Memento
The Plot:
Leonard Shelby is a man on a mission - to find and kill the man who raped and murdered his wife. He's also a man with a problem - the savage attack also gave him brain damage, and he now suffers from a rare and untreatable form of memory loss. He knows who he is and recalls everything up to the incident, but now he can no longer create new memories, meaning he can't remember people he's met, places he's been or things he's done even fifteen minutes ago. He's instinctually learned a system to help him - scribbled notes and photos in his pockets, tattoos all over his body for the really important clues he discovers - as he struggles through his frustrating handicap to find vengeance, always unsure of who to trust. (From Yahoo Movies)
My Thoughts: (Reviewed by K-Billy)
Memento tells the story of Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce), a former insurance investigator who has resolved to revenge his wife who was raped in an incident that left her dead and him with an injury that would leave him almost unable to live his life. For during the attack Leonard lost his short term memory due to a blow to the head from one of the murderers. This renders his quest almost impossible for he cannot remember people he’s met, what they’ve said or done to him, where he lives, or what he’s doing. The only way he can somewhat control this disorder is through notes to himself and pictures that give him clues as to what he’s doing. And for the more permanent memories he needs he receives tattoos to remind him of what has happened, what he’s doing, and what he needs to look for. However even with these aids he can never really be sure of who he can trust…including himself.
Original ideas and films are hard to come by these days and that is what makes Memento as special as it is. A man with no short term memory trying to find his wife’s killer is undoubtedly an interesting thought for a storyline. The filmmakers took it a step further however, for this film begins at the end and works it’s way backward. In this sense the end is the beginning and the beginning is the end. Confused? I was rather apprehensive about how such a feat would be pulled off, for a similar technique was used in the film 21 Grams and caused an overwhelming amount of confusion and annoyance in the first half of the film. However Memento’s broken narrative never feels like a gimmick and never really confuses the viewer. What it accomplishes backwards is much more then a standard mystery thriller could ever hope to achieve traditionally. It’s hard to imagine knowing the ending and still being so wrapped up in the film because you want to know the beginning but Memento engrosses the viewer in the most extreme of ways.
The performances are all around excellent and none are better then Guy Pearce. He is probably the best Australian actor of his time, right there with Russell Crowe. With bleached blonde hair and a calculated demeanor his performance is absolutely intriguing and he creates an extremely likable character. Some of his best scenes are in his narration that represents the thoughts in his mind, for example trying to piece things together about his current situations. Pearce does an excellent job of conveying Leonard’s confusion and uncertainty about almost everything that goes on around him. Two excellent supporting performances also shine in the film as well. Surprisingly both of the actors are from the Matrix trilogy, films known for wooden deliveries, but like Laurence Fishburne in Mystic River, portray very human characters in their other films. That will forever be a mystery to me. Joe Pantoliano plays Teddy, one part undercover cop, one part strange accomplice, and entirely mysterious. Even Leonard knows it, with a Polaroid of Teddy stating “don’t believe his lies.” Pantoliano is very good and makes it extremely hard to tell for what reasons is he helping Leonard and who he truly is behind the false persona that he’s created to fool the troubled man. Then there’s Carrie Anne Moss who plays Natalie, she’s almost as complex as Leonard. Emotionally portrayed by Moss, Natalie is entirely perplexing. She’s innocent and lonely in her best moments and sometimes cruel and evil in darker scenes. All around the characters are extremely interesting and engrossing and really add a dimension to the film that wouldn’t have existed with a poor cast.
An excellent script was written from writer/director Christopher Nolan who has created a confident and intelligent film. He is one of the more original directors making films today and his involvement in the new Batman film due out in a year has gotten me very excited at the prospect of a more serious installment in that dying series. With Memento he creates one of the best films that has graced the screen in years and above that it breaks away from the usual mold that accompanies films of it’s genre and does something truly unique with it’s story and narrative. It would’ve been simply to have written the backwards narrative as a gimmick but the film refuses to allow you to do that. It’s simply too well made to be anything but original.
Overall this is a film with a brilliant story. The performances all around are excellent with Guy Pearce putting forth a wonderful study into the human mind and the fallibility of our memory and memories for that matter. To put it simply, Memento goes on my top 10 films of all time, thoroughly engaging me in the story and drawing me into it’s characters in ways that few films have. It’s an excellent mystery thriller but at the same time is in a genre all its own as one of the most original films I’ve ever seen
Starring:
Guy Pearce, Joe Pantoliano, Carrie-Anne Moss, Mark Boone Junior, Stephen Tobolowsky
Directed by: Christopher Nolan
Rated R