Memento & Memento Mori - Movie Review Example

? “Memento” & “Memento Mori” “Memento” was a 2001 movie inspired by the short story “Memento Mori”, written by Jonathan Nolan and published in the March 2001 issue of Esquire magazine. (“Memento)The basic premise of the film version and the short story it was adapted from “Memento Mori” are very similar. The film version goes into greater depth with more characterization and complexity. Unlike “Memento Mori” , “Memento” adds more characters that contribute to the story. However each work has its own uniqueness to them and each tells the fundamental story in their own distinctive way. In the short story version “Memento Mori” a man named Earl has lost his short term memory after he and his wife were viciously attacked by an unknown assailant. His wife was killed in the attack but Earl sustained severe head injuries resulting in his short term amnesia. Because he can only remember things for about ten minutes at a time, he uses notes and tattoos to keep track of new information. The story goes between two time-frames. In the first time frame Earl is in a mental institution. The second time frame details his escape from the mental institution which he does not remember. During his escape he sets out to avenge the murder of his wife by finding her killer. Since Earl is lacking long term memory he relies on notes, tattoos and a third person narrative to help him. The story is told using the third person narrative along with a first person narrative. The first person narrative is told from Earl’s point of view with sentences beginning with “you”, while the third person narrative is an outsider to the story. “ The function of the third-person narration is to juxtapose an external view of Earl with the internal views that Earl expresses in his writing. The third person narrator describes how Earl's short-term memory loss affects his behavior. The external narrator shows Earl stumbling around and reading his endless notes.” (Nolan n. pag.) Earl succeeds in killing his wife’s but cannot remember this incident. The story ends with Earl in the back of a police car after he is arrested for killing his wife’s’ murderer. The film “Memento” was directed by Christopher Nolan. (Jonathan Nolan’s brother) In it the main character is named Leonard Shelby. Like Earl, Leonard and his wife were attacked viciously by unknown assailants and his wife is killed in the attack. Leonard was brutally beaten by the same man who killed his wife and as a result of this vicious attack he has no short-term memory. Leonard killed the attacker who raped and strangled his wife, but a second clubbed him and escaped. After an investigation by law enforcement, police determined that the attacker who was killed by Leonard acted alone. However Leonard insists that there was a second attacker that he believed was named John G. Like Earl in the short story version Leonard conducts his own investigation using a system of notes and tattoos in order to help himself cope with short term memory loss. He also adds Polaroid photos to help him. However while Earl acted alone Leonard has the help of Natalie, a barmaid and Teddy who claims to be Leonard’s friend. These people seem to random people that Leonard comes across who do not seem to have anything to do with the other. (“Memento”)Unlike Earl who saw the face of his wife’s killer, “You remember his face”, (sheepdean), Leonard never saw the faces of the perpetrators in the attack. As a result he winds up being manipulated by Teddy and Natalie into killing two wrong men. (“Memento”) The plot of the film version goes from the end of the movie to the beginning of the movie (end of the plot). There are color sequences interconnected with black and white sequences throughout the movie. (Memento) The black and white sequences begin with Leonard sitting in a motel room talking on the phone to an unknown person. The color sequences are also not shown in order. Once Leonard finds out the license plate of “John G.” he has it tattooed on his body. Soon after he meets Natalie who offers her help by getting Leonard to drive a man named Dodd out of town. She also offered to run the license plate. Leonard then meets Teddy who he does not trust. Natalie provides Leonard the driver's license and John G. is revealed to be John Edward Gammell, who is Teddy. Leonard kills Teddy in an abandoned building. The last black-and-white sequence shows Teddy as an undercover police officer who reveals that John G. is Natalie’s boyfriend Jimmy Grantz. Teddy leads Leonard to the same abandoned building where he finds Jimmy and kills him. He eventually doubts that Jimmy was the killer. Teddy tells Leonard that Jimmy was John G. and Leonard killed the real attacker over a year ago. He also stated that Leonard’s wife did not die in the attack, but died of an insulin overdose. Leonard later drives off in Jimmy’s car and has Teddy's license plate number tattooed on himself which results in Teddy getting killed. ( Memento) There are several similarities between “Memento” the film and the short story version “Memento Mori.” In both versions Leonard and Earl are attempting to track down the murderers of their wives by using notes, tattoos and Polaroid photos. Both Leonard and Earl suffer from short term memory loss in their attacks and use the above methods to help them information that is pertinent to their pursuit of the attackers. However there are many differences between the two versions. In the movie version there is an overall ambiguity as to whether or not Leonard succeeded in getting his revenge against his wife’s’ killer. It seems to be unclear who killed his wife. The movie depicts the murders as they each happened. In the short story version the first person narrative discusses the murder. “Tracked down by the ten minute man, assassinated by a vegetable.” ( sheepdean) It is implied that Earl cannot remember having killed his attacker. He asks himself “What have we been up to?” (sheepdean) Earl is the only character that is developed in the story and the only one relevant to the plot. Additional characters are mentioned but only briefly. In the film version viewers find out a great deal about Leonard. Viewers know that he is an insurance investigator; they get a look at his relationship with his wife; and get to his investigation of Sammy Jenkins, who also suffered from short term memory ,loss. Characters including Teddy and Natalie are an important part of the plot. "Memento Mori" begins in a mental institution. Scenes are depicted of a motel and a tattoo parlor. The final scene shows Earl in the back of a police car after he gets caught for killing his wife’s murderer. In the movie version Leonard is not caught. The various settings of Memento also include motel rooms and tattoo parlors. Scenes are shown in Natalie’s house and the abandoned building where Leonard kills Jimmy and Teddy. In both the movie and the short story versions viewers get some glimpses into the consciousness of the two men. In “Memento Mori” the first person narration allows readers this. The narration is told in sentences beginning with “you”. For example “You can't have a normal life anymore.”(Desmond.140) and “Sooner or later you'll want to do something about it. And when you do, you'll just have to trust me, because I'm the only one who can help you.” (Nolan n pag.)In “Memento” this is shown through flashbacks such as when Leonard remembers his wife's life and death, and other aspects of his life and includes a fantasy he has of finding her killer. Memento is primarily done in third person narration. .However there is a first person voice-over during the first couple black and white scenes, often describing in second-person terms during certain situations.” You really need a system if you're going to make it work”. (Memento) Leonard’s relationship with Natalie is shown in some detail. There is also a scene where Leonard hires an escort and burns his wife's possessions in an effort to accept her death. (Memento) The plot of the movie is more complex than in the short story version although many themes and elements of both versions are the same. In “Memento Mori”" the author provides little description of the events surrounding the sole key character. However the overall plot is developed enough to keep the story coherent. The story really delves into Earl’s struggle with memory loss and his desire for vengeance as well as his own memory, identity and mortality. Both versions focus on memory and its overall impact on individuals. In “Memento Mori” Earl’s identity is disjointed because he lacks short term memory as well as time awareness. In “Memento” while Leonard has moments of sadness he tends to be continuously focused on his goal of vengeance. Although there have been many times where his focus shifts such as times when he gets frustrated over not remembering information. The movie focuses on the accuracy of memory. Leonard does not rely on memory. He relies on facts: the pictures he has taken and detailed notes he has kept when conducting his investigation. However later in the film it is apparent that many of Leonard’s “facts” have been manipulated by himself and others. Teddy even asks Leonard to consider whether or not he was fooling himself at the end of the movie. (Memento) Leonard is unable to heal from his wife’s death because he is consistently haunted by it. Leonard wants to forget his wife's dying. He wants to heal. He asks at one point: "How can I heal if I can't feel time?" (“Memento Relation of Film and Text” n pag.)In one scene he tells Natalie that he thinks of his wife’s death often. Natalie asks: What's the last thing that you do remember? Leonard has a mind flash memory of his wife on the bathroom floor. Then he answers: My wife. Natalie replies “That's sweet.” Leonard then says “Dying. I remember my wife dying.” (Memento) Because Leonard can only remember things for brief periods he is unable to feel remorse for the murders he has committed because he has no memory of these attacks. Throughout this paper each work has been occasionally referred to as the ‘movie version” and the “short story version. While these categories may be used to distinguish them, “Memento” is not an exact version of “Memento Mori. ”Both expand on an idea of the author Jonathan Nolan. The film and the short story present unique ways of presenting the original idea. However the film does so with greater depth. Works Cited Desmond, John M., and Peter Hawkes. Adaptation: Studying Film and Literature. Boston: McGraw Hill, 2006. Nolan, Jonathan. "Jonathan Nolan's "Memento Mori": Analysis" 25 Oct. 2012 . Memento. Dir. Christopher Nolan. Perf. Guy Pearce and Carrie Ann Moss Newmarket Films, 2001. DVD. "Memento: Relation of Film and Text" 24 Oct. 2012 . http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqq2aSegXXI&feature=related sheepdean. “Memento Mori Narrated by Jonathan Nolan” YouTube. 20 Dec 2010. Web. 24 Oct. 2012. "Memento (film)" Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia. 25 Oct. 2012 . Read More