Review of Memento (Special Edition Three Disc Set)

Introduction

There are thrillers and there are films that make you go `Wow!` just after they end. In the former section, modern thrillers tend to go for the car chases, explosions, man on a mission, etc. The latter tend to have a bit of a twist at the end that turns everything you`ve seen on its head. The thing both these types of film have is that the narrative is normally shown in a linear and straightforward manner.

Memento is a thriller that will make you go `Wow!` at the end. It`s essentially an old-fashioned thriller, so none of the current vogue for MTV-style editing, no one-liners, and no massive explosions.

Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce) lives from moment to moment, quite literally. He suffers from a condition that means he is unable to create new memories. His last memory was his dying wife and everything he experiences or learns after this event he will be unable to remember over time. In order to compensate for this whilst searching for her killer, he makes a series of notes and has them tattooed on his body. Aiding him in his quest are Teddy (Joe Pantoliano) and Natalie (Carrie Ann Moss).

Memento was originally released in 2002 as a single disc edition, here now in a special 3 disc special edition. So how does it match up to the original release?

Video

Presented in a 2.35:1 aspect ration, picture is as clear as it`s meant to be. The forward narrative is shown in black and white, whilst the reversed narrative is shown in colour.

Audio

Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround soundtrack, which isn`t really used to its potential. Not that this film would really benefit from more sound effects as it is mainly dialogue driven.

Features

New menus have been created for this release. This time the disc 1 menus are a representation of the tattoos on Leonard Shelby`s body. Nice idea but I`m disappointed with the line used to choose the various options. The motion of moving from menu to sub-menu can be a little disorienting as well. The other discs have static menus.

Disc 1:

Audio Commentary with Christopher Nolan. Interesting commentary, explaining how the film was put together, although he doesn`t give too much away.

Alternate Commentary ending. Well, it was supposed to be, but the one I found was exactly the same as the one for the main track.

Tattoo Gallery - lots of photo`s and pre-production pictures of the tattoos that cover Leonard`s body.

Disc 2:

Interview with Christopher Nolan - looks to be an edition of a TV programme, it`s called Independent Focus and hosted by Elvis Mitchell.

Interview with Guy Pearce - 12 minute piece that is set in a bar where Guy is sipping water and explains in some depth his ideas behind his character and the film.

Anatomy of a scene - Interviews with the creative team behind Memento as well as some of the stars, and detailing how the opening of the film was created and explaining the difference in style between the various segments.

Text Biographies - Christopher Nolan, Guy Pearce, Carrie Ann Moss, Joe Pantoliano

Disc 3:

Shooting script - view of the script in real time with a widescreen thumbnail of the film. As can be expected from a typical movie script, the dialogue doesn`t always match what`s on the screen and also contains various production notes.

Momento Mori - the short story that inspired the film. Narrated by the author (Nolan`s brother) with related images and emphasised portions of the text.

Production Stills - guess what these are…

Props - images of some of the props used during the film

International Poster Art - hmmm, what could this be?

Concept Art and Bootleg Cover Art - Again, obvious what it is, bit strange including bootleg material as well though. Is this legitimising piracy to a degree?

Journal - I have no idea what this is supposed to be as it is unreadable for the most part, which is a shame. There is quite a bit of handwritten text so some thought has presumably gone into this, shame it`s wasted by being incomprehensible.

Website - apparently a mockup of the original website, this takes the form of a newspaper cutting. Highlighted portions of the text take to more evidence that fills in the back story missing from the film. Not advisable to watch prior to seeing the film for the first time.

International trailer - oddly, my player locked up after selecting this. The counter moved but nothing happened. Not a massive fan of trailers anyway, so I`m not that bothered by this.

Somewhere in here is supposed to be an easter egg which allows you to play the film backwards. I never found it last time and couldn`t see it again this time. Mind, it`s rare I find easter eggs on my own and I`m not a big fan of them, but that`s a separate story. The fact I couldn`t find it doesn`t bother me though as this film is far better seen the way it is presented.

Conclusion

There is a train of thought that this film would not be as good as it is made out to be if the narrative played forward rather then backwards. This may well be true, but then a lot of films do just that with material as `lame` as this is thought to be in some quarters. The way this film is edited is almost a work of genius as the audience awareness is splintered in a way that mirrors the main character`s condition.

When I first started watching this film, it started to get very confusing very fast. For a start you see the ending of the film at the start and backwards. Then you move into a black and white scene that appears unrelated and then jump back into colour where Leonard appears to meet Teddy for the first time. Whoah! What`s happening here? What`s happening is that the director is messing with your head. Here is a film that feeds you the consequences of everything that has happened and then shows you piece by piece how we arrived there. We are introduced to the other major characters at the end of their associations with Leonard and we then find out more about them as the story moves backwards, slowly picking up clues as to their true relationships and motivations. The key to this as that each segment starts exactly as the previous one finishes.

The secondary storyline, but no less important, is shot in black in white and is more about Leonard explaining himself, his condition and putting it into context. As with the colour segments, it is told in stages so you never really have all the information available until the very end.

The way this film is edited can lead viewers to become extremely disoriented and confused very quickly. The way Christopher Nolan avoids this is by colour coding the two strands of narrative so that you very quickly slot into how the film is progressing. This method of colour coding reminds me a lot of Stephen Soderbergh`s Traffic where each individual character had their section of the film presented in a different hue.

All the three main actors in this film are excellent, Guy Pearce in blistering form as the man who is simultaneously confused and steadfast. Pantoliano? Well, what is there to say? I don`t think I`ve seen a bad performance by this man. As for Carrie Ann Moss, I`ve only seen her in The Matrix but she proves she can really act here. I feel that a special mention should go to Mark Boone Junior as the hotel receptionist who is sympathetic to Leonard`s condition but not averse to messing with him either.

The original release was only one disc with quite a few extras on, so I`m a little confused as to why this needs to spread over three discs. Surely the addition of a single commentary track can`t have taken up so much space? On the other hand, the majority of the extras presented in this edition are worth seeing, the newer ones adding something to the overall presentation so you don`t feel that this is a blatant rip-off.

This is an excellent film that requires the viewer to take part in the experience by piecing together what has happened. There is no way the director could replicate Shelby`s condition on screen, but this is the closest the viewer will get to understanding what it is like to feel totally disorientated and unable to understand how a certain point in time was arrived at. The use of two separate narratives running through the film actually helps to both confuse matters and create an understanding of events as we arrive at their origins. Obviously the impact of this will diminish over repeated viewings, but the same could be said of any conventional film containing twists or surprises.

One of the best films of the last few years, there is one thing left to say: Wow!