Hitting theaters in 2020, Christopher Nolan's Tenet was easily one of the bigger films to emerge during the year, with the vast majority of other movie studios pushing their releases into 2021 due to the pandemic. It led to controversy online, with fans criticizing Nolan's insistence on viewers watching the film in theaters in spite of the risks the venues pose.
First spotted by Endgadget, It seems one Tenet viewer decided to go out of their way to directly spite Nolan's perspective on how fans should view his latest release, posting a hilarious video on YouTube that documents him making the movie watchable on a Game Boy Advance SP. Featured on YouTuber Bob Wulff's channel, the clip follows the journey of what sparked the idea and how the content creator assembled the project, showing plenty of low-resolution Tenet footage straight from the screen of a Game Boy.
According to Wulff, the concept for the project came about after the "meme was going around about how much Christopher Nolan really wanted you to go to the theaters to see this movie." He then set about trying to create the worst possible way to watch Tenet, settling on programming the film to be viewable via a Game Boy Advance SP. He ultimately succeeded, porting the entire blockbuster onto five Game Boy cartridges, with Wulff decorating each one with an authentic label.
According to the creator, 30 minutes is usually the longest a clip can be on the Game Boy to be viewed in a watchable state. Tenet is two hours and thirty minutes long, so Wulff had to cut some corners to ensure he could make the entire film somewhat watchable, with each part being separated into 30-minute chunks. The entire thing plays in 6 FPS at a 192 x 128 resolution, with Wulff proudly stating that it's the best way to experience Tenet if you want "the absolute worst time watching it." The video also delves into how the YouTuber made the labels for his Game Boy cartridges, running through how he edited together the various thumbnails and printed them onto glossy stickers.
Tenet's theatrical release wound up underperforming when it debuted last year, pulling in just over $350 million worldwide due to the pandemic. Nolan claimed he didn't see the result as a failure, telling the Los Angeles Times that those concerned by the box office gross are only "looking at where it hasn’t lived up to pre-COVID expectations." Warner Brothers has since adopted a new strategy for its films following the theatrical release of Tenet, opting to put releases like Wonder Woman 1984 and the upcoming Godzilla vs Kong, Mortal Kombat, and Space Jam: A New Legacy on HBO Max.
Tenet is out now.
Source: Endgadget, Los Angeles Times