Tenet - Blu-ray

Movie: It was quite a load there on "Tenet", the new film from Christopher Nolan ("Dark Knight", "Inception"), for its theatrical release. After all, the film was the first blockbuster production to hit theaters since the onset of the Corona pandemic. For studios and movie theater operators alike, the film was a glimmer of hope: if it managed to draw enough viewers to its hard-pressed theaters so that the $200 million production turned a profit, it might encourage other studios to release more prestige projects rather than postpone them further. Unfortunately, the worldwide box office of around $360 million only satisfied to a limited extent, which meant that "Tenet" - at least in Germany - was the only real blockbuster production to cross our screens in 2020 (in other countries, "Wonder Woman 1984" still hit theaters in December).

Not too much should be revealed about the content - even if many have already seen the film. Roughly speaking, "Tenet" is about the mysterious hero (John David Washington), called only the protagonist, stopping a powerful arms dealer (Kenneth Branagh) from bringing about the end of the world. And in order to do that, the laws of time as we know them are put out of commission. That's all you need to know before you go to the movies. Because "Tenet" lives not only from great pictures, but also from the mystery around the story, which admittedly comes along a bit confusing. If you thought "Inception" was already complicated to unravel with its various dream levels, you might well cut your teeth on this one - at least in places.

This is not a film to relax and switch off your brain. You have to stay attentive from the start, and also watch out for little things that might matter at the end. That makes it a wee bit unwieldy, but no less brilliant overall. Nolan impressively manages to take a familiar element like time travel (in the broadest sense) and make something completely original out of it - both dramaturgically and visually. One sequence in particular stands out: a great action sequence in which time runs forward and backward simultaneously. The fact that Nolan hardly resorted to CGI effects in the realization of this ambitious project, but mainly used practical effects on real filming locations, gives the film an authentic touch despite its not entirely realistic story, from which the overall impression clearly benefits.

The film is also quite great cinema in terms of acting - which is not a matter of course. John David Washington can convince as the protagonist in every second, Robert Pattinson has never been so sympathetic and adult as here and Kenneth Branagh gives a damn good, profound villain. Because of the good ensemble, which includes an undercooled yet very emotional Elizabeth Debicki, the whole thing works not only in the numerous action sequences (right from the opening sequence is spectacular in this respect), but also in the quieter character moments.

Even completely divorced from the significance this 2020 film had for the industry as a whole, "Tenet" is, for me, simply a great piece of work: you can tell that what was at work here was a director who loves cinema, but who wants to provide not just great images and fast-paced action, but intellectual challenges as well. He has succeeded several times since "Memento" and it works again with "Tenet" first class - provided, of course, that you are willing to engage with it. If you like movies like "Inception" and if you can get involved with stories that aren't quite anchored in reality, you shouldn't miss this one. Absolutely worth seeing!

Image + Sound: "Tenet" is presented in home theater in a variable aspect ratio. This means that the aspect ratio changes between 2:20:1 and 1.78:1 during sequences shot with IMAX cameras. The picture is kept a bit gloomy (intentionally), which means some details are lost. But overall, the very high image sharpness is pleasing, as is the filter-created coloring. The sound is dominated by the film music and some directional sound effects. It is noticeable that the dialogues are sometimes better understandable in the German language version than in the original English soundtrack. Not a top rating, but overall very good!

Extras:On the bonus disc is a 13-part, fairly extensive making of (approx. 75 min.). This goes into detail about various sections of the production such as the cast, the costumes, the camera work and even the filming of the final fight sequence. Worth seeing!

Conclusion: "Tenet" could indeed fulfill the high hopes that lay on him in the cinema only limited. But as great entertainment cinema, Christopher Nolan's latest is an absolute hit. On the Blu-ray, there's little to fault with the film's audiovisuals, and there's also a more than decent making of on a bonus disc. So all in all, a clear case of: Absolutely recommendable!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp