Memento

[Dukefrukem]

watched this last night with no baseball on...

I remember loving this film during my first viewing but not so much the second time around. Chris Nolan as definitely gotten better as a film maker since this film.

discuss...

[Grouchy]

I think it's a film that gets a bad rep (like hot dogs - HAWR!) for its narrative gimmick. But I think it's the film that brought that kind of storytelling to the mainstream (much more than Reservoir Dogs) and made it so popular that we know perceive it as amateurish.

I love the film, and I actually had to see it twice to truly appreciate it. Pearce and Pantoliano are excellent, and there's a melancholy to the hero's journey that few other thrillers have achieved.

This is how I rank my Nolan:

1. The Dark Knight
2. Memento
3. Batman Begins
4. Insomnia (haven't seen the original)
5. Following
6. The Prestige

EDIT: How do you watch a movie "with baseball on"?

[Dukefrukem]

I meant, since there wasn't a baseball game on, I decided to watch a movie.

[Robby P]

It does lose a bit of its luster upon repeat viewings (its "gimmick" seems less innovative with time), but I still think it's Nolan's best offering. Thematically, it's definitely his most challenging movie. Stylistically, I also prefer this to The Dark Knight, even though the latter had a much larger budget to work with.

[MacGuffin]

I think it is a generic crime drama with no style whatsoever.

[Rowland]

A deliriously entertaining, fiendishly clever, emotionally devastating, and finally, existentially shattering masterpiece, and one of my favorite movies. I like those Batman movies just fine, but they don't measure up to this.

[D_Davis]

I remember thinking it was OK.

[MadMan]

A deliriously entertaining, fiendishly clever, emotionally devastating, and finally, existentially shattering masterpiece, and one of my favorite movies. I like those Batman movies just fine, but they don't measure up to this.Same here. I've viewed the film three times and I'm 100% convinced that it is a brilliant, well executed film. Guy Pearce is utterly fantastic in it, and I think its one of the best films of the decade. I think the last time I drew up my Top 20 of all time it might have actually cracked that list. But I think if I ever redrawn and recreate such a list, Nolan's film probably would barely miss it. The Dark Knight was great, but it I too think they don't equal Memento. I'm curious as to whether or not I'll like the rest of Nolan's work.

[Skitch]

I think it has improved with repeat viewings. For me, knowing the story already, I can focus more on the emotion they're attempting to convey, as opposed to trying to figure out what the hell is going on.

[Morris Schæffer]

I think it is a generic crime drama with no style whatsoever.

I guess I agree with this. I honestly have no idea where "devastating" and "powerful" come from.