tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post4673890192918293085..comments2024-03-05T21:05:36.848-05:00Comments on CommentaramaFilms: Film Friday: Memento (2000)AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comBlogger27125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-32723383530428650212013-08-31T17:32:30.273-04:002013-08-31T17:32:30.273-04:00John, This is truly a sad ending. It almost makes...John, This is truly a sad ending. It almost makes you sick as you realize what he's doing to himself. He's basically punishing his future self, who doesn't know what he's done, to avoid admitting what he now (briefly) knows to be true.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-61734452867564397922013-08-31T17:26:43.580-04:002013-08-31T17:26:43.580-04:00One of the saddest endings I've seen, because ...One of the saddest endings I've seen, because of what he's doing to himself to keep some meaning in his life. To me his suffering represents the suffering of many people who lost somebody due to crime. By observing the daily behaviour of such a victim in a rational way, one could feel extra motivation not to be lenient towards some types of criminals.John Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15040106071973128389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-71427744417051528142010-10-08T16:14:24.018-04:002010-10-08T16:14:24.018-04:00Great film! Before I comment, what's your pol...Great film! Before I comment, what's your policy on spoilers?Ednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-65264142294249595182010-10-08T16:15:54.197-04:002010-10-08T16:15:54.197-04:00Agreed - great film! It's been ages since I&#...Agreed - great film! It's been ages since I've seen it, though. Definitely time for a re-watch!CrispyRicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302075204880024936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-8779671515215012572010-10-08T16:17:56.904-04:002010-10-08T16:17:56.904-04:00Ed, We would ask people to avoid giving out signif...Ed, We would ask people to avoid giving out significant spoilers. And if you are going to give out any spoilers, please let people know.<br><br>As you can see in the article, I try to avoid spoilers that I think would ruin the film, and just routinely warn that some spoilers will be given because I'm more interested in discussing the films than just reviewing them or recommending them.<br><br>In this case, I tried to avoiding given out much in the way of plot because I think what this film offers more than anything are the twists and I didn't want to ruin it.AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-28830531256351868692010-10-08T16:17:56.903-04:002010-10-08T16:17:56.903-04:00Cirspy, I saw it years ago and then every couple y...Cirspy, I saw it years ago and then every couple years, and then again before I wrote this article. It definitely holds up.AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-4041273778307577112010-10-08T16:21:54.772-04:002010-10-08T16:21:54.772-04:00Andrew: I agree on both the movie and the script....Andrew: I agree on both the movie and the script. I would also add that I think Guy Pierce is a grossly underrated actor.LawHawkRFDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17800255923675295515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-3462541669306903342010-10-08T16:23:56.835-04:002010-10-08T16:23:56.835-04:00Lawhawk, I agree completely with that. I've b...Lawhawk, I agree completely with that. I've been impressed with everything he's done. What's even more interesting, the first couple times I saw him, I had no idea he was Australian -- his American accent was that convincing.AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-16347805824665603312010-10-08T16:30:37.768-04:002010-10-08T16:30:37.768-04:00Andrew: I first saw him in Priscilla, Queen of th...Andrew: I first saw him in <i>Priscilla, Queen of the Desert</i>. So I knew he was Australian, but I thought he was 6'5" and gay. Now <i>that's</i> acting. LOLLawHawkRFDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17800255923675295515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-84858959114573898482010-10-08T16:34:16.564-04:002010-10-08T16:34:16.564-04:00Lawhawk, I didn't see that until after I saw h...Lawhawk, I didn't see that until after I saw him in <i>L.A. Confidential</i>. And you're right, he did a great job in that one too. I honestly can't think of anything he's done where I thought his acting wasn't great. He is, as you say, very underrated.AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-15974570757866278742010-10-08T16:34:16.563-04:002010-10-08T16:34:16.563-04:00This is a movie I've been wanting to see for a...This is a movie I've been wanting to see for a long time, but have just never gotten around to it.<br><br>I've only seen one movie with Guy Pearce in it - The Count of Monte Cristo - and I thought he did a really good job in that. He had me really despising his character by the end of the movie.<br><br>TJAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-34124266030171378012010-10-08T16:49:46.102-04:002010-10-08T16:49:46.102-04:00This is on my all time favorites list. I'm wit...This is on my all time favorites list. I'm with CrispyRice...time for a re-watch!Tamnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-54398665795568944062010-10-08T16:53:29.209-04:002010-10-08T16:53:29.209-04:00TJ, This movie is well worth seeing. It's ama...TJ, This movie is well worth seeing. It's amazing how it develops, because everything is turned on its head. Every scene literally contains information that surprises you. And by the time you reach the ending, it's got amazing twists in it, which you will never see coming.<br><br>Plus, I think the scenes with Sammy and his wife are really fascinating to watch and build to the point of becoming downright tragic.<br><br>If you watch it, please come back and tell us what you thought about it!<br><br>In terms of Pierce, let me recommend <i>L.A. Confidential</i>. That was a good book and an even better movie about some corrupt cops in LA in the 1950s. Pierce plays a fascinating character in that one who kind of vacillates between being a hero and being corrupt. It's also got Russell Crowe, Kevin Spacey an Danny DeVito in some really great roles. I highly recommend it.AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-37962666855701655982010-10-08T16:57:56.940-04:002010-10-08T16:57:56.940-04:00Tam, You have great taste in movies! This is also...Tam, You have great taste in movies! This is also one of my favorite films.<br><br>I thought this was one of the most interesting movies I'd ever seen when I saw it for the first time, and it has held up. It's just amazing how we can manage to put the story back together despite being shown to us backwards, and it's fascinating to see the twists and turns from the perspective of knowing how they will play out before you even see what they are.<br><br>Plus, I always find myself thinking about the whole Sammy thing and how that plays out and I always wonder what our real capacity is for tricking ourselves? In other words, it's the kind of movie that keeps me thinking well after leaving the theater, and I really appreciate that.AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-81645954916622173972010-10-08T17:11:20.594-04:002010-10-08T17:11:20.594-04:00Never seen it, but after watching the Batman movie...Never seen it, but after watching the Batman movies, The Prestige, and most recently Inception (which I still don't fully understand), I would submit that Chris Nolan is the best director we have right now. My interest in Memento is definitely piqued.T_Ravnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-77434642153210341512010-10-08T17:14:42.555-04:002010-10-08T17:14:42.555-04:00T_Rav, He's on a definite hot streak. As I me...T_Rav, He's on a definite hot streak. As I mention above, I completely recommend this film. It's fascinating on many levels and is very enjoyable. It's also the kind of film that you periodically find yourself thinking about long after you've seen it.<br><br>If you watch, come back and let us know what you thought!AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-6352080162643214642010-10-08T22:03:19.260-04:002010-10-08T22:03:19.260-04:00Ok, I'll try to tread carefully.******** SPOIL...Ok, I'll try to tread carefully.<br><br>******** SPOILER ALERT ********<br><br>I thought this was a great movie. From the beginning they give you hints to not trust anything he tells you. As the story moves forward (or backward ;D) you see him picking and choosing the facts he wants to believe. When he’s told something he doesn’t like you see him just dismiss it, like when Teddy tells him that he’s not who he thinks he is and that he should be investigating himself. I thought that was the best line in this film: “no, that’s who you were, you don’t know who you’ve become.”<br><br>I also never saw the ending (beginning ;D) coming. The did such a great job of giving you so many possibilities it was impossible to cut through it to see what was going to happen. In one way, the seems kind of like cheating, but it really isn’t. It’s really just a matter of getting more and more facts that give you more possibilities.<br><br>I also thought doing it backward was really smart. I’ve trying to think of how this movie would go if you ran it forward and it just isn’t that great a movie. If you run it forward it’s an average film about a guy who is being manipulated. By turning it around, they turned this into a real mystery. I don’t think you could duplicate this anymore because it would see like a duplicate, but it’s really brilliant.Ednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-30436867043639260032010-10-08T22:04:42.348-04:002010-10-08T22:04:42.348-04:00I think that's my longest comment ever. LoL! A...I think that's my longest comment ever. LoL! Also, I wanted to tell you that I love the film articles! Keep up the good work.Ednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-16847239663242687612010-10-08T23:19:24.424-04:002010-10-08T23:19:24.424-04:00Thanks Ed, I enjoy the film articles a lot. They&#...Thanks Ed, I enjoy the film articles a lot. They're the most fun to write.<br><br>On the points you make, I agree. There are hints from the very beginning that he's picking and choosing what he wants to believe. And I think the scene in the car is the perfect example of that -- I like that line as well. He's basically telling Teddy that he's going to believe what he wants to believe. And Teddy hits him later with a series of questions that suddenly strike you with a sense of "wow, I hadn't thought about that" -- like the fact that he has no idea how long he's been doing what's doing or that he knows nothing about what happened in that time.<br><br>In terms of using this approach again, I supposed you could, but it would need to feel different and I'm not sure exactly how you would do that.AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-90005357711686307612010-10-09T16:25:09.174-04:002010-10-09T16:25:09.174-04:00Great picture, albeit a lot of hard work the first...Great picture, albeit a lot of hard work the first time through. Not only the confusion that exists, but it was, like so many other modern films, shot "dark." In other words, make sure you are fully alert and awake when you view and commit to a minimum opf two screenings.<br><br>In my mind, Momento was vastly superior to the French Film Irreversible which came out shortly afterwards. It too had it's scenes run backwards. However, Monica Belluci (The Matrix movies) was involved in possibly the most disturbing rape scene in film history. Along with the fight at the "end" of the movie, it just is too dark and violent for all but the most hardened movie watchers. Irreversible was clearly from the "shock and awe" school of French film making.<br><br>Chris Nolan is an interesting and talented writer and director. He uses many of the devices from Momento in his other films. I particularly also enjoyed "The Prestige."Tennessee Jedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10604275115906776992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-42009645588421410922010-10-09T16:28:08.798-04:002010-10-09T16:28:08.798-04:00Awesome movie! Great description of this as a puzz...Awesome movie! Great description of this as a puzzle which gets harder as you get near solving it. That's exactly what this is!Doc Whoanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-28926567465647516552010-10-09T16:31:21.871-04:002010-10-09T16:31:21.871-04:00I've been thinking about if you could use this...I've been thinking about if you could use this same style for another movie and I'm just not sure you could. I guess you probably really could and I just don't see it, but right now I can't see it. I know I would love to see another movie try it. Can you think of any other movie that has done anything similar?Ednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-49855685110404148822010-10-09T19:34:55.797-04:002010-10-09T19:34:55.797-04:00Jed, This is indeed one of those movies that you s...Jed, This is indeed one of those movies that you should see twice so that you can see all of the clever clues tossed at you that you keep missing. Fortunately, it holds up even to repeated viewings, so it's not the kind of film where you feel like it has nothing to offer once you've seen it.<br><br>I agree about Nolan too. He seems to build on his work, always improving and not afraid to reach back into the past for something he's done before that works. But to his credit, he doesn't just keep making the same movie, which lots of directors seem to do after they get a hit.<br><br>I have not seen <i>Irreversible</i>. In fact, I'm not even sure I've heard of it. I'm always looking for interesting foreign films. . . which are surprisingly difficult to come by. So perhaps I'll give it a try?AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-59131640243027134382010-10-09T19:34:55.796-04:002010-10-09T19:34:55.796-04:00Thanks Doc, it seemed like the most accurate descr...Thanks Doc, it seemed like the most accurate description.AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-16558169285495316662010-10-09T19:36:02.500-04:002010-10-09T19:36:02.500-04:00Ed, I think you could use this "gimmick"...Ed, I think you could use this "gimmick" again, but you'd have to use it differently.<br><br>In terms of similar movies, the one that immediately leaps to mind is <i>Pulp Fiction</i> which is presented in segments that are out of order.AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.com