MEMENTO
DETAILS: Certificate 15, 113 minutes running time
DIRECTOR: Christopher Nolan
STARRING: Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss and Joe Pantoliano
RESLEASED: 2000
TAGLINE: Some memories are best forgotten
RATING: ********* 9/10
To call Christopher Nolan's film noir (Memento) a neurotic ... Read review
An absolute stunner of a movie,Mementocombines a bold, mind-bending script with compelling ... more
action and virtuoso performances. Guy Pearce plays Leonard Shelby, hunting down the man who raped and murdered his wife. The problem is that "the incident" that ...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Production Year: 2002 - Thriller - Director: Bharat Nalluri, Rob Bailey, Andy Wilson - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Matthew MacFadyen, Keeley Hawes, David Oyelowo, Peter Firth, Jenny Agutter, Lisa Faulkner
Thriller - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Timothy West, Neil Morrissey, Tara Fitzgerald, Annette Crosbie, Pauline Quirke, Rob Brydon, Denise Van Outen, John Thomson, Kevin Whately, David Suchet
Production Year: 2002 - Thriller - Director: K.C. Bascombe - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Jesse James, Rachel Skarsten, Charles Powell, Linda Purl, Kevin Zegars
Advantages: Reverse chronological storyrelling! Disadvantages: The movie's finale
...the depth of its intricacies. Memento about a man named Leonard (Guy Pearce) who is from San Francisco. Leonard is an insurance fraud investigator, suffering from anterograde amnesia. Leonard suffered from extensive head injuries after he intervened on his wife's murder. Although his memory is intact, prior to the incident, he is no longer able to make new memories and suffers short-term memory loss. To compensate for his condition he uses annotated ... ...sequence, which becomes the climax. Memento is a creative movie that does not abide by the precedents of narration. Other movies have also changed around with the time and the way in which the movie flows, movies such as Peppermint Candy and Irréversible. If Christopher Nolan had not directed this movie the reverse chronological structure of the movie could have been an utter gimmick, however Memento's unique way in which it is executed helps us ... more
MEMENTO
DETAILS: Certificate 15, 113 minutes running time DIRECTOR: Christopher Nolan STARRING: Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss and Joe Pantoliano RESLEASED: 2000 TAGLINE: Some memories are best forgotten RATING: ********* 9/10
To call Christopher Nolan's film noir (Memento) a neurotic and mesmerising thriller would be attenuating the depth of its intricacies. Memento about a man named Leonard (Guy Pearce) who is from San Francisco. Leonard is an insurance fraud investigator, suffering from anterograde amnesia. Leonard suffered from extensive head injuries after he intervened on his wife's murder. Although his memory is intact, prior to the incident, he is no longer able to make new memories and suffers short-term memory loss. To compensate for his condition he uses annotated photographs and notes to remind himself about certain people e.g. on the back of Natalie's (Carrie-Anne Moss) photograph, Leonard writes "she has lost someone as well, she will help you out of pity." The movie focuses on Leonard hunting for the killer of his wife. He uses notes and tattoos to pursue this killer. It is a movie that requires concentration but with every passing scene it will make you itch for more and it will add a new twist to the plot. The experience of the movie is like being on a roller coaster: bloodcurdling yet composed.
Christopher Nolan deceives the audience through two strange ideas, which he has integrated into this movie. The first strange idea is that the protagonist: Leonard (Guy Pearce) suffers from profound anterograde amnesia, which means that Leonard is unable to make new memories. The second strange idea used by Nolan is, to tell the story in reverse sequential order. These two ideas may seem insignificant, however they help to put the whole movie into perspective.
The movie swerves between past and future incidents. The colour section depicts Leonard's investigation, which lasts between three to eight minutes; these segments are in reverse sequential order. Each segment starts with Leonard's memory "resetting"; leaving both him (and the audience) oblivious of what has happened or where he is. The segments end just before Leonard's memory withers away. The black and white sections are told in a chronological order, which portray Leonard in a motel room talking to an unidentified person. By the end of the movie the two sections (both colour and black and white) assemble into a colour sequence, which becomes the climax. Memento is a creative movie that does not abide by the precedents of narration. Other movies have also changed around with the time and the way in which the movie flows, movies such as Peppermint Candy and Irréversible. If Christopher Nolan had not directed this movie the reverse chronological structure of the movie could have been an utter gimmick, however Memento's unique way in which it is executed helps us to be put into Leanord's shoes and gives us a unique experience of the movie. The reverse chronological order of the movie eludes the dangers of preconceived notions.
Christopher Nolan is a kite flyer, weaving and soaring through the sky, taking his kite wherever the wind takes it, which symbolises the way in which Memento was filmed and directed. He is known for his particular genre of movies: mystery, crime, thriller and drama. Memento is a psychological thriller: In Memento you can see that Natalie (Carrie-Anne Moss) and Teddy (Joe Pantoliano) deceive Leonard through the manipulation of his mind. Teddy is a cop, a drug dealer or Leonard's friend, as he claims to be. Natalie seems to be an attractive yet mysterious lady sympathising with Leonard, or she could be a junky exploiting Leonard's condition and using him to kill two people, to whom she is in debt. The strange thing about these characters is that Nolan never really reveals whether these people are who they claim or whether they are not who they seem. This creates curiosity for the audience and we are left just as dazed and confused as Leonard. The density of the narrative is so complex and intricate that it requires your full concentration; if you cannot concentrate on a movie this is not the movie for you. Also if you need to go to the toilet, for a smoke break or a glass of water pause the movie. Missing one scene will leave you as perplexed as poor old Leonard.
The success of the film relies on two aspects; firstly, due to Guy Pearce's riveting performance and secondly due to the most fascinating screenplay you will ever see. Nolan went along with the unique plot of an unreliable protagonist played by Leonard to perfection because he is oblivious of many characters and their discussions. The expression made by him when he cannot remember something makes you pity him. Nolan knew that audiences would empathise with Leonard because of his condition and used that to his advantage in painting this artistic movie.
However, I was dissatisfied by Memento's conclusion. I felt deceived when I watched the first scene restructured as the last scene. I was expecting a huge twist in the plot as in other movies such as 'the others' and 'the sixth sense.' Although Nolan's intention was to leave an open ending, it deposed the gravity of Memento: which it possessed up until the finale. On the contrary Memento is a must see!
Report on Memento:
Script = 10/10 Actor's Performances = 10/10 Cinematography = 10/10 Special Effects = 10/10 Movie finale = 5/10 Overall rating = 9/10
Commentary for reading
My reading English coursework is a review on a movie called Memento. I decided to write a review on this movie after I had watched it for the first time. Its intention is to inform the audience about this unique movie Memento. Therefore I have discussed the unique structure of the movie.
The target audience for this review involves both genders because of memento's storyline and genre. The review is aimed at a diverse age range, however readers of movie magazines are generally people above the age of 16. In my review I have constantly reminded and emphasised the audience the fact that Memento needs full concentration; therefore I intentionally wrote "if you cannot concentrate, fully, on a movie this is not the movie for you." The audience also needs to be accustomed with the genre, therefore this is recommended to people who prefer movies under the thriller genre: as Memento is a psychological thriller.
My motivation for this review primarily came from my interest in the movie and the way in which it was created, edited and executed. I used sites such as "IMDB", "reel review", "total film" and "empire" to help me understand the way in which reviews are made. I tried to make this review as authentic as possible, so that it wouldn't look any different from reviews written in publications such as "total film" or "empire". I used graphology epitomising that of "IMDB's" reviews; for example I bracketed the actor's real name after his name in the movie i.e. Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce). I also wrote Memento in italics to enforce the authenticity of the review.
I tried to elude repetitive tone, through the use of varied structure and length. For example in the first paragraph I use short and simple sentences to avoid an overflow of information for the reader. However whilst describing the structure, in the second paragraph I increased the used of subordinate clauses and commas to help the reader get more involved and to reflect the pace of the movie.
Due to the purpose of the piece my first paragraph aims to summarise Memento and give enough information to the reader as possible. As I was reviewing the movie my first paragraph contained positive lexis such as 'neurotic, mesmerising' this was to ensure that I was also analysing the movie without giving too much information and evading spoilers.
The structure of the movie review goes through five distinct phases: one for each paragraph. The first phase concentrates on information about the movie. During this phase positive analysis of the movie arises. The second phase focuses on the structure of the movie i.e. ' it is told in reverse chronological order.' The third phase's focal point refers to the actors' and director's roles in the movie. The fourth phase centres the success of the film, thus informing the audience about its achievements. The final phase gives attention to my perspective on the ending. I was disappointed and this allowed the review to become unbiased and balanced. Also I have structured the review into five paragraphs to facilitate the reader, as it is more readable. Had I not implemented paragraphs it would overflow the reader with information (although that is my purpose.)
In the first paragraph I portray the experience of watching the movie 'like being on a roller coaster: bloodcurdling yet composed.' These contrasting adjectives formed a juxtaposition, which I used to entertain as well as inform the audience.
Throughout the review I have used words such as 'portray, depict' to give the audience a taste of what it is like to watch it.
Overall, I do believe that this review would fit well into sites such as IMDB and reel review. If I had more time I would like to research about the movie's structure, as it is very intriguing. Copyright: Cobainkurdt Also published on Helium and Dooyoo
Advantages: Thought-provoking, gives you an insight into life with short-term memory loss Disadvantages: Difficult to understand what happened
...Pearce
Split Screen shooting script
Memento Mori Narrated by Jonathan Nolan
Production Stills and Sketches
Props Gallery
International Poster Art
Concept Art and Bootleg Cover Art
Journal
Tattoo Gallery
Cast and Crew Biographies
International Trailer
Website Material
Special Hidden Feature: The Beginning of the End
The best special features are Memento Mori, which is a narration of the short story on which this film was based, and the ... ...entire film, but shown in chronological order, and which was one of the main reasons why I bought this special edition version.
Conclusion:
This film is complex, dark, thought-provoking, extremely clever, edge of the seat stuff that left me with an overall feeling of Wow! I would highly recommend that you buy the 3-disc special edition of this film, because you’re sure to want to watch it again and again, both backwards and forwards! ...
ciao_reviewer 24.07.2007 (23.07.2007)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Memento (Special Edition) (DVD)
Advantages: Thought provoking Disadvantages: Thought provoking
Wow what a good and interesting film.
Guy Pearce is Leonard who cannot retain his memories up untill the night his wife is brutally raped and murdered. He has a rare disorder in which he cannot retain new memories so using tattoos and notes, he leaves himself clues to what happened. Leonard fuelled by what happens seeks revenge leading this film into a clever whodunnit. Also starring the always brilliant Joe Pantoliano as Teddy a friend who may ... ...Leonard trusts but should he?
This film is inventive and thought provoking. I have put this as an advantage because i like this in a film, it shows it is not just your average thriller and you have to try and work some things out yourself. This fact also plays to a disadvantage if you like films that are easily played out and not confusing.
The time scale used in this film is amazing as it works backwords and there are many twists and turns on ...
katygriff 30.06.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Memento (Special Edition) (DVD)
Advantages: A complex plot and in depth storyline Disadvantages: Needs to be watched more than once to be fully appreciated
This film far surpasses any of my other favorite films to be my number one favourite film! This film is one big headfunk and leaves you guessing all the way to the end. The inovative way that this film is shot is like no other, the use of naratives and black and white film top this film up with style and finesse. A good movie to me is one that has an ending I cannot guess within the first half an hour and this film definitly fitts the bill. This ...
Darirch 09.07.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of Memento (Special Edition) (DVD)
The story of Leonard whose memory was severely damaged after an attack which left his wife raped and murdered. Now he wants to know why his wife was killed and he's out for revenge. Based on a short story by Jonathan Nolan.
Release details
DVD Region
DVD
Studio(s)
PATHE DISTRIBUTION; 20TH CENTURY FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT
Original Theatrical Trailer, IFC Interview With Writer And Director Christopher Nolan, Director And Cast Biographies, Memento Mori By Jonathan Nolan, Tattoo Gallery, Shooting Script, Interactive Menus, Website Material, Special Hidden Feature The Beginning of the End
Aspect Ratio
2.35 Wide Screen
Sound
DTS
Dubbing Sound
DTS English
Professional reviews
Review
"...MEMENTO has the uniquely disorienting quality of a puzzle....It's the rare mystery in which every moment lives....Pearce's extraordinary performance lends even the smallest events the aura of a life-or-death search..." (Entertainment Weekly, p.77, 23/03/2001)
"...Nolan has literally turned the genre inside-out and reassembled it as an intriguing jigsaw puzzle of a whodunit..." (Hollywood Reporter, p.86-94, 12/09/2000)
"...Exceptional....A haunting, nervy thriller....MEMENTO is a provocatively structured and thrillingly executed film noir..." (Los Angeles Times, p.2, 16/03/2001)
"...A stylish thriller with a touch of novelty....This mind-teasing puzzle is engrossing..." (Movieline, p.34-7, 01/03/2001)
"...Ingenious....MEMENTO is a brilliant feat of rug-pulling, sure to delight fans of movies like THE USUAL SUSPECTS and PI..." (New York Times, p.E14, 16/03/2001)
"...[A] mesmerizing mind-bender....A new classic among thrillers....This jolting jigsaw puzzle of a movie grabs you and won't let go..." (Rolling Stone, p.85-6, 15/03/2001)
"...A terrifically compelling little mystery..." (USA Today, p.3E, 16/03/2001)
DVD Description
MEMENTO, the second feature by writer-director Christopher Nolan (FOLLOWING), is an intricately constructed film noir that masterfully inverts time to comment on the foggy relationship between memory and truth. MEMENTO tells the story of Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce), a former insurance investigator who witnesses a brutal attack on his wife. Knocked unconscious, Leonard wakes up with a rare brain condition--he no longer possesses short-term memory. He can remember his name and all the details of his past, but he can no longer make new memories. Armed with a careful system of remembering details (he compulsively snaps Polaroids and scribbles notes, then tattoos the important facts directly onto his body), the distraught Leonard goes on a manhunt to avenge his wife's death. To illustrate the unique and frightening state of the protagonist's mind (he cannot remember what happened even seconds before), Nolan takes a brilliantly successful risk in telling the story backward. The film begins with Leonard killing the man he's looking for. From there MEMENTO unravels a compellingly disconcerting trail back to the start. As the layers of the story are peeled back scene by scene, Leonard's involvement with two enigmatic "friends"--who both claim to be helping him--complicates the mystery. Based on a short story by the director's brother, Jonathan Nolan, MEMENTO is an incredibly original film that is so wonderfully puzzling and eerily ambiguous that it will surely warrant repeated viewings.
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