This post is a little late and most of the class has already covered what Momento meant to our class and how it emphasized what we had talked about all semester. I think it was pretty easy to see that this movie emphasized that fact that reality can be fictional and memories are no where close to accurate. To me the relationships between the characters and the audience were the most interesting aspects. Not only does this movie prove that reality is questionable it also shows that relationships and perceptions can be as well. Until the last 10 minutes of the movie we all sympathized and believed Leonard. It's interesting we felt this way even though we knew Leonard really never knew anything that was going on in his life. We, the audience, chose to put all our faith in his version of the story even though we knew he had no memory. Not only that, Leonard put all of his faith in little scribbles on paper and tattoos, even though he knew that in moments of strong emotions he could write something rash he would later regret. Overall, we're all trusting completely ridiculous sources. What we didn't mention in class but that I can't help thinking about is that this movie also emphasizes weeding out the "bullshit", not being manipulated. We may have touched on this for a second but I think it's one of the most important parts of the movie. Everyone, including the audience, allows themselves to be manipulated. I'm not sure if everyone is lying to themselves or simply just too trusting of the information given to them.

momento/perception

While at NOMA I visited a black and white photography exhibition entitled Residents & Visitors and I though it tied in with perception dealing with the movie Memento. It was a broad documentation of locale and focused on examination of perceived culture in Louisiana during the twentieth century. The exhibit allows the viewer to uncover a mysteriously luring element of nostalgia located in the photographs, among the range of tones; aiding this element is the uncanny effect of the overall display, consisting of the work of Native photographers alongside visiting ones. The photos mostly take place on a local level, case by case basis, thus the exhibition resonated immediately with me. I found it to be one of a kind, a fully operative piece of the past informing the viewer of an otherwise familiar place in time, of something he/she cannot know, but can experience in their own way. You see, this type of experience, that was designed with the combined effort and skill of fellow photographers, not only showcases the effective power of refine printing skills but emphasizes the power of perception. Have you ever tried to imagine early parts of the twentieth century in color? Most people are unable to do this since they have not seen it with there own eyes, the only thing they have, to go off of, is images shown to them. Moving or still, images of the early 1900’s we see today were mainly introduced by Hollywood and are in black and white. Trying to imagine 1952 in color, thus becomes virtually impossible to today’s youth. However, this effect in coordination with the emphasis on perception forced me to acknowledge, as well as, to appreciate its power in relation to reality, as a manipulation of reality. Beyond the filial relationship between the subjects in the photos, in this context, as a Resident or Visitor the photographers maintain an experiential relationship with the subject and each other. While examining these portraits collectively, they become even more mysterious. The comparison of the artist renderings and interpretations becomes unavoidable; and thus compels you to further ponder the culture and how it is encompassed in each rendering; also consider the significance of the symbolic nature between, the native human subjects among each other and the significance of the things their being depicted among seemingly become extensions of themselves as you further investigate the frame. , could it be the cleverness of the photographer, or were these people as intriguing that they seem existing in such a defined state of culture that was inescapable of the eye. Mysterious.

Can't trust anything can you?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/martin-luther-king-jr-misquoted-after-osama-bin-laden-killed/2011/05/03/AFNKPjfF_blog.html
Just because someone says MLK said it, doesn't make it so.
But is the quote any less meaningful without his name attached?

Memento

I totally agree with Sheeri. As soon as I heard John or Teddy, whoever!, say that he created J.G., I immediately thought "Isn't this the same ending as Shutter Island?" Although I must admit that I liked this movie a little better than Shutter Island for some reason. And yes, it did sum up pretty much everything we learned in class. We should have just watched movies like this all semester! Hehe. Anyway! I am having a lot of fun doing my paper because I realize more and more correlations between the two stories, yet I often rule them out because they don't prove anything that my thesis statement claims. It's a little like a game. TTFN!

Memento

At first this movie confused me, but as it ran its course I became more and more intrigued trying to figure out what was actually going on. I liked Leonard in the beginning, but after the plot twist was revealed I had a harder time sympathizing with him because of what he decided to do. He lost the meaning of what he was doing, and he used his condition to continue killing John G.'s even though he had already gotten the one who hard attacked his wife. The only thing he had to live for was this act of revenge, and even though Teddy informed him of what he had already done, he chose to ignore it so he could still have a reason to live.

memento

so yeah basically memento hammers home the message that we have discussed all semester, that truth is subjective and something that each individual creates for themselves. also, shutter island is pretty much the same movie. it is interesting to think about how everyone creates their own truth in some ways. many would argue that religion serves this purpose for many people, allowing them to live in a world in which they believe that good deeds in life will lead them to a wonderful afterlife, thus giving them purpose (like leonard gives himself purpose by creating this investigation for himself). many people also tend to perceive people's words and actions in accordance with what they want to hear or see. although these are not necessarily honest ways to live one's life, this does not necessarily mean that it is a worse or wrong way to live. I believe that if you are not hurting or harming anyone and are still able to function in society, creating a truth for yourself that makes you happier is perfectly fine. Why not? After all, you only have one life to live, and you might as well be happy during the time you are given.

Powerful & Disorienting

Wow, that was a bit different from when I remember watching it when I was younger, but still epic and mind blowing all the same. I definitely get more out of it now, to some extent because I'm older, but mostly from what I've learned in this course. I enjoyed the manipulation of both us as the viewers and Leonard as a victim of short term memory loss. The way the movie is related from the end to the beginning is very disorienting and leaves the viewer vulnerable to the forms of manipulation to come. It also serves as a reminder that if yuo forget the manipulative nature of the world and its many agendas, you may also become someone elses tool. Overall my favorite part has to be the end when Leonard has found out that he has been killing many people, and chooses to alter his reality by letting himself forget about what he has just been told and giving himself a new clue. Even with his disability, Leonard takes full control of his reality and makes his disability an advantage.

Memento was the perfect movie to sum up everything we have been taught this semester. Specifically, I thought it dealt with the issues of truth and manipulation in a way that was very relevant to our class. As Teddy said, “You don’t want the truth. You make up your own truth.” The idea of creating one’s own reality runs throughout the entire movie. Because Leonard cannot make new memories, he becomes the extreme example of something we are all guilty of. He is manipulated, he accept lies as reality and creates his own truth. Whether this is a good or bad thing is something I am still trying to figure out. “So you lie to yourself to be happy.” Teddy tells Leonard, “There’s nothing wrong with that. We all do it.” We may all do it, but what are the implications of lying to yourself?

Memento is an example of how failure to distinguish between truth and lies can allow you to be manipulated. Leonard is manipulated by almost every character in the film (Natalie, Teddy, even the man at the front desk of his hotel), and in Leonard’s case, those manipulating him do not have very good intentions. However, Leonard’s willingness to accept lies also allows him to live his life. Lying to himself is easier than facing the reality that his wife is gone, her killer is dead, and Leonard has nothing else to live for. I found that these two issues, manipulation and the benefit of lying, were key concepts that were found in many of the texts we analyzed this semester.

Memento

As I was watching the movie, I couldn't help but feel sorry for Leonard and the lonely life he lives. It's pretty much like he's living in an tangible, Earth form of Limbo, can't go anywhere and can't remember anyone. First and foremost, he lost his wife, which would drive anyone crazy however what really drilled the nail into the coffin was that she died, in both sequences, a painful death; in Leonard's sequence she was brutally murdered before him, and in another she could not bear to endure her husband's loss of memory and virtually had him kill her. On top of all that, Leonard lost his job, his house, his money, his friends...the list goes on. What I have to ask is, what was his motivation to live? To realize that it was all for nothing? Perhaps this thought has crossed his mind once or twice before but alas he cannot remember.

Natalie?

Okay so first of all, I LOVED that movie. At first, I didn't understand why the would show a scene then rewind and show the scene before and then rewind and show the scene before. Being artsy was my initial thought. I understand now that if the movie played in chronological order, the mystery would be lost because the answer comes at the beginning rather than at the end. But in this movie the beginning is the end. I think this movie fits into the class so well because for the entire movie we distrust Teddy and sympathize with Lenny. We pity Lenny. We want him to find the killer. But at the end of the movie, we know longer sympathize. He is killing people who weren't his wife's killer (namely because his wife didn't die).
What I'm having trouble with is Natalie. I know she was the girlfriend of Jimmy Grant, the guy that Lenny kills before starting to track Teddy. But I don't understand why Teddy sent him to her or why she pretended to be beaten up by Dodd. What was her motive? What did she want? Anybody have any answers?

Memento. Long post, but worth the debate.

Memento presents an OVERWHELMING amount of mixed morals. Situations that audiences everywhere would handle differently--no two people are exactly the same.
There is a reason our loyalties and emotions are sporadic with the characters. We sympathize and like Leanord when we think he is avenging his wife (yet he is still planning murder, which is usually considered a morally wrong act. Is it acceptable in this case?). Eventually we see that he chooses to live his life constantly "finding the murderer"... that is already dead. A common reaction is for the audience to be appalled that Leanord makes the decision to make himself forget that he has already killed his enemy and to continue murdering in order to give his life meaning. Some may view it as selfish. (so is this to say that no one in the audience has made a selfish decision to improve their life? Or is it different because he is murdering? Is this where the line gets drawn? Is he not entitled to a happy life? After all, Teddy is giving him bad people such as drug dealers to kill. Do the drug dealers still deserve to live even though they have probably murdered others and have sold illegal substances? Why do they deserve to live a content life while Leanord does not?) Teddy also brings in a few questions of ethics. I know that I had mixed feelings about him throughout the movie. Is he a bad person for doing drug deals and helping Leonard kill people--even while being a cop? Or is he a good person for giving this person a reason to live? He seems to have sympathy in his heart.
The movie leaves more thoughts than just, "wow... now I know what he feels like when he doesn't remember things". Yes that is a very interesting idea, but when you dig deeper, you see that it is a clever way to set up all of these questions of ethics. that is the big picture here. Seeing the scenes in reverse toys with the audience's emotions. The director feeds one situation and then piles more variables on top to complicate the emotions--creating mixed feelings. Feelings so mixed that one might feel cheated at the end. It really just comes down to one's priorities.
Don't we all do the same thing, though? We choose what we want to believe. We choose so many things that make us content with our life. We create values based off of what life presents or deals to us. The literature in this class presents us with ideas to interpret. To accept or discard. It's our choice! Janelle has been trying, I think, to show us that not only does this happen in literature and the classroom, but in everyday situations in life. It could even be a situation like Leonard's. So are we really so different from Leonard? It is common to make hypocritical decisions and 'exceptions to the rule' all the time. so where is the line drawn? does that make us bad people? Again, it is your interpretation. What do you think?

Momento

Unfortunately, I didn't get to watch the first part of the movie but I caught on pretty quickly. I love the way it kept me thinking and guessing what was coming next (just like this class has all semester). The way it goes back and forth challenges your mind and I love that! I also love when movies have an unexpected ending. Momento's ending may have been disappointing to some but I thought it was perfect! The movie was awesome, I will definitely be looking it up to watch the whole thing. :)