Memento Film Structure
The distinguishing feature about the film Memento is its structure and use of repetition. The order of the scenes within the film is played in reverse – so the audience is presented with the conclusion of the film. Memento is an elaborate thriller, as we track back into the past of Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce) who suffers from chronic short-term memory loss. ... This film becomes challenging in the fact that it eludes clear narrative lines and remains, even after its conclusion (or beginning), open-ended. It is one of the best things about this film, simply because it works so well as an intriguing puzzle, and then demands a breakdown, re-ordering and analysis when its over. Memento does have its faults, but it more than compensates for them for being so brilliantly difficult, and for demanding so much from its audience. ... This is the way the story progresses for the rest of the film. ... In fact, the audience’s ability to read this film is reliant on its ability to remember events and clues in their appropriate order.