If I could watch Memento for the first time again I might think that the story breaks the rules of commercial narrative film making. Now I realize that the film only bends the rules. However the rules aren't bent frivolously. Without the bending of these rules the film would run from A-Z with little suspense and almost no attachment to the narrator himself.
I love it when a film makes me say "Oh now I get it!" The clarity or what a first time viewer may perceive as a lack of clarity is really evident at the point at which we are provided with true closure. The clue to this is the opening scene running in reverse. Next we can tell only in retrospect that Teddy deserves to die and Leonard is breaking free of someone who is taking advantage of him. the rule of unity is also bent, how far depends on if you've seen it before. This is the real magic of the film for me. By prefacing the cause with effect we feel just like poor Lenny shuffling through his photographs trying to make sense of each event in the film, giving us character identification at its best.
Pushing the limits of commercial narrative film making was very important to the overall feel of the film. This allowed the story to keep its true meaning. In Memento Mori, the short story the film was based on it says "Time is an absurdity. An abstraction. The only thing that matters is this moment."
Kevin Washington
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I 100% agree with your assertion that the film just bends the rules, because in the end, although there are questions unanswered for us, they are the same questions that will forever be unanswered for Leonard...
ReplyDeleteWhat about unobtrusive craftsmanship? Does the film draw us in or does it call attention to the modes of filmmaking, such as editing, since it is put together so unconventionally?
Great quote to end your journal, and great job on this one since you missed the subsequent lecture. Thanks for posting!