The Blessings of Continuity . . .

Rating: 8/10 (9 September 2001)

... and the bewildering nightmare of life without it--therein lies the crux of `Memento', a quietly brilliant film by Christopher Nolan. The film's opening credits, set over the image of a Polaroid photograph in the reverse process of developing itself, indicates the way the story will unfold--backwards. The cast is filled with first-rate actors, headed by Guy Pearce in a mesmerizing performance as Leonard Shelby--driven, tormented, with a sallow, haunted visage that is maintained throughout the film--who suffers from a rare medical condition which has robbed him of short-term memory. He is on a relentless quest to find and kill the man who attacked and murdered his wife, and who is responsible for Leonard's memory malfunction. The "rub" is that Leonard can't possibly remember the identity of the assailant. Leonard is only able to track him down by the use of Polaroid photos scribbled with reminders, a few odd post-it notes, and, most chillingly, by tattooing clues to his body, including a constant reminder of the reason for his mission, emblazoned backwards across his chest, readable only by use of a mirror. (An aside: `We all need mirrors to remind ourselves who we are', says Leonard at the end of the film--but the film's question to the audience seems to be: what does that mirror reflect? And can we always believe in the truth of that reflection?) While some may find the vigilante aspect of the main character abhorrent, the audience's empathy for Leonard is gained by the poignancy of his plight. In one heart-wrenching scene, Leonard, while burning some of his wife's belongings, wonders if he has ever similarly disposed of her things before and thinks: `I can't remember to forget you.' `Memento' is an astonishing homily about guilt and vengeance (and is vengeance ever really attainable?), manipulation and betrayal, and the lies we often force ourselves to believe when we fall into our own self-inflicted episodes of short-term memory. NOTE: Those with short-attention spans need not apply! This film demands from its audience absolute attention from beginning to end.