YATAM yet another thread about memento
08-23-03 | 05:28 PM
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DVD Talk Ultimate Edition
YATAM yet another thread about memento
spoilers, obviously so if you havent seen it, you may want to leave.....
so yeah, got into another discussion about this movie. this time, for once, i had to scratch my head since it made me think about something i had never thought of before.
so the lead character has a problem forming new memories. the argument normally is about sammy jenkins--is he sammy? or was sammy really a real case? i always argued that sammy was a real case because there would be no way that the lead could remember any of the facts about sammy (if it were indeed him) since he cannot form new memories. well, along this line of thinking, how can he even remember that he has a "condtion"??? he should be completely and happily oblivious to everything, just like sammy was because he will have no memory of forgetting things. and although he may get upset/anxious when he finds himself in places or situations where he doesnt recognize them or how he got there, he should quickly forget that, too. am i making any sense out there? this actually swayed me to the "faker" side of the story. whether he is faking on purpose or psychologically blocking it out, i dont know.
so yeah, got into another discussion about this movie. this time, for once, i had to scratch my head since it made me think about something i had never thought of before.
so the lead character has a problem forming new memories. the argument normally is about sammy jenkins--is he sammy? or was sammy really a real case? i always argued that sammy was a real case because there would be no way that the lead could remember any of the facts about sammy (if it were indeed him) since he cannot form new memories. well, along this line of thinking, how can he even remember that he has a "condtion"??? he should be completely and happily oblivious to everything, just like sammy was because he will have no memory of forgetting things. and although he may get upset/anxious when he finds himself in places or situations where he doesnt recognize them or how he got there, he should quickly forget that, too. am i making any sense out there? this actually swayed me to the "faker" side of the story. whether he is faking on purpose or psychologically blocking it out, i dont know.
08-23-03 | 10:55 PM
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Let me just get this out of they way right now: I think Leonard knowing about his condition is the one big plot hole in the movie. I say this because he developed the condition before the "tragedy." It doesn't affect my enjoyment of the movie though...it's just something I couldn't fit into the story. Also, I do not think he is faking the condition. Now onto Sammy.
I think that Sammy was a real guy and a real case Leonard dealt with before he developed the condition. Teddy even confirms that Sammy was a fraud. Towards the end of the movie Leonard, I can't remember the exact quote and I am at work now so I can't pull out the DVD, says something about memory being what we choose to believe. I think, due to his condition, that Leonard merged the Sammy memory with what he really did to his wife and believed that to be the true story of Sammy. Leonard feels guilty about labeling Sammy a fraud, eventhough he was, because he believes that Sammy did kill his wife because of his condition. He feels remorse for what, in reality, he actually did to his wife. Does this make sense?
I think that Sammy was a real guy and a real case Leonard dealt with before he developed the condition. Teddy even confirms that Sammy was a fraud. Towards the end of the movie Leonard, I can't remember the exact quote and I am at work now so I can't pull out the DVD, says something about memory being what we choose to believe. I think, due to his condition, that Leonard merged the Sammy memory with what he really did to his wife and believed that to be the true story of Sammy. Leonard feels guilty about labeling Sammy a fraud, eventhough he was, because he believes that Sammy did kill his wife because of his condition. He feels remorse for what, in reality, he actually did to his wife. Does this make sense?
