Analysis of Memento

1) Comment on the title of the film.
-The name of the film 'Memento' is in capital letters which means it stands out and is very clear for the audience to see. A memento is; a physical reminder or a object/ souvenier that is kept as a reminder of a place or special event that has happened. The fact that the word 'Memento' fades into the frame means that it is introducing the film to the audience. As the word is in large font it shows the audience that it is high in importance so the word 'Memento' is highly related to the film.


2) Describe the setting or location.
-The place where the man is killed is an abandoned building- it is very isolated as they are the only two characters in the building it could perhaps make the audience feel that they are not meant to be there which adds to the sinister atmosphere of the film. The effect of this is that the character called Teddy is very vulnerable and he has no-one else to turn to as he is faced with his killer. This could make the audience feel sympathy for the man that is about to die as he has no-where to turn to save himself and can not resist his fate.


3) What are the key props in the film?
-The key props that feature in this film are the gun that he uses to kill the man but more importantly the photo that he takes of the dead man lying on the floor. He also uses a polaroid camera to take a picture of Teddy as he is dying on the floor. The photo that has been taken of Teddy represents the name of the film 'Memento as a photo is an example of a memento.

4) The camera work and editing.
-The opening sequence is very slow paced which could perhaps create a more tense atmosphere for the audience to endure. The fact that all the shots are either close ups/ extreme close ups (with one mid shot) means that the audience are focused on the memento that is in the frame. It also adds importance and authority to each individual shot that we see. The opening sequence creates more questions for the audience to answer rather than answering them for the viewers. For example why the main character (Leonard) is taking a picture of the man he just shot (Teddy). The sounds of the man taking the picture of the body is made louder which conveys to the audience that these are sounds that we should perhaps remember. This film has a totally different style of editing as the film is made backwards and shown this way to the audience.

5) The title
-The word Memento is placed in the centre of the frame which means that the audience can't help but notice it as they watch. The fatc that the font is large could perhaps draw more attention to the title while we watch what is going on behind it. Both the credits and opening title are in the colour of blue but the credits are in a slightly different shade.

6) Does the opening sequence relate to the rest of the film?
-I think the opening sequence could easily be linked with the following footage as it provides the audience with the sinister atmosphere and allows the audience to have a brief overview of what the film has in store. The close ups of the differnet props that the main character uses introduces them to the audience and perhaps gets the viewers thinking what they are related to in the rest of the footage. The opening sequence makes it so easy for the audience to be 'hooked' into the film and perhaps gives them the base of questions that would perhaps like to ask to find out crucial answers.