2020 has doled out disappointments at all levels, and while the postponement of No Time to Die was certainly among them, the latest of Christopher Nolan's larger-than-life cerebral blockbusters Tenet should tie over fans yearning for their stylish spy until he and his hijinks return next year. Indeed, the John David Washington-led action thriller scratches many a Bond itch: whether it's the stunts, stakes, or suits, Tenet has them all in spades. This should come as no surprise, as the esteemed director has been among the franchise's most famous fans, frequently speculated to take the Bond reins as he did once with Batman in his Dark Knight trilogy. For all intents and purposes, Tenet is a test run of Nolan's abilities to do just that if and when the franchise needs reinvention.
As we approach the 25th entry into the Bond canon, its ingredients become clear. How do you bake the Bond cake? You start with the man himself: eminently skilled, impeccably dressed, entirely British. Next we must balance that flavor with our villain: evil, ambitious, and almost always cloaked in a thick accent of some Eastern European origin. Fold in a damsel and an ally. Pour mixture into a baking pan large enough to hold world-ending plots of domination. And finally, a crumb coat and clean fondant finish, for what is a Bond film without its trademark style? In a blind taste test, even the most astute moviegoer would be forgiven should they mistake Nolan's bold and exciting spy thriller for a slice of Bond. So many elements are the same.
The Protagonist
When building a Bond stand-in, perhaps it's best to make no attempt to equal the iconography of the name itself. At least, that line of thinking could have seen Nolan and company arrive at John David Washington's unnamed character. Nevertheless, The Protagonist measures up to his cinematic ancestor in many ways. He's CIA, having consulted with physicist Laura (Clemence Poésy), who serves as this film's "Q." He's good in a fight, whether hand-to-hand or with firearms. He's no stranger to acts of derring-do, bungee-jumping, or stunt-driving his way through his mission. And he's got one-liners for days.
But to simply clone 007 would do a disservice to the audience, and Nolan avoids that by breathing new life into his chosen spy. Fans have been clamoring for a black James Bond ever since Idris Elba was once rumored to succeed Daniel Craig in the role. In Washington, those same fans can relish in that de facto succession. Washington adds a warmth to the character where there was once cold. Yes, they're both reserved, but Washington seems a friend at first glance rather than a potential enemy. Yes, The Protagonist and Bond both crack smart retorts, but The Protagonist's quips are more liable to add a chuckle to the reactionary fist pump upon hearing them. Put simply, Tenet's Bond is 007+.
The Supporting Cast
Opposite Washington hulks Kenneth Branagh's Andrei Sator, the dour Russian oligarch whose plan to steal the all-important Algorithm amounts to nothing short of "worse than nuclear holocaust." Foreign accent? Check. Tycoon in control of massive private espionage network? Check. Despicable abuser hell-bent on world domination? Check, check, and check. Branagh becomes such an archetypal Bond villain he almost erases any memory of his Shakespearean roots. And, oftentimes, the subject of his villainy takes the form of his equally archetypal damsel, his estranged wife Kathryn Barton.
Barton, played by Elizabeth Debecki, provides all the allure necessary for the damsel while occupying a uniquely useful position between The Protagonist and Sator. Though her character won't win any medals for creativity in writing or representation, she does make for another point of comparison to the Bond franchise. In recent years, the films have drawn criticism for their treatment of female characters, a problem No Time to Die hopes to remedy. But until those solutions arrive in 2021, Kat Barton fills the role of the most recent iteration of Bond woman, and carries with her all the associated problems with such an archetype.
But how could our Protagonist rescue the girl and stop the villain without the help of an ally? Here, the sidekick takes the form of Neil (Robert Pattinson), the Protagonist's handler and ultimately his savior. He enters into a long genealogy of Bond allies, rivaling their agent's prowess in espionage and, sometimes, giving their lives to ensure the success of the mission. In Tenet, Neil aides The Protagonist in accessing arms dealer Priya Singh, continues to assist in the mission, and slowly provides more information about the scope of their relationship over the course of their time together. In the end, Robert Pattinson's loyal character reveals that this mission is the end of a long friendship the two shared in the future, and that he was initially recruited by The Protagonist to fight in this massive battle for not only the world's future, but its past.
The Stunts, The Stakes, and The Suits
An avid Bond fan, Nolan has described his love for the franchise several times over. He credits seeing The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) as a kid with igniting a passion for films' ability to transport an audience to far-off places. More recently, he commented on the expansiveness of the Bond films, describing the ways in which exploring locations across the world helps to both illustrate the global nature of the threat, but also to provide that feeling of escapism to moviegoers. Nolan's films are no stranger to this effect. Whether he's taking viewers inside a character's dreams or over the event horizon into a black hole, a Nolan film has become synonymous with the transportive quality of the cinema. It's no surprise then that Tenet flexes this muscle, jumping from location to location and chasing an intercontinental plot to destroy the world. With a doppelgänger battle amidst an airplane crash, a uniquely executed car chase, and a coup de grâce third act temporal pincer operation, Tenet delivers on stunts and stakes that contend with the best Bond films. Leaving only...
The suits. God forbid our Protagonist be caught saving the world in Brooks Brothers. Costume Designer Jeffrey Kurland detailed the attention to detail in crafting the look of Tenet's heroes, citing Sean Connery's Bond as a definite influence. The longtime Nolan collaborator, having worked with the director since Inception, brought a style to the film which connoted other sleek capers in his body of work: the coolness of Ocean's Eleven, the functionality of Mission: Impossible – Fallout, each contributing to the attitude that Tenet seeks to emulate.
And still, Nolan goes above and beyond the usual formula by adding in his signature flair. After all, what would a Nolan mind-bending epic be if it didn't bend a few minds with a heady sci-fi time-travel-adjacent concept? Such an interwoven premise would detract from the cleanness of a typical Bond film, but Nolan's fans thirst for answers to the complex temporal problems Nolan posits, like inversion. Like his Protagonist, the very DNA of Tenet breathes new life into the old Bond formula, proving that fans didn't really miss out on a 007 film in 2020 after all.
