Review of Memento (2000) by Vincent D — 28 Sep 2013

If chronology is something you like, this is not the movie for you. I thought this was a fantastic movie, because the story was unique, however the story alone was not spectacular enough to warrant the fifth star.

I added the fifth star because of the way this story was told. There are many movies out there that use the flashback sequence to tell their story. You have movies like "Pulp Fiction" (1994) which starts with a scene and then spends half the movie leading up to the opening scene.

This movie starts with the end. We learn about Leonard who has short term memory loss. He knows who he is, it's not amnesia--he just cannot create any new memories. We learn that Leonard is plotting revenge against the man responsible for putting him in this condition.

The story is then told in layers, however the layers are interrupted at times with scenes shown in black and white. . It's as though you were to take a DVD, and begin by watching track 20. When you're done with 20, you go back and watch track 19 until you hit 20; then go back and watch track 18 and so forth.

Every once in awhile you stop to watch a DVD extra shot in black and white. As you watch each scene the questions to the scene you just saw get answered, all the way up to the end where you get hit with the surprise ending, but it all still makes sense.

Grab a cup of coffee before you watch this one--it's going to take some concentration to follow.