Memento

Christopher Nolan
Christopher Nolan is an English film maker who was born in London in 1970. He began making films at the age of 7 years old using his dads camera and a range of different action figures.

His films often contain British or non-American actors playing American roles. They also usually start with a flashback or a scene from the end of the movie. The main character in his films often has a physical or psychological handicap. For example in Memento Leonard has memory loss, in ‘The Prestige’ the main character hurts their leg and in ‘Insomnia’ Dormer has insomnia. The main characters are usually men who have a goal which they achieve by the end of the film. His films often have non-linear timelines for example in ‘Following’, ‘Memento’ and ‘The prestige’.
His other work also includes the huge hit ‘Inception’, which has many similarities to ‘Memento’.

Summary of events
In ‘Memento’ the main character, Leonard, has a condition where he can’t make new memories. This condition was triggered by the death of his wife as that is the last thing that he can remember. During the film his goal is to find his wife’s killer and get revenge on them. Due to his condition he has to write down every piece of important information that could lead to him finding the killer. He does this by taking photographs of things and getting information tattooed on his body. Due to his condition a lot of people take advantage of Leonard during the film. For example his friend Natalie made him angry so he would hit her. She then hid all of the pens in her house so that Leonard couldn’t write it down and he would forget he had done it. She then pretended that a thug that her boyfriend owed money to was the one who hit her. Leonard then beat up and kidnapped him in protection of his friend Natalie. Leonard eventually finds John G, who he believes to be his wife’s killer, and kills him.

How does the opening sequence introduce the thriller genre?
The opening sequence contains a murder which fits the thriller genre perfectly as the whole film is centred around this crime. Later on in the film we discover that the man who is murdered in the opening sequence turns out to be John G, Leonard’s wife’s killer. The opening sequence also creates mystery and unanswered questions as the viewer is unsure why the scene is playing backwards and why he takes a picture of the man he kills.

Key scene 1
This scene is contains thriller conventions as again a crime is being committed. We also hear a car alarm which we automatically attach to crime. It also highlights how Leonard’s condition puts him in dangerous situations and increases the risk of him getting injured or killed.



Key scene 2
This scene contains thriller conventions as something as normal as talking on the phone is tuned in to something that creates suspense and unanswered questions. This also reiterates the mistakes that Leonard makes due to his condition.



Opinions and recommendations
In my opinion this film is a great watch as it contains lots of good thriller conventions and gets the viewer involved in the film, which keeps you interested throughout. This is mainly due to the non-linear timescale, which can be confusing at times but usually makes sense again later on in the film as you discover new pieces of information. I would recommend this film to anyone over the age of 15 as the storyline is very interesting and keeps you on the edge of your seat as you can never guess what will happen next.

By Jake Page.