Masked Up Movies: A review of "Tenet" and the COVID-style movie theater experience

The movie industry has been at a standstill for the past six months, with ads for planned summer Blockbusters still running as we reach the end of September. Since movie theaters are normally jam-packed with bawling babies and grandmas who can't figure out how to turn on Do Not Disturb, they don't exactly align with social distancing standards. But with theaters reopening COVID-19 style, I figured it was time I redeemed myself from my last theater endeavor, "Cats," with the sci-fi thriller film "Tenet" at AMC Town Center.

AMC’s Kansas City theaters reopened on Aug. 20, introducing AMC Safe & Clean — their initiative to safely operate during COVID-19. The main points of the plan include seat capacity restrictions, social distancing efforts, new intensified cleaning protocols, contactless ticketing and expanded mobile ordering of food and beverages, according to a statement released by AMC CEO Adam Aron. 

It was clear how serious these precautions were being taken by AMC from the moment I walked into the theater. If there hadn’t been a giant “Now Open” banner waving outside the building, I wouldn’t have guessed there were any movies showing. The box office was empty due to the new contactless ticketing and the hallways were still lined with movie posters featuring their original June and July release dates.

Outside of every theater was a bottle of hand sanitizer and a container of wipes, provided to wipe off your seat, cup holder and seat control panel as an extra layer of protection. Masks are required at all times while entering and exiting the theater, but can be removed when eating or drinking during the movie. But knowing the rate some people can shove popcorn into their mouth for an entire movie, in a busier theater I wouldn't have been surprised to see people without masks on for the entire film, which is antithetical to AMC's safety policy, but some people are really just that crazy about their Junior Mints and Twizzlers.

Even though there were only four people in my theater, I opted to shove my snuck-in Hot Tamales under the opening in my mask — after months of wearing masks inside it just feels wrong not to. 

Although I tend to prefer a rom-com over an action movie like “Tenet,” it’s essentially the only movie playing right now with any buzz around it. The trailer limited itself to vague references to the plot, but the cast of recognizable names including Robert Pattinson and John David Washington had me excited to see what director Christopher Nolan’s latest project was all about. 

And after watching all 150 minutes of “Tenet,” I honestly couldn’t tell you. 

I can usually handle mind-bending movies; I trust that by the end, the explanation will be wrapped up nicely to tell me the deeper meaning — but this was not one of those situations. The plot was over-the-top confusing, to the point that the scene that should’ve been a big reveal meant so little to me that it was ultimately unsatisfying. 

I spent hours after finishing “Tenet” desperately searching for summaries and articles on what the meaning of the movie is, sure that Google or YouTube could connect the pieces of Nolan's impossible puzzle together. But all that I could find was the film's informationally-lackluster one-line synopsis: "A secret agent embarks on a dangerous, time-bending mission to prevent the start of World War III” — and that seems to be all anyone’s picked up about the plot. 

Although the movie overtly wanted to be more clever than its viewers, it had its standout moments. “Tenet” was packed with high-intensity fight scenes and a surprising amount of humor for a thriller. The spectacle of the movie was intriguing enough to distract me from the mask I had been wearing for nearly two and a half hours, but not quite enough to make me forget the headache that was forming from trying to follow the plot. 

Throughout my experience in the theater, I felt relatively safe. I didn’t have to sit next to strangers hogging the armrest and AMC’s mandated precautions were followed by everyone in the building. With the exception of the mask wearing and increased personal space (which I’ll take any day), it wasn't too different from a normal movie theater experience. But if theaters are expecting to make it through the rest of this pandemic relatively unscathed, they’re going to need to start playing movies for every kind of viewer — a movie that leaves people more confused than satisfied isn’t going to cut it.