Title: Memento
Starring: Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano
Director: Christopher Nolan
Released: 4th October 2010
Running time: 109 mins
Certificate: 15
Memento has a truly fantastic cast. Guy Pierce this guy was once in daytime TV junk like Neighbours but now he’s a huge movie star and whether he’s in a tiny role in a movie like The Road or The Hurt Locker, or a leading part like in Memento he is always 100% committed. He’s an incredible actor and he deserves his standing as an A-list actor. The problem with incredible actors being in a film is that you have to have supporting actors that can match them. Welcome then Carrie Moss and Joe Pantoliano two brilliant character actors who are able to go toe-to-toe with the likes of Pierce in any scene and come out as equals. Both Moss and Pantoliano had starring roles in The Matrix. In Memento they are even better.
The film itself is a ground-breaking, mind-bending, compelling thriller and I personally found it hugely entertaining and far more interesting that Nolan’s latest effort Inception which I believe is both needlessly complex in terms of plot and hopelessly shallow in terms of character. In Memento Nolan takes the time and the care to give the audience fully rounded characters with emotional character arcs. He wrote and directed this film with the ease of a true master. The end result of which is simply stunning.
If you don’t know the plot of Memento I’m not going to spoil it for you. It’s an absolute cracker but I will give you a little taster. Leonard Shelby (Pearce) remembers everything up to the night his wife was brutally murdered. However, since that tragedy, he has suffered from short-term memory loss and cannot recall any event, the places he has visited or anyone he has met just minutes before. Despite being totally hamstrung by this disability he sets out to find the killer.
Memento twists and turns and then twists back on itself, it’s complex and intelligent yet entertaining throughout as well as full of dark humour. Also unlike Inception it doesn’t short-change the viewer in terms of characters audiences will really genuinely care about Leonard and will feel his pain.
Now with stunning high-definition picture and sound, Memento arrives on Blu-ray on 4th October 2010 in time to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of the original release. Special features include a feature-length audio commentary by writer/director Christopher Nolan. Interviews with Nolan and with Guy Pearce, a number of production featurettes as well as an Easter egg entitled The Beginning of the End which is a version of the film played in chronological order. It’s an excellent special feature for anyone that finds the backwards / non-linear narrative a little difficult to follow and it’s actually the version that I have come to prefer watching from when I owned the film on DVD.
Memento is a top-notch film, very worthy of your time and supremely worthy of this excellent high definition overhaul.
Memento is released on Blu-ray 4 October 2010 courtesy of Pathι Productions.
