Momento

Momento, released in 2000, was directed by Christopher Nolan who is a successful film writer and director originating from London. Born on the 30^th July 1970 has always been interested in all aspects of film and has studied in many different formats of the profession. He is most famous for directing and writing Thriller genre films and his most well known films are Momento (2000), Batman Begins (2005), The Dark Knight (2008) and most recently Inception (2010). Nolan has won and has been nominated for many awards. The awards he has ascertained for Momento are, in 2001, the BSFC award for Best Screenplay and the ALFS Award for British Screenwriter of the Year. Also in 2002 he won the AFI Screenwriter of the Year, the Bram Stoker Award for Screenplay, Critics Choice award for Screenplay and an MTV Movie Award for Best New Filmmaker.

           

In Momento the film starts at the end of the story. We see the main character Leonard, played by Guy Pearce, killing Teddy who turns out to be the murderer of Leonard’s wife “John G”. We are then shown throughout the film how Leonard goes about trying to find who raped and murdered his wife. After we see the death of Teddy, we are introduced to Leonard’s “15 minute memory” and how he uses Polaroid photos, notes and tattoos on his body to remember everything and how he tells everyone about Sammy Jankis who also has the condition. Halfway though a new character, Natalie comes on the scene and we find out that she helps Leonard with his investigation. Later on, however, we find that she is the False Hero of the narrative (following Vladimir Propp’s Theory of Narrative) as she uses Leonard and his disability to manipulate and help her in her own troubles after her husband is missing after being involved with drug dealing. Then it is revealed that Teddy is actually John Gammell who is the murderer of Leonard’s wife. This pulls the film together and connects all the events to the end where we find that Leonard isn’t actually the person we think he is and Sammy Jankis is actually based on him but he has convinced himself that it isn’t. Also we find that he has already killed a John G and that he is re-investigating due to not remembering killing the previous John G.

 

At the beginning of Momento we are bought into the film with the opening sequence where we are introduced to Leonard, who is to be the main character. The scene is set in an empty hotel room with minimal props and with the frame black and white. Also we find out about Leonard being confused as to why he is in the hotel room which can give you a hint about the film being a thriller due to usually in a thriller the protagonist has an ‘Achilles Heel” which is taken advantage of by the antagonist in the narrative which in this is Natalie/Teddy. Furthermore the phone call that Leonard receives from the unknown caller in the beginning is the start of the complex plot line, which is also another convention of a thriller.

One of the key scenes in the film in my opinion is the opening scene where we are introduced to Leonard and his short term memory problem and then see the death of Teddy as it starts off the whole plot, which turns out to be incredibly complex – sometimes points that the film is a thriller. Especially when we witness Leonard kill Teddy as this can be seen as a convention of a thriller due to it being a murder.

Another key scene in the film is where the whole film comes together towards the end as it opens up the complexity of it and we find out that Leonard has already killed another John G. and the investigation is being completed again during the film.

Emma Lawrie