Christopher Nolan returns to the big screen with the sure-to-be-mind-bending film TeneT. Filming across seven countries with a combination of IMAX and 70mm film cameras, the plot of TeneT is ever so briefly described as a globe-trotting adventure that dabbles in international espionage with shades of Inception but also somehow involves the time continuum a la Interstellar. Now factor in the title: Tenet is, by definition, “a principle or belief, especially one of the main principles of a religion or philosophy.” That’s vague enough of a title to be a film about just about anything, but it’s also very “Nolan-esque.” Memento, Inception, Following, The Prestige are very general in concept but carry specific meaning in the movie itself, once you’ve seen it.
We haven't seen a legit trailer yet, though one played in movie theaters earlier this summer and will likely arrive in a prologue of sorts ahead of next weekend's Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker; you can get a description of the footage here. But today, a teaser trailer popped up on the film's official Twitter account to hype fans up for the flick. It worked. So while the video tells us next to nothing about the film, it certainly solidifies its place on our radar.
TeneT will feature an accomplished crew, including director of photography Hoyte van Hoytema (Dunkirk), production designer Nathan Crowley (Dunkirk), costume designer Jeffrey Kurland (Inception, Dunkirk), and visual effects supervisor Andrew Jackson with a score composed by Ludwig Göransson (Black Panther, Mandalorian), not Hans Zimmer. After working with editor Lee Smith for the better part of the last 15 years, Nolan will now collaborate with Hereditary editor Jennifer Lame for Tenet. Nolan produces alongside Emma Thomas with Thomas Hayslip (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom) as executive producer.
Starring John David Washington (BlacKkKlansman) with Robert Pattinson (Twilight) and Elizabeth Debicki (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2), Dimple Kapadia (Bobby), Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kick-Ass), and Clémence Poésy (In Bruges), with Michael Caine (The Dark Knight trilogy), Himesh Patel (Yesterday), and Kenneth Branagh (Dunkirk)., TeneT opens July 17, 2020.
And here it is for your viewing pleasure: