Memento

🔥 MIND-BENDING | ASTONISHING 🔥 3rd Watch | Top 100 | Christopher Nolan Ranked Christopher Nolan is a director known for his conceptual style of filmmaking. No matter whether you think Christopher Nolan is one of the most overrated directors of our time or one of the greatest directors of all time, one thing is certain: his films are centered heavily around one singular concept. Whether the concept is moving forwards and backwards in time (Tenet) or having a dream within a dream (Inception) or having the film run backwards to tell a story (in this case, Memento), his films are definitely not "standard." A glimpse of this was seen in his debut "Following," as it is told in a non-linear format. However, as it was the first feature-length film of Nolan's career and with a non-existent budget, the execution was a little messy. Perhaps I need to rewatch Following sometime in the future, but when Nolan created his first "real" film that wasn't just some buddies hanging around on the weekend, it became one of my favorite films of all time. Watching Memento for a third time, I have grown a greater appreciation for what editing can do for a film. Editing isn't just a way to order clips in a film. Editing can also be used to establish character and identify perspective. If Memento was edited in a different way, the film would seem completely different. If Memento was shown in chronological order, Leonard's character would be shone in a much darker light. However, the editing produces an effect that characterizes Leonard as an unfortunate victim whose life was ruined from a tragic event. By watching it in chronological order, his innocence fades away. In other words, the editing was used to change how the audience perceives the film, and in the case of Memento, its effect was brilliant! However, the excellence of Memento's editing doesn't end there. As most people know, the film practically moved backwards, with the ending of one scene being the same as the beginning of the previous scene. A gimmick is something used to attract attention without any real purpose. However, the editing style in Memento isn't just a "gimmick," as it has a very important purpose. In Memento, the editing allows us to experience what Leonard feels. With Leonard's "condition," he doesn't know how he arrived in every situation. He doesn't know the context. Nolan wanted the audience to fully connect ourselves with Leonard, but with humans able to remember a lot further than Leonard, just putting the film in chronological order doesn't work because while Leonard doesn't know the context, we do. Nolan fixes this problem in a genius way, making the film go backwards to also make the audience unaware of the context leading up to the present scene. I don't believe that Christopher Nolan is a "genius" filmmaker who can create the craziest ideas for a film. For example, I don't think the non-linear storylines in The Prestige or Inception are "genius." However, I can't deny that Memento truly is "genius" and is one of a kind. I mean technically it's two of a kind because Memento was so brilliant that a Bollywood film basically copied the entire premise, but nonetheless, Memento is an astounding film that cleverly uses editing to drive the story. The iconic duo of Christopher Nolan and Hans Zimmer might be the most talked about director/composer duo of all time. Obviously, there are a few contenders like the Spielberg/Williams duo. However, there is no denying that Hans Zimmer and Christopher's collaborations are talked about endlessly. Although that duo has produced some of my favorite scores ever (The Dark Knight, Dunkirk, Inception, among others), it has unfortunately overshadowed the brief time where David Juylan composed Nolan's scores. His work in The Prestige is spectacular, and of course, his score was amazing in Memento. Memento's score is easily one of the most underrated aspects about the movie. When I hear people talk about Memento, I usually don't see any mention to the score. However, it definitely deserves recognition. The main theme is chilling and sets the tone for the film. As I mentioned earlier, the editing was superb in Memento. However, one of the reasons why it was so amazing was the script of the movie. The structure of the film is so genius for reasons I already explained earlier. However, the screenplay is so much more brilliant than that! The film centers around many ideas, including revenge, the reliability of memory, and also the reliability of records (or "facts"). These ideas, including others that I didn't mention, are integral to the story and achieving a compelling and complete narrative. The film's structure is so disjointed but somehow the film feels very complete. There aren't gaps like what was present in Following. In addition to being a well-told story, the dialogue was impeccably written, with many sublime quotes. Despite a tiny budget, Memento still managed to hire incredible actors who gave excellent performances. Most obviously, Guy Pierce was phenomenal with his portrayal of Leonard Shelby. He perfectly encapsulated the character to the point where I barely even saw Guy Pierce. I saw Leonard Shelby, a crippled man with vengeance on his mind. Joe Pantoliano also gives a standout performance. I actually think I like him more in Memento than I did in The Matrix, which just shows how great he was in Memento. I absolutely loved Teddy's character, and Joe Pantoliano cements that. The film would not be the same without him. Another member that was casted in the Matrix, Carrie-Anne Moss, also gave a wonderful performance. She was amazing as Natalie. Lastly, all of the extras did an excellent job too, especially the guy who played Sammy. His performance was very subtle, but I adored it. Memento is easily one of my favorite films of all time. However, love it so much, I had to rewatch it in order for it to click. Therefore, if you watched it once and wasn't as enthused as I was, I definitely recommend for you to rewatch this. It's probably one of the best rewatches you can get with a film (and for a lot more than just understanding what's going on). It's a remarkable film that surpasses nearly every other film in existence. It's stellar from every angle you see it, whether it's from the directing or the screenwriting or the editing or the acting or the score or the cinematography. ⬅️ Previous Review: Ad Astra