david beebe - entertainment writer and host

MEMENTO DIRECTOR CHRISTOPHER NOLAN

by david beebe
photography jennifer gregori

The most mysterious and fascinating part of the human body is the brain. How we use it, how it works, and how much of it we use is the subject of constant study. One thing is known for sure, though, you’d better have a clear head, a notepad, and be ready to use every part of your gray matter when you watch Memento, a mind- bending thriller written and directed by newcomer Christopher Nolan. The film is unreeled in reverse chronology, presenting the climax, then going back to explain each prior scene. The script is delivered through the thoughts and perspective of Leonard (Guy Pearce) who suffers from a trauma-induced condition that prevents him from making and keeping new memories. This type of memory condition actually exists, and if Leonard were reading this paragraph, he wouldn’t remember the opening line. That’s why he uses Polaroid pictures with notes scribbled on them, and tattoos on his body, to help him remember important facts that he thinks will help him in his relentless quest to find “John G,” the man who raped and murdered his wife (played by Jorja Fox). Joe Pantoliano plays Teddy, a glib undercover cop who’s challenged by Leonard throughout the film about his integrity, and Carrie-Anne Moss essays the part of the bad girl who tries to be good but ends up using Leonard’s memory problem to her advantage.

Memento is based on a short story that was thought up by his brother, Jonathan (and published in the March 2001 issue of Esquire). “While we were driving from Chicago to Los Angeles, Jonathan told me about it and I asked him if I could finish the script and make it into a movie, and he said that was fine. My original screenplay was very long, but I worked through it and made it much simpler. I was careful on the edits because it was my intention to create a film that would leave the audience questioning their own process of memory,” Nolan explains.

Memento is Nolan’s second feature film. In 1999, he made his debut with Following, which he also wrote and directed. Born in London in 1970, Nolan’s love of filmmaking began at an early age. “I started making films when I was seven by using my dad’s super 8mm camera and action figures. As time went on, I started short films and I became more ambitious,” Nolan recalls. His surreal short “Tarantella” was shown on PBS’ “Image Union” in 1989. “Then I studied English Literature at University College London and started to make 16mm films at the college film society,” he states. In 1996, Nolan entered his short film “Larceny” into the Cambridge Film Festival.

Today, Nolan lives in Los Angeles with his wife and is working on two other projects. He wrote an adaptation of Ruth Rendell’s novel The Keys to the Street for Fox Searchlight and is currently directing an American version of the Norwegian film Insomnia, which stars Al Pacino and Hilary Swank. Even though Nolan is working on some larger budget films, he leaves us with these words of advice to aspiring filmmakers: “Always view your no-budget films as a total filmmaking experience, because they are. You learn so much during those times and you can use that experience on larger budget films later.”