Jack Twell, a 24-year-old film student, was first to arrive for the mid-morning screening of Tenet at the Showcase Cinema de Lux in Bristol city centre. His was no dramatic entrance for Christopher Nolan’s high-concept action romp: he arrived on a folding bike and patiently waited for the doors to open. But still, it felt significant.

“It is an important moment,” said Twell. “I’m super-excited. I don’t know if this is the film that will save cinema but it is wonderful to be here waiting to see a new Christopher Nolan film.”

Twell and his film school friends have been watching old favourites at the cinema, including Lord of the Rings and Star Wars movies in recent weeks. “But it’s great to be here seeing something new and big,” he said.

The 10.30am screening was by no means full. About a dozen film fans, mostly young men, arrived. They were greeted by friendly staff telling them the rules – face coverings had to be worn, don’t go within 2 metres of anyone not in your party, use the hand sanitisers and so on.

Cinemas reopened in July but have struggled to get people through the doors. Staggered screening times, empty seats to enforce social distancing and deep cleaning routines have hampered recovery.

After several studios pulled their summer releases as a result of Covid – including the new James Bond and Disney’s live action Mulan – Tenet is the first blockbuster to be released during the pandemic.

Even before coronavirus, Tenet, which stars John David Washington, Robert Pattinson and Kenneth Branagh, was set to be one of the biggest releases of the year. Now, theatre chains are seeing it as their saviour.

Showcase was keen to talk the launch up, of course, describing Wednesday as “the biggest day for UK cinema since lockdown” and said film fans were “flocking back” to cinemas nationwide.

The chain did not spell out exactly how many tickets had been snapped up, revealing only that sales had increased by 71% from Monday morning to Wednesday morning.

By lunchtime Bristol was packed with shoppers and diners but it was clear that many more people seemed interested in queuing for coffee or pizza than the Nolan film.

Pam Green, who was visiting family in Bristol, paused to look at the screen times (Tenet was being shown every half an hour up to 9pm). “I think I’ll give it a few weeks and wait until everyone has seen it,” she said. “I know they’re spacing people out but I think I’ll wait until the fuss has died down.”

Up at the lovely 1920s Everyman cinema on Whiteladies Road, film fans were being tempted back. Here the clientele was more mixed – families and couples.

Mother and son Margaret and David Evans were among the first up the steps and through the doors making use of the sanitiser (‘Lights, camera, hand gel’ was the message on the cleansing station).

The last film the family saw was Parasite, at the Everyman. “That was a different world,” said Margaret. “We’ve really missed it. This is the first time we’ve been inside to see something. I’m keen to get back to normal life as much as possible. This is a big part of that for me.”

David, 16, added: “It’s an important film. They need to try and get people back. There’s nothing like the cinema. Hopefully it will be good, too.”

Jon Older, an assistant director of film about to start work on the new series of the television crime drama Vera, could not remember the last movie he saw at a cinema.

“I usually see a film at the cinema once a week. I like Christopher Nolan’s movies and expect great things. It’s extremely important for the industry. We’re all staggering back to work. Releasing this film now seems a bit of a gamble but you’ve got to start somewhere.”

The audience figures will come later but Everyman described its pre-sales as “very encouraging” and said its teams across the country were looking forward to welcoming people back.

On the Bristol harbourside, the independent Watershed venue has opted not to show the Nolan film when it reopens next week.

Instead it will screen movies including the acclaimed Bait, about life in a Cornish fishing village, and classics such as Sunset Boulevard and North by Northwest.

The Watershed cinema curator, Mark Cosgrove, said he had counted 77 screenings of Tenet in and around Bristol on day one. “Tenet is readily available for anyone who would like to see it,” he said. “It’s got enough exposure. It’s not all about tentpole releases. There are other kinds of cinema being made and other film cultures happening. That’s what we want to show.”

Cosgrove said Watershed’s advance ticket sales were healthy. “It’s a nervous time but the sales are giving me confidence.”

Almost three hours after his arrival, Twell was back out in the sunshine, blinking and suitably bowled over. “It was great, really gripping and entertaining, brilliantly shot.” And happily for the cinema industry: “I’ll have to go back a second time to try to completely understand it.”