Tenet Review: 4 Ups & 6 Downs

3. There Are No Characters

John David Washington is literally called "The Protagonist" (a name that never lands, every time he's referred to), and this only speaks to a film that drastically values concept and bombast over anything comprehensible.

Robert Pattinson's Neil is an enjoyably quippy side-character who you're always glad to see, but that's it: We're given nothing of backstory to anybody; nothing as to why they do what they do. No real grounding as to who the factions we're watching are, or why they care about anything. There's not even a remark other than "...Woah" from our protagonist when faced with the fact our own reality is subject to change.

Kenneth Branagh is Evil Russian Guy 101, Elizabeth Debicki is boiled down to "female in danger with son, please care", and at no point does anybody have an actual conversation.

Christopher Nolan is trying to tell the audience, "Hey, don't worry. Just go along for the ride!", and that's fine, but you can't then also drop the ball on the character side. We can forgive technical hiccups if the script and actor chemistry is incredible, or we can forgive character work if a concept is dynamite.

For Tenet to so blatantly tell you to "shut your brain off" in a movie that is otherwise battering you with rules, confusing imagery and stop-start exposition, neither side lands.