According to Warner Bros., Christopher Nolan’s ‘Tenet’ theatrical release has been delayed again due to the COVID panic. For now, a few options are on the table, including an on-line release. Opinion: They should wait until the pandemic is over. This film deserves no less than IMAX screening. Read on and let’s know your thoughts. 

Tenet: An IMAX masterpiece

The upcoming Tenet directed by Christopher Nolan and shot by DP Hoyte Van Hoytema is one of the most ambitious filmmaking projects to date. Once again, IMAX cameras have been intensively and heavily used to maximize imagery. Following by Inception, Interstellar, Dunkirk, The Dark Night, and many others, Tenet is going to be Nolan’s most pretentious cinematography IMAX masterpiece. The film, which its story remains an enigma, focuses yet again on complicated physics wrapped in marvelous imagery that should be viewed on the huge canvas. Although the making of Tenet was kept under heavy secrecy, check out our article that explains its cinematography based on fractions of pieces of information: Tenet Cinematography: Be Prepare for an IMAX Masterpiece.

Luckily (or not), Tenet was finished before COVID

According to IMDB, the rough cut of the Tenet was finished before the COVID-19 lockdown came into place, and further editing was completed in Nolan’s edit suit in his Los Angeles home, where he’s worked on his films since The Dark Knight (2008). It also helped that, though based in California, Nolan has used visual effects house Double Negative London for years and therefore is used to corresponding remotely.

The panic of the pandemic

The filmmaking industry is being negatively impacted by COVID-19 in many aspects. The damage is enormous and without any solid justifications. In case you’re thinking that this statement is derived from conspiracy theory, make sure to read our article in regard: The WHO’s COVID-19 Mortality Classification Instructions are Killing the Filmmaking Industry. The article is based on facts taken for the World Health Organization (WHO) which are documents of the certification and classification (coding) of deaths related to COVID-19. The article demonstrates the reason for the skyrocketing of COVID-19 cases due to “surveillance purposes”. All materials can be downloaded via the WHO website. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that the filmmaking industry was one of the most impacted sectors at the beginning of the pandemic, and is going to be the last to recover.

United States theaters remain closed

Just a month ago, AMC Theatres announced the reopening of its venues on July 15. Moreover, according to a new safety COVID protocol, all guests were required to wear protective masks during the shows. As been stated by AMC back then: “Guests coming to our theatres may bring their own masks of course, but for those who do not have one, masks will be available at our theatre box offices at a nominal $1.00 price. Those who are unwilling to wear a mask will not be admitted or allowed to stay…In the auditorium masks may be removed to enjoy food and drinks”. Furthermore, auditorium capacities were reduced to 30% or less (read: Would You Wear a Surgical Mask at a Movie Theater?). There were rumors that Christopher Nolan was pulling strings in order to let the audience experience Tenet with all its glory. However, according to WHO, the pandemic is still being proliferating which caused AMC to remain closed. It’s important to emphasize that in other countries people are still going to movies. In some of them, no masks are defined as mandatory.

Tenet is being delayed, again

After a couple of rounds of delays, Warner Bors. has removed Tenet from its theatrical release calendar as Deadline reports: “Our goals throughout this process have been to ensure the highest odds of success for our films while also being ready to support our theater partners with new content as soon as they could safely reopen,” said Toby Emmerich, Chairman, Warner Bros. Pictures Group in a statement, “We’re grateful for the support we’ve received from exhibitors and remain steadfast in our commitment to the theatrical experience around the world. Unfortunately, the pandemic continues to proliferate, causing us to reevaluate our release dates. Amidst all this continued uncertainty, we have decided to vacate the current dates for our next two releases. We will share a new 2020 release date imminently for Tenet, Christopher Nolan’s wholly original and mind-blowing feature. We are not treating Tenet like a traditional global day-and-date release, and our upcoming marketing and distribution plans will reflect that”.

We will share a new 2020 release date imminently for Tenet, Christopher Nolan’s wholly original and mind-blowing feature. We are not treating Tenet like a traditional global day-and-date release, and our upcoming marketing and distribution plans will reflect that.

Toby Emmerich, Chairman, Warner Bros. Pictures Group

“Nontraditional” releases of Tenet

There are talking about nontraditional releases of Tenet, for instance: Online and/or non-US theatrical release. There is no formal decision yet by Warner Bros. However, the uncertainly rises as COVID-19 proliferation elevates. In my opinion, releasing Tenet on-line would be a dorky decision, since the movie will be pirated in no-time causing impaired viewing experience. Watching an IMAX masterpiece in a home theater cinema is like taking pictures of an art-form instead of viewing it at the museum. The total experience will be ruined. Furthermore, I believe that there will be significant resistance from Nolan’s side for this poor solution. Moreover, the option for non-US releases is not appeared to be realistic.

Final thoughts

Personally, I would wait till the COVID-19 panic is over, and life is back to normal again. Tenet needs to be screened on a huge canvas and not less than that. When will it happen? Maybe in 2021. Nolan wants Tenet to be a summer movie. If I have to wait till summer 2021 to see it at an IMAX theater then let it be so. It’s worth it.

What do you think? Would you wait till 2021 to watch Tenet at an IMAX theater? Let’s know your thoughts.