Memento

Rating:
Summary: BRILLIANT FILM-NOIR
Review: Like most of us, I first noticed Guy Pearce in L.A. Confidential. Of course, his performance in that film was no less than flawless, but his turn in MEMENTO tops it. Pearce brings an innocent and genuine naivity to his character Leonard Shelby. Carrie-Anne Moss and Joe Pantaliono are also great in this amazing movie. Chris Nolan wonderfully combines intensity with mystery, suspense, humor, and great plot twists to an already interesting film. MEMENTO basically works backwards. That is, the opening scene is supposed to be the very last one and vise versa. The way that Nolan shoots the film (each vignette is about 15 minutes that precedes another) is great. MEMENTO makes you think and is very entertaining. I highly recommend this film. DO NOT BLINK, COUGH, SNEEZE, OR GLANCE AWAY, because you are sure to miss a minute and vital piece of this mind-boggling, perplexing puzzle.

Rating:
Summary: What Happens at the End Isn't Always the Story
Review: "Memento" is the story of Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce), a former insurance claims investigator who has developed a condition where he cannot create new memories. This condition was brought on by a sharp blow to the head he received one night while his house was being burglarized. His condition should not be confused with amnesia which causes the sufferer to lose his long-term memory. Leonard can remember everything up until the point at which he was injured or so he says.

The movie is told in reverse, kind of like the reverse Seinfeld episode. It starts with Leonard taking a picture of a man he has just shot and works its way backwards to explain to us how he got to that point. We see the method that Leonard has devised to help him remember things that he otherwise would forget. His method includes taking Polaroids of people he meets, writing their names and things he wants to remember about them on the picture, and tatooing his body with information he must remember.

Leonard's single motivating factor to continue on with his bleak existence is that his wife was raped and murdered during the burglary that caused his condition. He's hunting down her killer and trying to get his revenge. Everything he does is geared towards finding the killer and exacting his vengeance.

"Memento" is a good thriller that does what any good thriller should do: surprise. The unique nature of how the story is told is an interesting device; and, quite frankly, the story wouldn't be able to be told in any other way.

Besides Leonard, the movie revolves around two other main characters: Natalie (Carrie-Anne Moss) and Teddy (Joe Pantoliano). All three main characters are played well, especially Pantoliano's character Teddy. Pantoliano is slowly approaching a level for a character actor that is rarely seen in Hollywood. He plays bad guys, good guys and everything else in between and plays them well. Pearce also gives a solid performance while Moss's is adequate but uninspired.

There were some plot holes in the movie that left me scratching my head. They mainly involved the relationship between Leonard and Natalie and this guy Dodd (Callum Keith Rennie). You never are told for sure exactly what Natalie's and Dodd's relationship is and how exactly Leonard and Dodd first run into each other. I'm guessing that part of the movie got left on the editing room floor.

Despite that, "Memento" is good for a surprise or two and brings to light a condition that I doubt many people would find plausible. I myself didn't believe it until I looked it up and it sure enough is a legitimate medical condition. It just happens to be extremely rare.

Rating:
Summary: Exceptional!
Review: This was an exceptionally good movie. Maybe the best I've watched this year. Well written and a constant surprise.
Good to own a copy as it is re-watchable.

Rating:
Summary: remembrance and oblivion
Review: This is a film about the dialectics of remembrance and oblivion, about the question of the existance of a real world outside of our consciousness, about the nature of time and truth in a psychological sense.

Given it would be possible that a man has his full capability to think, remember his complete life until a special incident (when his wife was raped and he was heavily injured trying to help her), still can think and draw highly difficult conclusions, but is unable to make any new memories thereafter. He can plan for the future, but forgets within minutes every detail that was ever happening since his injury.

The very last thing Leonard remembers permanently, is the pain to see his wife dying, and his permanent will for revenge.

People used to say, time can heal every pain. But he cannot remember anything since, he even does not know how much time passed by: "How am I supposed to heal if I can't feel time?" He's searching for revenge as if this would comfort and relieve him. But he cannot even remember, if his wife is really dead (he saw her dying, but maybe she recovered?), he does not know if he already got revenge ... Sure, he has his photos, but other than people with a normal memory, if he doesn't like the truth he can simply burn a photo in order to clear his conscience.

Trying to give the viewer a feeling of his "condition", the film jumps backward in time, step by step, tells the reason later than the event, thereby fully stretching the VIEWER's attention and short-term memory. Only at the end of the movie, i.e. the beginning of the story, the viewer can know, should know, if all of Leonard's conlusions have been logical, in other words, whether or not he punished the right one (or two?).

It's almost impossible to understand the complete plot after seeing this movie only once, and even after the second time you will still not be sure. This makes it really absolutely interesting. For me, the movie is based on a brilliant idea, exciting, made virtuoso, unfortunately with very low respect to reality, but still a rewarding brain-teaser and contribution to a philosophical and psychological discussion.

Rating:
Summary: A masterpiece
Review: As the year progresses there have been many surprises, but far more dissapointments... Earlier this year I stopped by my uncles theater to see a movie with virtually no publicity, hoping the movie would live up to my uncles recommendations.

This turned out to be, by FAR the best movie to come out this year. The story is about a man who suffered a severe trauma during a tragic event involving his wife. He ends up with what is described as a lack of short term memory, he can remember the big picture... Who he is, where he's from and what has happened up to a moment... from then on he can only leave himself hints as to what has happened.

The narrative is told in reverse, bassically you start in what appears to be a series of episodes starting from the end and culminating in what appears to be the cause of the events. Forcing the viewer to play close attention to the events as they unfold, putting you in almost the same situation as the protaganist himself... you end up trying to keep track of everything that's going on without anything there to remind you.

All I can say is this movie is well worth at least one viewing, if that is not enough for you to make this purchase... nothing will ;).

Rating:
Summary: In the end there was the beginning
Review: If you like simple movies that tell simple stories, don't buy this movie. You have to watch this movie from title to credits. Just when I thought all original ideas in movies were gone, along comes "Memento". I saw it in the movies, and have watch the DVD at least three times. Each time its like fresh air being pumped into my viewing experience. While it had limited screening when released, it stayed on those screens a long time. This may well develop a cult following. However, it is not a film everyone will like.

Rating:
Summary: Memento: If only I could rate it with SIX stars
Review: This movie is incredible. The only possible reason why it didn't walk away with every Academy Award is because of its lack of publicity. Guy Pearce is a great actor, and the plot is brilliant. WARNING: If you aren't in the mood to watch something smart, do NOT watch this. It had me puzzling and guessing all throughout the entire movie. I can't praise Memento enough.

Rating:
Summary: Extreme mined blow, it's one of the best I've seen!!!
Review: Memento is one of the best movies I've seen on my DVD, I can't even begin describing it without spoiling half of it.
In general the movie goes backward and foreword in the same time, until the two time lines merge into one. What's best in this movie is that you can't expect what comes next (or came).
The bits of information come in reverse, every second, several other pieces of the puzzle starts to fit. Because you know the ending of the movie right at the beginning, it gives you a different angle to look at the film: instead of wanting to know what Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce) did, you want to know who is Leonard and what was done to him, which gives the move uniqueness.
Guy Pearce play the part of Leonard Shelby like he was born for it, the entire cast is great.
I recommend this movie for all of you out there who likes movies that make you say Wow! When the credits are up, yes, this is one of those movies that make you think about them for hours after the movie is over.
A Must See !!!!!

Rating:
Summary: Mesmerizing
Review: This movie is one of the most intriguing stories that have been told on film, mysterious but clear if you stick with it. The DVD is a pretty nice package-you'll like the fact that you can see the scenes in chronological order and the tattoo gallery is pretty cool. To tell the truth I can't say anything bad about "Memento" because I just love this movie!The acting is marvelous and the way the story is told is captivating. Check out Guy Pearce of L.A. Confidential-this guy can act!! Don't know why Hollywood is ignoring him. He held this story together perfectly and allowed us to get into the mind of this poor man who's on a mission that at most times is so hard for him to stay focused on because of his "condition" so he delevops ways to remind himself of important details about his quest for revenge that are quite amazing-like tattoos and Polaroid snapshots of people and cars, etc. I liked Joe Pantoliano and Carrie Anne Moss too. Christopher Nolan's screenwriting is wonderful. This should get plenty of Oscar nods but sadly, the Academy, like most people who look for entertainment has a short attention span and impatience with quality film making that makes you think. Too bad.

Rating:
Summary: MIND GAMES
Review: Memento is just one of the most intelligent, innovative, and suspenseful brain teasers to come along in years. Definitely reminiscent of the Hitchockian suspense, where you're guessing until the final scene. Memento is abot a man who's short term memory has been destroyed and he is trying to puzzle together the clues to who murdered his wife and who assaulted him and gave him this condition. The movie is brilliant in the sense that we are as clueless as the main character Lenny, we are trying to piece things together with him and in doing so we question our own memories and interpretations of the facts. Guy Pearce is swift and glides gracefully from scene to scene with that fragment of fear upon his face like anyone in a condition where they couldnt remember one thing from the next. We totally empathize with his character and we are totally right there with him with each lost and lingering gaze. Memento is so smart that it out smarts even the most intricate investigator, it makes you apart of the puzzle. You become the eyewitness. The eyewitness who can only see what they want too and process the facts. By this movie's end, you'll question what you've seen and heard and wonder have you identified the killer or made yourself the suspect.