Memento

Memento has just a few blemishes on its beauty; bland music, two logic hiccups and one or two other problems. But they are just tiny little spots and the in essence simple screenplay is genius storytelling. I wouldn’t compare it to the Czech movie Happy End; Memento doesn’t go backwards, it’s just the individual chapters that go backwards here. Nolan proved that, even with minimum resources, it’s possible to shoot a thriller of genius if you have good screenplay combined with inventive directing. (10/04/2005)

Even though I was slightly bothered by the ending, which seemed a bit lost, maybe because the film ultimately tries to convey something more, this is so brilliantly directed, edited, and executed that I simply don't have much else to criticize. I was captivated by the film and its structure the first time, and I am even more so the second time, and I will probably be several times more. (17/04/2016)

Narrative excellence where the inverted form of narration is the means, not the purpose. Nolan, in his first overseas outing, gives credit to his favorite properties (the man still wears his wedding ring after losing his wife) and teases with simple and economical filmmaking, where the characters and the plot play the primary role, where watching them is a challenging sport, and where even a moment's inattention can leave you in the dark. I'm fascinated by how, despite knowing the "good" ending, Nolan puts the pieces of the puzzle together impressively, with the reverse form creating tension even more strongly than traditional chronology. Who knew that this same person would one day make the most distinctive comic book trilogy and be able to afford to make spectacular sci-fi without using green screens, but... in retrospect, it feels like a deliberate journey by a purposeful filmmaker, just like this film. (16/10/2016)

Brilliant! Without doubt, this is the only film that would make more sense than the usual if you watched it from the end to the beginning. But then it would be a only boring and routine crime drama instead of a perfect example of smart filmmaking with an excellent script and a totally unpredictable ending (well, beginning). Guy Pearce, a total unknown to me, shines and Christopher Nolan gets more bonus points – and a lot of them! (20/10/2011)

Christopher Nolan's second feature clearly demonstrates his screenwriting genius and proves once again, unequivocally, that even the early works of this now great filmmaker are of great value. What’s more, I consider Memento unique out of Nolan's entire oeuvre, as it places considerable demands on the viewer, offers perfectly nuanced acting performances, and showcases highly suggestive direction. The pressure on the grey matter is immense and at times it took all I had to keep from completely unraveling all those cerebral threads; and yet the final impression (or rather the initial one?:)) is indescribable and I certainly cannot say that I was fascinated "only by the visual aspect and due to the difficulty of the script I gave up on any deeper understanding". The interpretation here is definitely not straightforward, but I think that was kind of the intention from the start. Maybe I'll see it from a different perspective the second time around, who knows. But it certainly won't affect my rating. (15/12/2013)