How The Conversation from 1974 is connected to Tenet 2020?
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by Blender Dumbass
Aka: J.Y. Amihud. A Jewish by blood, multifaceted artist with experience in film-making, visual effects, programming, game development, music and more. A philosopher at heart. An activist for freedom and privacy. Anti-Paternalist. A user of Libre Software. Speaking at least 3 human languages. The writer and director of the 2023 film "Moria's Race" and the lead developer of it's game sequel "Dani's Race".
Harry Caul. The character played by Gene Hackman in The Conversation by Francis Ford Coppola probably does Michael Bay's The Rock ( with it's James Bond character ) into another Jerry Bruckheimer production: Enemy of the State by Tony Scott. Which probably still doesn't answer how we get from here to Tenet... c:0 ↩ Reply
We have 2 Gene Hackman characters that are somewhat identical to each other. In 1974 Coppola version he is a private surveillance contractor. He takes audio recordings of people for other people, and as a result suffers from intense surveillance paranoia. In 1998 Tony Scott version he is a private surveillance contractor. He takes video recordings of people for other people, and as a result suffers from intense surveillance paranoia. ↩ Reply
Both characters have a remote location work-place, which is like this large warehouse type room, with a metal cage in the middle. The Tony Scott version even explains the purpose of the metal cage. The metal in the cage blocks radio-signals from passing through. ↩ Reply
In 1974 version the character states "I make my own gear", while in 1998 version he finds gear on the main character ( played by Will Smith ) of "his design". ↩ Reply
In a way Enemy of the State is sort of kind of an unofficial sequel to The Conversation. And either Tony Scott or Jerry Bruckheimer deliberately chose to make this connection to the Coppola picture with the Gene Hackman character. c:1 ↩ Reply
Still: How is this related to Tenet? ↩ Reply
In my review of Tenet ( linked above ) I talk about how the main corruption of the audience in that movie seems to be, that it makes an arguments that "ignorance is strength" ( the ironic quote from the book 1984 ) is actually a good thing. c:2 ↩ Reply
The book 1984 is undeniably anti-surveillance. But it is more than that. The state in 1984 knows everything about the people. But the people know pretty much nothing about the state. It is also about the right to know, the freedom of speech. The whole "newspeak" language is a huge allegory for how freedom of speech is taken away. When the Ingsoc party says "ignorance is strength" we ( the readers ) know it is a lie. We know to think the opposite. We know "knowledge is strength". c:2 ↩ Reply
But in Tenet, due to the sci-fi element of reverse time, this tenet of "knowledge = strength" falls quickly apart. If anybody on your team knows anything, there is a potential for this information to leak into the world somehow in future, which you cannot control. And therefor the antagonists, because they can reverse time, have a way to surveil the present, via those potential future leaks. ↩ Reply
Any trace of trace-ability in Tenet is too much. Knowledge itself is too much. Ignorance is strength. ↩ Reply
Yet think about it. Surveillance is still bad in Tenet. ↩ Reply
Well here is the answer: Enemy of the State by Tony Scott is not the last Jerry Bruckheimer produced, Tony Scott directed film about surveillance. In 2006 they did Déjà Vu starring Denzel Washington and clearly inspired by Steven Spielberg's film in the genre of "surveillance = bad" Minority Report. ↩ Reply
Déjà Vu has time-travel. Sorry I spoiled it. The whole plot is based upon technology that allows to make a portal of time to spy on people. And by the end of the film Denzel Washington's character goes into past and sets off a bunch of payoffs that were setup in the beginning of the film. ↩ Reply
But then Tenet does roughly the same thing, just with a more interesting time-travel gimmick. Tenet is also somewhat about surveillance, as I previously discussed. But it is also starring John David Washington that was born in 1984 and who is also the son of Denzel Washington. Christopher Nolan was doing a deliberate nod to Tony Scott, who in his time made a deliberate nod to Coppola. ↩ Reply
This is how The Conversation is connected with Tenet. ↩ Reply
Happy Hacking!!! ↩ Reply
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Troler
c:0 November 08, 2026 The Conversation by Francis Ford Coppola probably does Michael Bay's The Rock ( with it's James Bond character ) into another Jerry Bruckheimer production: Enemy of the State by Tony Scott
⤴ ViewI had to reread the sentence several times, because I couldn't figure out what does probably does meant in that context
Troler
c:1 November 08, 2026 And either Tony Scott or Jerry Bruckheimer deliberately chose to make this connection to the Coppola picture with the Gene Hackman character
⤴ ViewAnd either... what? You've written only half of the sentence.
Troler
c:2 November 08, 2026 ( the ironic quote from the book 1984 ) is actually a good thing.
⤴ View The book 1984 is undeniably anti-surveillance
⤴ ViewThat's such a smooth transition.
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