Big Picture Big Sound

The Film

Memory can change the shape of a room; it can change the color of a car. And memories can be distorted. They're just an interpretation, they're not a record - and they're irrelevant if you have the facts.

Ten years ago, before Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and Inception turned Christopher Nolan into Hollywood's leading rainmaker, the talented, up-and-coming director crafted a superb and unique little murder mystery entitled Memento.  Watching it now, a decade later, it's a relief to report that this gem of a modern film noir hasn't aged a day.

Guy Pearce stars as Leonard (not "Lenny") Shelby, a determined loner trying desperately to find the man who raped and murdered his wife. There's just one problem. After Leonard's run-in with his wife's assailant, a head injury has left him with the inability to form and retain new memories. In other words, if he talks to you for too long, he may forget why he started talking with you in the first place. Strangely, Leonard can remember everything about his childhood and life leading up to the night of his injury [editor's note: it's called anterograde amnesia, and while rare, it does occur].

Faced with this unique predicament, Leonard develops a coping system involving dozens of body tattoos and countless Polaroids featuring hand-written notes such as, "Don't believe his lies." Surrounding Leonard is a handful of sketchy characters, including Carrie-Anne Moss and Joe Pantoliano, who may or may not be using Leonard's handicap to their advantage. Who do you trust when every face is a stranger and your only guidance is a note you can't remember writing?

As intriguing a premise as all this is, the plot of Memento is only half the fun. What sets Memento apart and makes it worthy of repeat viewings, is the fact that Nolan tells the story in reverse. In the film's opening credits, Nolan quickly establishes the game he wishes to play, as we watch the Polaroid of a murder victim un-develop before our very eyes. In the next few scenes, Nolan smartly "explains" visually just how this is going to work - and it's a ride you won't soon forget.

The Picture

In the five years since Sony's 2006 Blu-ray Disc release, home video distribution rights for Memento have passed to Lionsgate, and it is they who now bring us this 10th Anniversary Special Edition. And unlike the previous edition's middling MPEG-2 video, Lionsgate's new Blu-ray features a significantly improved AVC encode.

The first thing that jumps out with this new transfer is the spectacular detail and image depth on display. When Leonard and Teddy (Pantoliano) arrive at the abandoned warehouse, the distant water tanks and their distinctive spiral staircases work together to create an engaging dimensionality boasting wonderful depth of field. (And it's not even 3D!  Go figure.)

Skin tones appear natural and convincing during the film's various color sequences, while shadow delineation and black levels also impress - particularly during the film's black-and-white interludes. A pleasant layer of film grain remains intact throughout the film, though the black-and-white scenes do tend to amplify the graininess at times. Overall though, this is a fantastic new transfer befitting the film's unique visual style and editing process.

The Sound

Whereas the previous Blu-ray release featured an uncompressed LPCM soundtrack, this new Anniversary Edition features a more space-efficient 5.1 channel DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack which maintains the full uncompressed quality of PCM but uses much less disc space. Memento isn't a surround sound extravaganza, but when the film comes alive, there's impressive dynamic range to be heard with clear dialogue and sufficiently-deep bass. The surround channels don't see much action, but that's probably just as well. Keeping Memento's plot and story sequence straight requires 100% of your attention, front and center.

The Extras

Memento fans may remember Sony's elaborate Limited Edition DVD, which featured unique case file-style packaging and a labyrinthine menu and supplements structure. Lionsgate's 10th Anniversary Edition brings forward a few of the extras we've seen before, loses some others, but also adds a few new ones.

Christopher Nolan fans will definitely want to give a listen to the director's feature-length audio commentary. As always, Nolan is extremely engaging and it's easy to see that Memento was a passion project for him, not just a "gimmick" used to distinguish himself from his countless peers. The same holds true for "Remembering Memento," a new HD introduction by Nolan, in which the director recollects this career-changing picture and the "leap" he made from small, self-financed filmmaking to working with a cast of name actors and millions of dollars of other people's money.

"Anatomy of a Scene" and IFC's Nolan interview are segments we've seen before, but it's nice to see them carried forward here. And while we don't get the full shooting script  - a neat feature from the Limited Edition DVD - we do get Jonathan Nolan's "Memento Mori," the short story that fueled brother Christopher's eventual screenplay.

Final Thoughts

If your only exposure to Christopher Nolan thus far is that small pair of superhero movies he made for Warner Bros., you owe it to yourself to check out his early work. Both his little-seen debut, Following, and his monumentally-entertaining Memento provide all the evidence you need to understand why Nolan has since become one of the hottest commodities in Tinsel Town. From the superb acting on display from Pearce, Moss, and Pantoliano, to Nolan's unique and effective twist on chronological structure, Memento is an absolute must-own title for film fans everywhere.

Product Details

• Actors: Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano, Stephen Tobolowsky
• Director: Christopher Nolan
• Audio/Languages: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (English)
• Subtitles: English SDH, English, Spanish
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
• Region: A
• Number of Discs: 1
• Rating: R
• Studio: Lionsgate
• Blu-ray Disc Release Date: February 22, 2011
• Run Time: 113 minutes
• List Price: $19.99
• Extras:
  • Featurette: "Remebering Memento"
  • Featurette: "Anatomy of a Scene"
  • IFC Interview with Christopher Nolan
  • Short Story by Jonathan Nolan: "Memento Mori"
  • Tattoo sketches
  • Leonard's journal
  • Director commentary