Film Review: Memento

Director: Christoper Nolan

This was Nolan's second feature film after The Following but is widely credited as the film that made him famous as a director and a writer. It is renowned for it's non-linear script that brings together two segments, one in black and white and one in colour, as well as it's ending that is open to interpretation.

Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce) has anterograde amnesia which means he cannot create any new memories after an attack on his wife where she was raped and killed. Shelby killed the first attacker but didn't know of a second attacker who clubs him into unconsciousness. He tries to find the second man who is apparently named John G by getting help from people (who he photographs and writes notes about so he remembers who they are) as well as tattooing his body to help him remember things.

Leonard Shelby with his tattoos

*spoilers ahead* the plot works with two storylines, the black and white storyline is linear and is the sequence of events leading up to Leonard strangling Jimmy and then the colour storyline follows straight after but is shown in reverse chronological order so the murder of Teddy is actually the last action we see. The open ended question of whether Teddy was telling the truth about his wife being the one with diabetes and that he will always be searching for John G to give his life meaning is an intriguing one. The non-linear storyline adds a bit of confusion to events at times which is good but is easier to decipher than a Lynch movie for instance.

For many parts of the movie I felt a bit bored as the storyline faltered, this was possibly for people to try and catch up with what's happened but I started to feel I could see what was going to happen. With movies of this type my mind always goes into over-drive thinking about what exactly has happened and I came back to Lost Highway. We are watching the movie from Leonard's perspective so what is assumed from his memory isn't necessarily true akin to Fred's character in Lost Highway saying that he prefers to see things how he remembers them not necessarily as they happened. This was the key throughout the movie to seeing the twist coming at the end and the 12 years since it's release have possibly taken the shine off it somewhat.

3/4 great non-linear script just falters at certain points.