Nice idea that is stretched out too long

Rating: 5/10 (28 December 2001)

This movie has a nice idea that it stretches out too long. It's not a bad movie, but knowing the ending and story takes all of the suspense and questions of the movie. A counterexample would be Fight Club, where the ending adds a real twist to the whole movie but dosen't spoil it for the next time you view it, you just view it with different eyes, as Fight Club has more to offer than the ending.
Some SPOILERS are ahead due to the nature of the movie. I don't think they will spoil the movie totally for you, but they might lower your expectations towards this movie, and you might even decide not to spend money or precious time on it :
The movie is told backwards, so the viewer has no memory of what happened "before", like the protagonist. The plot has (in retrospect) some holes that don't get filled, mostly regarding Dodd, a seemingly key figure, who in the end is completely insubstantial.
I expected a murder mystery movie bordering towards a film noir, but except for the explanation at the films end (and thus, at the beginning of the story), the story is completely banal. The story is climatic towards the end of the movie, but the end dosen't live up to the suspense that was built up during the movie.
As Leonard has conditioned himself to operate on a few promises, he reacts to every situation in the same manner, which makes many scenes repetitive. Partly, this is necessary to demonstrate how he ticks, partly this is entertaining as the viewer already knows how Leonard will react in a scene, but the whole concept is stretched too long like a running gag repeated some times too often. The film would be better entertainment if it wasn't 2 hours long.