicing over what he needs to do his job. He needs details about what is going to happen, and a lady is showing him what look to be pieces of old watches. She is pulling out trays that look like cadaver tables explaining how they (assuming her and Washington) are trying to prevent World War III. So is that what is at stake in Tenet?

Come the 45 seconds mark we get the sultry sounds of Sir Michael Caine in his customary Christopher Nolan movie appearance. He appears to be talking to John David Washington over an expensive meal and is conveying understanding about a Russian national.

Very odd to have The Dark Knight poster/image be among the shattered pieces at the 51 second mark. Not abnormal for trailers to prop up what directors have done in the past, but to put the Batman in this trailer is mystifying to me. And then after a quick shot of Robert Pattinson (no name for character yet) looking dapper, the trailer shows the same thing with Inception. And I am glad the at least showed Dunkirk which is in my humble opinion, the most well made movie Nolan has helmed.

Washington appears to have brought in Pattinson to talk about Kenneth Branagh’s character (nameless), who has the ability to communicate with the future. But it is clearly outlined. This is not time travel. It is inversion, and they show this concept in a very cool short scene of Washington firing a gun and catching the bullet coming back toward him rather than firing.

There is a stunning wide shot of what looks like an Italian or Greek town imbedded in a mountain and a boat toward the audience. It then cuts back to Donavon’s character explaining to Washington how his duties transcend national interests. So who do they work for? There is b-roll shots of Elizabeth Debicki’s character (nameless) kissing a child while “this is about survival” is stated. Pinning the idea of surviving World War III with the innocence of children to get the sympathy going.

At the 1:32 mark we get first shot of Himesh Patel in a group with Pattinson and Washington. Patel has been in a lot lately with Yesterday (2019), The Aeronauts (2019) and HBO’s Fifth Avenue.

We then have Branagh running in a heavily blue-lit setting, followed up by what appears to be action scenes. Most notable is that all the characters are wearing breathing masks and based off what’s happening around the 1:45 mark…things may not go too well for our assumed protagonists.

We do get a classic chaser vs. pursued meet up where Washington explains that he’d like to die old to Branagh,to which he nicely and calming replies that Washington chose the wrong profession. The way Branagh is talking in this scene…ohhh it got me excited. Following that foreboding, we see Washington in the car with Pattison and some sort of large-scale inversion happening with cars about to crash, and maybe people leaping from automobile to automobile? The scene cuts out before the.

Just before the 2:00 mark we get…a flying boat? Alright some sort of inversion going on there. But fast forwarding in the trailer, I think this is a reveal that Washington now has the same capabilities, or at least becomes educated on, the ability to communicate with the future. He sees the bullet holes in the bullet proof glass and knows that whatever violence that “took place” was yet to happen yet. He then begins wrestling with some sort of thug, and like how he was first showed inversion with a gun firing into rock, now he is one the other side having to avoid bullets while being in an inverted moment.

2:06 puts the audience in a concert which appears to be overrun with terrorists. But then an unnamed character played by Dimple Kapadia is explaining how “there are people in the future who need us.” Who is us? Who is she talking to?

The aforementioned car jumping appears to be confirmed around the 2:10 mark, but more intriguingly, the trailer shows Debicki being held captive by Branagh. And Branagh is holding a gun to her, doing a countdown to Washington, who is speeding along this road with them. We do not see what he is counting down to, but we go back to the concert hall where masked soldiers are chasing around Washington and Pattison while the entire audience is passed out. Like, all comatose. Definitely plays a part with why there are masks being warn by certain characters at certain points.

There are a series of quick cuts showing Pattison giving urge to keep going, Washington being led somewhere unwillingly and VIP boxes in the concert hall being blown up…followed by what appears a bigger building blowing up.

“This reversing the flow of time. Doesn’t us being here now mean it never happened?” – There a direct cut to black, then to Washington asking this question. Cue the title card. Tenet.

The trailer ends with a comedic barb between Washington and Pattinson talking about blowing up a plane…a rather large one. And then in big, bold letter, so everyone can see it.

Coming. To. Theaters.

“Tenet” IMDB
“Tenet” Rotten Tomatoes