Buckland-Warren-Puzzle-Films-Complex-Storytelling-Contemporary-Cinema

Film Form and Mnemonic Devices in Memento 99W-1-V-2-U-3-T-4-S-5-R-6-Q-7-P-8-O-9-N-10-M-11-L-12-K-13-J-14-I-15-H-16-G-17-F-18-E-19-D-20-C-21-B-22+AThe fabula structure, as we already remarked for the chronological version,is obtained by postponing and inverting all the color sequences.1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17-18-19-20-21-22+A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-WThe two mental diagrams are simple and one can easily master them.They are external memory aids: simple strings of ordered elements, easyto recall, and useful as notation tools. They help us to remember Mementowithout the uncertainties which come out when we are watching thefilm. Unfortunately, we cannot use them during the screening, as they wereobtained only after a close analysis. Yet, they remind us that a film likeMemento must possess particular orientating elements, allowing theviewer to understand what he or she is watching. These elements are progressive,as they appear following the screening time, also in the backwardnarration, and mnemonic, as they are present in both story lines, and relateto one another.A Bidirectional FilmThe chronological and the backward story lines of Memento meet at theend, and as we see Leonard going to the tattoo shop, we can imagine whathappens next: all the events we have already seen can find a place in thediegesis, which is now complete. But as we are at the end of the film weare not able to recall all the episodes which compose the story, and we mayfeel as amnesiac as the main character. Yet, we know many things aboutthe narrative, as we have been given a lot of information, a flow of dataarranged following the temporal line of the film screening. In the color segmentsof Memento several streams of data develop along time, organizingrelevant information about the characters and the action, and progressivelyengaging the viewer’s attention, even if the narrative time moves backward.It is worth noting that from the beginning, while viewers are still wonderingabout the film’s structure, new schemata are proposed for their attention:for example, different aspects concerning the identity of the main character,which is a distinctive feature of the initial stage of any narration. Moreover,