Memento

Question 1

What type of film is Memento

Answer 1

Experimental

Question 2

Characteristics of experimental film

Answer 2

• Subvert audience expectations when using key elements
• Experiment with sound
• Develop own style
• Work outside of genre
• Hybridise genre
• Reject ‘Traditional’ linear narratives
• Rejection of narrative in any form
• Challenge prevailing attitudes
• Reject social/political norms
• Present non-mainstream views
• ‘Taboo’ topics
• Personal expression of the filmmaker

Question 3

What is postmodernism

Answer 3

Blurred boundary between real and the imagined - distinction between film and reality has collapsed (ideas of hyper-reality)

Question 4

What is postmodernism in film

Answer 4

Postmodernist film attempts to subvert the mainstream conventions of narrative structure and characterisation, and tests the audience’s suspension of disbelief

Question 5

Postmodernistic techniques in Memento

Answer 5

• Fragmented narrative structure
• Unreliable narration/subjective truth
• Blurring of reality and fiction
• Self-reflexivity/metafiction
• Intertextuality and genre subversion
• Audience as active participant
• Skepticism toward grand narratives
• Hyperconscious use of media and symbols
• Disorientation and deconstruction of time
• Paranoia and loss of authentic self

Question 6

How is Nolan an auteur

Answer 6

• Non-linear and fragmented narratives
• Exploration of memory, identity, and perception
• Protagonists with obsessive drives
• Puzzle-like structures and active viewership
• Visual and formal control
• Use of voiceover

Question 7

Non-linear and fragmented narratives as part of Nolan’s auteur

Answer 7

• Memento is told in reverse chronological order, intercut with chronological black and white scenes, which are further intersected with the Sammy Jenkis flashbacks, which may be a figment of Leornard’s fragmented mind
• Structure reflects protagonist’s experience, aligning narrative form with character psychology
• Nolan’s obsession with time manipulation sets the stage for later films such as Inception, Tenet and Dunkirk
• ‘Cinematic puzzle box’ meaning the audience has to work to fully understand the film.
• Fragmented stroytelling is a core Nolan signature, forcing the audience to piece the plot together

Question 8

Exploration of memory and identity as part of Nolan’s auteur

Answer 8

• Leonard’s short term memory loss makes his identity unstable and fragmented as he questions his own identity and purpose
• Constructs meaning through external artifacts - photos, tattoos, notes - which we see are subject to misinterpretation and manipulation, sometimes by his own hand as we discover when he sets up Teddy as his next ‘murderer’ at the end
• Nolan is interested in how subjective experience constructs reality and frequently explores how memory shapes perception, identity and truth
• Memento literalises this theme
• Nolan’s body of work raises existential dilemmas, and raises many enigmas

Question 9

Auteur- Protagonists with obsessive drives

Answer 9

• Leonard is obsessed with revenge and identity, just as Cobb in Inception is obsessed with returning to his children
• Leonard is obsessed with finding his wife’s killer driven more by emotional compulsion than logical reasoning
• Nolan’s protagonists are often emotionally damaged men, whose obsessions drive the narrative and blur moral boundaries

Question 10

Auteur- Puzzle-like structure and active viewership

Answer 10

• Nolan respects the audience’s intelligence and expects them to piece things together, they are actively engaged in the process of meaning-making
• Memento is perhaps his most literal invitation to play detective an solve a mystery which requires repeated viewing and exploration of clues, still with a degree of subjectivity to the audience’s conclusions
• The film questions whether objective truth exists, or whether people create personal narratives to justify their actions. Leonard literally writes his own truth onto his body controllin what he chooses to remember or forget
• Rather than providing straightforward exposition, Nolan withholds information, forcing viewers to piece together clues from disjointed scenes, voiceover and visual cues

Question 11

Auteur- Visual and formal control

Answer 11

• The meticulous alternation of black and white vs colour, and the precise editing rhyth, demonstrates Nolan’s formal control and visual logic, even with a modest budget, Nolan employs a calculated visual language to support the film’s fractured psychology
• Minimal use of digital effects, Nolan constantly champions practical and in camera effects to create a sense of authenticity and verisimilitude
• Nolan emphasises realism and grounded aesthetics, emphasised later on in Tenet

Question 12

Auteur- Use of voiceover

Answer 12

• Nolan uses voiceover not just for exposition, but to complicate and question subjective truth
• Leonard’s voiceover is not just narration - it’s a reflection of his internal realisations and distortions
• Nolan uses this technique to also blur the line between memory, fact, and self-deception in order to prompt the active viewership cited above

Question 13

Narrative structure

Answer 13

Narrative Indeterminancy

Question 14

What is narrative indeterminancy

Answer 14

Refers to a narrative which leaves its meaning or resolution open to interpretation. Allowing audience to fill gaps like a puzzle

Question 15

Examples of narrative indeterminancy in Memento

Answer 15

• Disorientation of colour sequences in reverse order
• Black and white sequences run in chronological order, eventually merging
• Deliberate defying of classic Hollywood structure challenges traditional cause-and-effect
• Unreliable narrator, due to Leonard’s amnesia making the audience question what he says, anchored down by the fact he manipuates his own notes
• Use of polaroids and notes foreground alternative forms of storytelling (experimental)
• Memory and temporality: By mimicking memory loss through reverse storytelling, Memento creates a unique temporal experience. The audience’s knowledge is constantly revised, simulating memory lapses

Question 16

Subjective camera work

Answer 16

• Nolan often employs subjective camera work immerse the audience in Leonard’s perspective. This technique makes viewers feel as if they are experiencing his disorienting memory loss firsthand
• E.g. Close-ups of Leonard’s face during moments of realisation or confusing to create an intimate connection between the audience and the character. These shots emphasise his emotional turmoil
• The use of handheld cameras in certain scenes add to the film’s gritty and disorienting atmosphere, enhacing the feeling of being inside Leonard’s mind

Question 17

Visual storytelling

Answer 17

• Nolan uses clever editing and visual cues to help the audience navigate the non-linear narrative. E.g. the film’s iconic polaroid snapshots serve as visual markers, indicating jumps in time
• As the film progresses, the cinematography becomes increasingly fragmented, mirroring Leonard’s deteriorating memory and his struggles to piece together his past

Question 18

Parallel narrative pt.1

Answer 18

• Flashbacks are non-linear and recurring, scattered throughout the film rater than told in one coherent block. They mirror Leonard’s mental fragmention, emphasising form over traditional storytelling clarity
• Boundaries between fact, memory and fantasy are intentionally blurred - especially when we begin to question whether Leonard is Sammy
• In a crucial moment Leonard visually replaces Sammy in a mental institution, suggesting a collapse between character identities and timelines
• Challenges traditional cause-effect chronology and reinforces postmodern, non-linear logic
• The flashbacks are stark and stylised, emphasising Nolan’s focus on concept and psychological realism over visual spectacle
• Sammy flashbacks parallel the main narrative and eventually intertwine with Leonard’s identity crisis

Question 19

Parallel Narrative pt.2

Answer 19

• Narrated entirely by Leonard, making them subjective reconstructions, not objective facts. The voiceover doesn’t clarify - it undermines certainty, heightening the film’s experimentation with narrative
• Reflect Nolan’s auteur qualities, notably his interest in obsession and psychological trauma
• Nolan frequently explores how memory constructs or distorts identity, and this subplot is a distilled example. The idea that Leonard may have rewritten his own past makes the Jenkis story a metaphor for self-deception
• The Sammy story is a narrative within a narrative, functioning as backstory, puzzle and red herring. Nolan uses this device to complicate the plot and challenge the audience’s interpretive role

Question 20

Dodd Sequence pt.1

Answer 20

• Entry point into narrative distortion:
  Leonard wakes up mid-chase, not knowing who he’s running from or why - a powerful demonstration of how the film disorients both character and viewer. This lack of context forces the audience to experience the story backward, like Leonard does
• Reverse cause-and-effect logic:
  In traditional narratives, causes precede effects but here we see the effct first and only later learn the cause. The inversion of causality is a key aspect of the film’s experimental structure
• Audience positioned within memory loss:
  Because we learn information after events haooen, spectators are aligned with Leonard’s short term memory loss, simulating his cognitive condition. This blurs the line between form and content, a hallmark experimental cinema
• Jarring scene transitions:
  The scene where Leonard finds himself running from Dodd without knowing why drops both character and audience into a situation without context. This simulates Leonard’s anterograde amnesia and mimics the experience og a fragmented memory

Question 21

Dodd Sequence pt.2

Answer 21

• Narrative as puzzle/viewer as detective:
  These scenes emphasise the audience’s reole in reconstructing causality, a hallmark of experimental storytelling. The film turns passive viewing into an active, investigative process
• Subversion of the detective/noir genre:
  Traditional noir features a sharp, intuitive investigator. Leonard however, is a detective with no short term memory, constantly misunderstanding the situation - seen clearly when he confuses whether he is chasing Dodd or being chased. This parodies the classic ‘man on a mission’ trope, turning the hard-boiled detective into a tragically comic figure
• Anti-climactic conflict:
  The chase and confrontation with Dodd play ike an action sequence, but lack the clarity, stakes or resolution typical of the genre. There’s no villainous plot - just confusion and miscommunication, revealing the reality behind Leonard’s assumed heroism
• Lack of traditional resolution:
  The genre typically demands resolution - justice/revenge/truth. But in this sequence, Dodd is subdued and let go with no closure or moral payoff. This refusal to resolve conflict underscores the film’s experimental rejection of conventional structure.