10 Small Details You Missed In Tenet
9. Sator Square
Andrei Sator may not rank highly among the list of villains in Nolan's filmography but he served his narrative purpose well and Kenneth Branagh's performance (read: his accent choices) was oddly entertaining.
The Russian oligarch's surname fit well into the film's use of palindromes and this is due to the existence of Sator Square. The five words, Sator, Arepo, Tenet, Rotas and Opera all feature prominently in the film and are largely connected to each other.
The ancient word square's relevance to the film goes beyond its use of palindromes. Some people in the past associated the word square with magical properties such as divine healing and exorcism. In addition to this, some see it as a means to summon a god, a title that Sator takes on in the film's climax.
Others see it as a means to put out fires (something that future humans wish to do with the effects of climate change) and the presence of O and A suggests the concept of Alpha and Omega, further driving home Sator's twisted god complex to audiences.
Whole articles were written about the importance of the Sator Square being the key to unlocking Tenet, including this one on Vox.