Guy Pearce’s performance in the film Memento is one of the most iconic in recent memory. His portrayal of Leonard Shelby, an amnesiac on a wrathful quest for revenge, is a masterful blend of intensity and nuance. Pearce manages to display the confusion and disorientation of Leonard’s condition, while still maintaining a gripping sense of purpose and drive. His portrayal of Leonard is both brutal and heartbreaking, making Memento an unforgettable film. Through an examination and analysis of Pearce’s performance, we can gain insight into the character he portrays. By examining his physicality, and gestures, you can better appreciate the complexity and depth of his performance, and even see some of the themes this film conveys. Memento is …show more content…
In his performance, you can see that he maintains a closed posture, and frequently places his hands in his pockets. This helps to convey the closed off aspect of Leonard’s character. Pearce portrays Leonard as a man with restrained gestures, reflecting the characters restraint he feels in dealing with the world around him. Leonard has been profoundly affected by his inability to trust others and the betrayal he has experienced. His stiff posture and closed fists work to reinforce his emotional and mental state. Pearce’s gestures often reflect Leonard’s mental and emotional state as well. For instance, Leonard often has one hand cupped, as if he is holding something in his palm. This gesture is often used to portray how he is holding his own memory. However, it could also be his sense of uncertainty. We see in the film how Leonard cups his hands when trying to piece together the details of his wifes murder, showing how even when he is certain, he still has a sense of uncertainty. Leonard also often uses his hands to shield his face and head. He uses this gesture when he is under stress and when he is fearful. His gesture of shielding his head conveys that the source of his stress and fear is himself. Leonard is his own worst enemy. He fears the internal confusion that has so profoundly affected his mind and, in turn, his
In the novel everybodies hands show their goals, like Montag’s, Granger, his men, and Mildred’s self goals, reflect through their hands. Montag's motives, thoughts, and his intentions he doesn't have courage to do himself are represented in the symbol of his hands throughout the book, as well as the rest of the people in the society. Montag's hands do things for him with a mind of their own, they do what he desires to do or what he thinks he must do. Montag's hands show his intentions throughout the book that then connect to when Granger says how ha grandfather left a mark on his world, with carvings and songs, and jokes. Montag's hands represent his intentions, the things Montag deep down wants to do, but can't
The film's attention to detail, both in terms of historical accuracy and the portrayal of the emotional landscape of its characters, adds depth and authenticity to the
Leonard suffers from anterograde amnesia. Anterograde amnesia is a type of severe memory impairment that does not give the ability to form new memories, beginning with the onset of a disorder (Kalat, 1998). Anterograde amnesia is a result of brain damage to the hippocampus. In the film Leonard and Sammy have damage to their hippocampus, a part of the brain that is heavily involved in learning and memory (Kalat, 1998). The hippocampus is where new information must pass before being permanently stored in memory.
He says, “Virtually everybody seems to sense that a mugger wouldn’t be warbling bright, sunny selections from Vivaldi's Four Seasons. It is my equivalent of the cowbell that hikers wear when they know they are in bear country.” He tries to make himself seem as disarming as possible. For instance, making sure not to walk behind someone for too long, as not to seem like he’s following him or her. Or paying extra attention to himself on subways, especially when he’s in jeans rather than his usual business
While growing up in his hometown Chester, Pennsylvania, he was never noticed like how he is now in Chicago. His appearance was the norm among other murderers and gang warfare. Being in a new setting, Staples realizes how much he stands out. It lessens his sense of belonging and dehumanizes him. He should not have to change the way he acts to gain the acceptance of others.
With fast-paced action and suspense, Richard Connell begets an electrifying mood to tell an enduring
For example, paragraph 34 of the short story states, “The young man walked over and asked him about the program he was watching, but Leonard stuck a thumb in his mouth and didn’t respond. (Bender 34)” Leonard, distracted by the program, remained unwilling to converse with the young man, despite all he had previously done for him. This interaction contrasts the differing personalities of Leonard and the young man. Leonard's initial response to his kidnapping presents the influences of one’s prior experiences, comparably shown through the young man's
The example also helps the readers know the full extent of Staples’ hardships. One example that is effective in aiding the readers to understand Staples point of view of the world; would have to be when Staple hears the “thunk, thunk, thunk of the driver… hammering down the door locks” (Staples 28). This helps the readers understand that even when Staples crosses the street in front of cars, it causes people to become afraid for their safety and lock their doors. Even if Staples doesn’t make a threatening gesture to them, people still feared for their safety. Therefore, Staples has to be careful with how he acts around people, or they might think he is trying to harm them in some way, shape, or form.
He is seen as a threat to women as they "are particularly vulnerable to street violence, and young black males are drastically overrepresented among the perpetrators of that violence" (Staples 5), having to be aware of the stigma that follows him constantly. As his racial appearance was maximized, Staples saw how his actual character was being minimized as he has done nothing to appear as a threat, even actively avoiding violence, "as a softy who is scarcely able to take a knife to a raw chicken--let alone hold one to a person's throat" (Staples 2). He understood that the majority of people whom he would encounter throughout the night would not look upon him favorably. Young women would fear him, pedestrians would be wary of him, and people, in general, would be cautious of his presence. Staple describes the situations where he had to experience the maximization of his identity using onomatopoeia to help provide better imagery and sensory effects.
We're human beings. We make deceptive flailing gestures all over the place all day long. They don't mean anything in and of themselves. But when you see clusters of them, that's your
Staples noted “ My first victim was a woman...to her the youngish black man...seemed menacingly close... she disappeared into a cross street...” In this example we see Staples being avoided due to the fact that he had his hands in his pockets and was walking on the same sidewalk as a white female, and an impoverished area of a chicago neighborhood. Staples begins to grow accustomed to these sort of things since he knew stereotypes don't go away or change and we see him develop around it as he moves on with
His performance is so convincing that it's easy to forget that he is playing a role, and it adds to the sense of authenticity that permeates the film. In addition to its authenticity and strong performances, The Pursuit of Happiness also has a powerful message that contributes
I have always viewed movies as mood boosters. Whenever I watch a movie, I judge how good it is according to how well I understand the story. This is why I never truly understand how critics rate movies. However, upon reading John Berger’s “Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye”, I start to understand how paying attention to the different components of a film helps in understanding the essence of a story. As Berger once said, “There is no film that does not partake of dream.
It is one of those strange things, the ability of us to develop for an affinity for noted personalities who we will likely never have the fortune of crossing in life. As a lover of cinema, I have such a relationship with many of my favorite filmmakers. So of course when one of them passes away, we reflect upon the impact their films had on our lives as a matter of our remembrances; it is our way of paying tribute … When I heard of the passing of George A. Romero this past week, my head and my heart was filled with a general sadness afforded someone of his standing at the news of his passing as well as an overwhelming, heartfelt sentimentality as I recounted the connection he and his films had to my own life. Namely, my relationship with my
Overall, minus a few hiccups, I greatly enjoyed this movie. The three aspects that most grabbed my attention becoming the sources of my enjoyment were character portrayal, the symbolism used in almost every scene, and connections to my own life experiences. I have always been a great supporter of the idea that characters are what makes a film great, for they are the basis of any narrative and prove to be one of the most