Upon every release that Christopher Nolan has in his bag is a smog of anticipation that the public cannot help but inhale. Nolan has always been an advocate of the theatre environment in consuming his work and as he continues to blend and feed these high concept plots with technical grandiosity, we are enticed and drawn to its potential majesty.

Tenet is no exception as right from the get-go we bare witness to his proficiency in enchanting tension, mood, excitement, intensity, and mystery - starkly similar in delivery of what Denis Villeneuve has been showcasing as of late - with an impressive crew in allowing that vision to come to life.

While much of that visual splendour remains throughout its hefty running time - although far from Nolan's most bloated affair - that initial impressiveness becomes obscured by its convoluted and senseless plot. The writing projects a complexity in its narrative wiring, almost as if to hinder our view of the actual simplicity that sits beneath. Familiar archetypes, dormant melodrama, and an attractive, but wholly unbeneficial, coolness begins to take shape throughout the rest of the film, which sadly, deprives the film of the sheer excellence that I have often associated the director with.

I am sure that repeated viewings would reap a tighter grip into its intricacies but I doubt it would bring forth anything of real value towards my opinion of it.