Memento summary

Memento-Christopher Nolan 2000

Memento is based on the character leonard who has a condition that causes him to forget everything that he does after a few minutes. The plot of the film is shown in a non-linear way, most of the time being backwards showing each scene leading up to the scene before. This raises alot more questions than showing it in a normal fashion would due to leonards condition.

To keep the audiance interested they keep conceal the real identities of many of the characters until the end, for example they don't reveal that "Teddy" is actually a cop until right at the end of the film.
There are two main narrative strands running thoughout the film which are what Leonard has done leading up to killing "Teddy" and a telephone conversation that he is having with someone unknown. The telephone conversation is in black and white which helps it to contrast with the rest of the film. The two strands eventually link together into a scene where Leonard is confronting "Teddy".
There is very little ellipsis of time involving the narrative which means that almost all of a complete section of time is shown.
The ending of the film still raises questions even thought most have been answered, this is conventional of thrillers

Quentin Tarantino

Quentin Tarantino is an american director, producer and actor whos films are renowed for their non-linear storylines and themes or violence.

He has directed:
Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill volmumes 1 & 2 and Inglourious Basterds

Acted in:
Pulp Fiction, Desperado, Alias and most of the other films that he has directed

He has also produced:
From Dusk til dawn 1,2 & 3, Hero and Hostel parts I and II

here is the opening scene of one of quentin tarantinos most famous films Pulp Fiction:














http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quentin_Tarantino
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000233/bio

Thriller directors

Some of the most popular and most well known thriller directors are: Alfred Hitchcock, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, Quentin Tarantino and Christopher Nolan.

Alfred Hitchcock:
Alfred Hitchcock is one of the most well known names in thriller he made a large contribution to establishing the genre. He began filmaking in the 1920's and continued up to the 1970's. His most famous films include The Birds and Psycho.



A trailer of psycho where Hitchcock explains some aspects of the plot.

Sources: http://movies.toptenreviews.com/directors/list_thriller_director.htm
, http://hitchcock.tv/

Definitions of a Thriller

1. They are types of films known to promote intense excitement, suspense, a high level of anticipation, ultra-heightened expectation, uncertainty, anxiety, and nerve-wracking tension.



http://www.filmsite.org/subgenres.html



2. Thrillers are characterized by fast pacing, frequent action, and resourceful heroes who must thwart the plans of more-powerful and better-equipped villains.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thriller_(genre)



3. A film that tells an exciting story about murder or crime.

www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/thriller

Thiller sub-genres

one of the most moticable features of thrillers is how they can be combined with almost any genre to form many different sub-genres such as:

Action Thriller: contain fast paced exciting narratives with a large amound of action usually in the form of guns, explosions etc.

Conspiracy thriller: When the protagonist is up against a conspiracy usually carried out by some kind of antagonistic organization

Crime Thriller: When the narrative is centered around a crime, usually it is the protagonists aim to capture the perpetrator

Disaster Thiller: Contain some kind of disaster that the characters have to deal with

Erotic Thiller: A cross between erotic film and thriller

Legal Thriller: When the main character is involved in the legal system.

Medical Thiller: When the main character is involved in the medical proffesion and may be trying to fight a deadly virus or some other unusual or dangerous health concern

Psychological Thriller: very suspenseful and usually require alot of thought to understand. usually have complex narratives or characters

Political Thiller: When a main character tries to keep his government stable even against powerful forces

Religous Thiller: When the main events are related to some kind of religous prophecy or scripture, can be controversial due to the way religions may be represented.

Spy Thriller: When the protagonist is an agent or spy who has to retreive somthing or take down an enemy agency

Supernatrual Thrillers: When either superpowers, magic or other paranormal forces are involved.

Sources:
http://action-films-thrillers.suite101.com/article.cfm/subgenres_of_the_hollywood_thriller

Thriller Conventions

Some of the main conventions of the thriller genre are:

•They Often have a complex narrative with many clues, red-herrings and other enigmas
•A narrative that consists of many revealing enigmas that keeps the viewer interested in what is going to happen
•A protagonist who often has to overcome the antagonist even though he has a lot less power in some way
•Characters the audience can identify to, usually the protagonist
•The protagonist usually has a weakness which the antagonist uses to his advantage
•A crime of some kind at the center of the narrative
•They often overlap with themes from other genres
•The antagonist may be an organization or some kind of natural force rather than a character
•Elements that “Thrill” the audience

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thriller_(genre)#Directors
http://barney54.wordpress.com/2009/11/02/thriller-conventions/