Arty and Interesting but lacking in some areas

Rating: Null/10 (16 April 2002)

It's all been said before so I won't bother with detailing how the movie plays out.
Overall I enjoyed this movie, and I immediately could see why many people just get frustrated watching it. You need a LONG attention span for something like this, and it requires a constant use of short-term memory(interestingly enough)in order to understand what's going on. The more the 'backwards' scenes (colored part) play out, the more you have to keep in mind when discovering the precluding events. It becomes more difficult as the film progresses but eventually the 'past' (black and white part) fades into the 'present' and all is well in the 'conclusion' (or middle, depending on how you look at it) of the film.
One thing I didn't enjoy was the flatness of Natalie and Teddy. As characters, Teddy was a tad more interesting than Natalie, but neither really held my interest. It was more Leonard's perception of them that made one think; not the character itself. Then again the mere fact that Leonard only remembers them for a few minutes at a time really inhibits the possibility of him developing any sort of relationship with them.
Other than that, the film was very good and I believe deserving of the honors it received. You need to be looking for a psycho drama and have a very good attention span. I was in a particularly analytical mood when I saw it so that might help too :) Not for people looking for a fast-paced action thriller with good guys and bad guys clearly labeled :)