Memento (Nolan,2000,US)

Sound

The movie is being introduced to the audience by sound only. For the first 0:40 seconds all that is on screen is titles and the background sound-this is done to draw your attention to the sound and not to the titles of the movie. The opening sequence sound is mainly monotone though it does increase in volume and then it changes to a high pitched sound, this might have been to create a sense of unease with the audience because though this movie falls in the thriller genre it did not start the way a typical thriller would. A typical thriller (Devils Pond-2003) starts a bit more up beat which prepared the audience for what the movie is going to be about.  

The use of non-diegetic sound when the main character is holding the gun and thinking of how he has finally caught the right man gives the audience an insight on how he thinks and it places the audience in his mind thought. When we heard what he was thinking in his mind it was in a sinister manner and makes the man seem like he is mentally. On the other hand the most effective use of deigetic sound is when the two men are shouting at each other right before the other man shoots, this is effective because it shows the way they communicate and it shows the anger and fear in both men.

 Editing 

This sequence doesn't take the form of linear narrative because once the man shoots Teddy it goes to him in a motel room instead of continuing at the scene of the murder such a technique is used to disorient the audience and to get the thinking about what happened. The use of eye line match is used bellow: 

 
We see the gun in his hand and him staring at the dead body then the camera goes to the dead body to attract our attention to what he looking at.

    

Through out the sequence the pace of the shots are slow which is also in sync with the music this might have been done to reflect the sadness in the characters and the pain the shot man might have felt when his been shot. 

  

The constant use of the fading Polaroid pictures the through the technique of dissolve may show the mans life is also dissolving in his hands and there is nothing he can really do about it.

Mise-En-Scene

The sequence was set in a a petrol station shop and an old building that is no longer in use, the director chose these two places to shoot in because the petrol station shop is seen as a one stop place to most people before they go on long journeys therefore making it relevant and hinting to the audience that they are going far. An abandoned building is always seen to have a negative feel to it because its not in use by anyone so then that makes it a victim to those who want to use it negatively and also easy because it doesn't belong to anyone so it could be used by whoever pleases. 

Costume:The man who i think is the main character is wearing a suit and this may lead us to believe that he is part of a mafia or he is just a business man that is looking for revenge because his suit is creased and doesn't look like he was in an office. 

Different type of lighting is used through out the scene and this is seen when the man in the suit is in the petrol station talking to the attendant it is bright and low key lighting was used because he was a asking a question to the gentleman so no drastic lighting was needed but then as we go on to the see the man in the old house we see a change in lighting as well and mood because the mood was light before but now the mood had become dark and the man is getting ready t shoot. Though this could not have been understood straight away but it hints to the audience that something bad will happen leaving them in suspense. 

The main prop in this scene is the gun used to kill and therefore gives off that this is not a movie that is of a light hearted genre straight away. The pool of blood that is seen even before the blood gives of a sense of danger which comes from the gun because the gun is used to Teddy.  

The expressions on the main characters face never really changed much he was just always neutral through out sequence apart from when he wanted to shoot Teddy this might be done to show the pain that he felt for loosing his wife. That now his wife is gone he cannot change his expression in a ways that says that his ability to love and smile is gone.

Cinematography 

This is a major element that makes up the sequence and it shown all the way through. As seen above in my picture you can see the man facial expressions and you can try and place what he wants to say or what he is thinking. This is because this is a tight frame meaning that the camera is just focused on him also making it a close up. 

In the following picture the director  uses a very long shot to show the arrogance of the main character...The way he is walking shows that he is just going for a peaceful walk where as just seconds after that he kills someone.