I went and saw "Memento" the other night with my friend Tim (AKA JediGonk), after wanting to see it since I heard the premise several months ago. I don't want to give anything away--I loved this movie. So here's what's up. At its most basic:

A man (Leonard, played by Guy Pearce) is suffering from a short-term memory loss which causes him to forget anything that happened more than a few minutes ago. Not the same as amnesia, because he still has his memories of who he is and everything that happened before his "accident."

The "accident" in which Leonard lost his short-term memory was jumping a guy who was raping and murdering his wife--this is the last thing that Leonard remembers. Leonard is trying to hunt down the perpetrator and exact revenge, and this lust for revenge drives the movie.

The twist? Besides the fact that Leonard can't hold a memory for more than five minutes, we get to see the movie "in reverse." It's like reciting the alphabet like this:

Z Y X W V U T S R Q P O N M L K J I H G F E D C B A

And each letter is a scene in the film. "Z" is still the end of the movie, we just see it first. "A" is still the beginning of the story, but we see it last.

It's a remarkable way to tell a story, and as these flashes of memory are experienced by Leonard, we're peeling back our own memories of what is yet to happen. It makes for a mind trip that you won't forget.

Besides Guy Pearce, who gives an amazing performance, we get treated to a MATRIX reunion of sorts with Carrie Ann Moss as Natalie, and Joe Pantaliano as Teddy. Both play characters central to Leonard's life; whether they're friends or foes remains to be seen. By you. Both play their parts very well, and had me guessing and second-guessing their motives until the end of the flick.

The camerawork makes for some impressive visuals; there are dramatic shifts between black and white and colored memories that Leonard struggles to remember. Leonard tattoos the clues to his wife's murder on his body, and takes Polaroids of people, places, and things he'll need to remember later. It's at times graphic, at times shocking, but two days later, I'm still running over the movie in my head. If you enjoyed the mind games of "The Sixth Sense" and "Fight Club," you should enjoy "Memento."



Recommended:
Yes

Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age