Memento AS media analysis

1. Directed by Christopher Nolan

2. IMDB:
 Users of IMDB have it 8.5/10 stars
 Quixoboy felt it was ‘Addictive and fun to figure out’ –
this is a key aim of thriller films and it was therefore
successful in the genre
 However Charles_LePoje felt we should ‘forget about
it’ as it was a ‘dull movie with no emotional core’
Empireonline:
 Empireonline gave Memento 4/5 stars as it was
‘Genuinely perplexing and disturbing but still a thrill for
true film lovers […] compelling and fascinating’

3. 2002 AFI Awards USA:
 Screenwriter of the year: Christopher Nolan
2002 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror
Films,
USA:
 Best Action/Adventure/Thriller Film
2002 Academy Awards nominated USA:
 Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the
Screen: Christopher Nolan and Jonathan Nolan

4.  Memento is a memory inside a memory,
 complex story
 Leonard is trying to get revenge for his wife's murder.
 He suffers from a condition of short term memory loss and
has to write himself notes everyday. However these then
mean nothing to him once he falls asleep
 The film travels back in time to show each piece of the
mystery as he tries to find the murderer
 The plot runs along a phone call Leonard has where he
talks about Sammy Jankis who thought he had the same
condition
 The film has a plot twist as we find out the two characters
have a lot more in common than we first thought

5.  Guy Pearce – Leonard Shelby
 Carrie-Anne Moss – Natalie
 Joe Pantoliano –Teddy Gammell

6.  The plot is extremely complex as the narrative is
told in reverse from a murder. This leaves the
audience confused and trying to figure out what
is going on, also leading to them becoming
engrossed and continuing to watch the film
 The main character is also very complex, he
suffers from short term memory loss. This
means the plot becomes extremely confusing
when he forgets key aspects of the case
 Crime and murder are key themes throughout.
This is typical of thrillers as it gives exciting,
suspenseful but also complex plots

7.  Begins with a close up of a Polaroid photo of
a dead body, this close up continues for about
1 minute while the photo slowly disappears.
This is building suspense as the audience
want to find out more about the situation
 The scene then moves to a shot of the man
holding the Polaroid, and from there you see
the dead person on the floor. The murder is
then reversed as we see a man shoot another

8.  Polaroid photo – takes a long time to develop
and therefore leaves the audience waiting,
therefore creating suspense. It also seems
very disturbed as the murderer is developing
a picture of someone he has just killed
 Scars – The first man we see has scars on his
face, this shows the audience that he has
previously been in danger but is not
phased/scared by what is happening
 Gun - shows the he committed the murder
before we see it happen, this also indicates
crime will play a large role throughout the
narrative

9.  Slow non-harmonious music – creates tension
for the audience as it puts them on edge and
indicates the film is not going to be
happy/positive
 Sonically exaggerated sound of the camera –
shows that it is a key role within the film and
emphasises that he has just photographed the
murder
 Reversed sound – puts the audience on edge as
it is slightly off pitch. However as it is backwards
it makes the audience have to think more about
what is happening and pay more attention

10.  Close up on Polaroid – looks like a murder
scene so audience become curious about who
is dead and who is taking the photo. Also
shows it may be significant later on
 Close up of bullet/blood – shows it was a
murder and not an accident. Therefore
indicates to the audience that the narrative
may revolve around this scene.
 Mid shot of him getting shot – shows it was not
a fair ‘battle’ as his back was turned. Therefore
shows revenge and spite may play a key role

11.  Rewind motion of the shooting – Shows the
audience what happened however does not
show why or what was happening before. It
therefore creates mystery as the audience want
to know more.
 Extremely slow paced – this builds up tension
and makes the audience feel that something is
about to happen
 Sideways shot of the blood – confuses the
audience and makes things seem not right but
instead wrong.