Memento: narrative structure and memory in film

Memento Analysis

Did Leonard Shelby Kill His Wife?

Memento is the 2000 film by Christopher Nolan that follows Leonard Shelby (Guy Pierce) as he attempts to piece together fragmented memories and facts in an attempt to get revenge on a man that raped and killed his wife. Throughout the film, Shelby is seen interacting with numerous people who grow to become unreliable influences on Shelby and manipulate him to further their own agendas. Given Shelby's anterograde amnesia, much of what he claims to remember, and his subsequent notes, can lead the viewer to question Shelby's memory. While it can be argued that Shelby killed his wife and simply cannot remember, there is evidence to support the argument that Shelby did not kill his wife.

There is evidence provided in the film that supports the argument that Shelby did not murder his own wife. One of the first pieces of evidence that should be taken into consideration is the police report that Shelby has been given access. There is no reason to believe that Shelby would be provided with a false police report as he has acquired it from a reliable source, officers he frequently worked with while he was still working with an insurance company. As Shelby states, "The police gave it to me themselves…They must have figured that if I saw the facts of the case, then I would stop believing that we needed to find John G." (Nolan). There is no reason given that would make the police report suspect -- aside from the missing pages -- and would lead to someone questioning the report's legitimacy. It can be assumed the police report states basic facts such as whether or not Shelby's wife was still alive, if they found a murdered suspect at the Shelby family home, and other basic information.

A second consideration that must be taken into account is if Shelby murdered his wife, why has he not been apprehended? It has been established that Shelby is in regular and constant contact with law enforcement officials from those from whom he acquired the police report to the mysterious phone-caller to Teddy. While it may appear difficult to ascertain what sort of sentence would be handed down to Shelby, there should be some evidence that he was 1) detained, 2) appeared before a court, and/or 3) sentenced. Because Shelby is free should indicate that he was not implicated in his wife's murder. While one may make the argument Shelby fled while awaiting trial or before he was sentenced, one would have to look into what would have made his escape so feasible given his injury. Furthermore, Shelby should have been considered a flight risk, whether while he was hospitalized or awaiting to trial, and thus, proper preparations would have prevented him from embarking on his quest.

While one may question Shelby's involvement in his wife's murder, if any, one must also take into consideration what he witnessed at the time of the attack. In "Eyewitness Testimony," Bruce N. Waller discusses the limitations of eyewitness testimony and the criteria that must be evaluated to determine whether or not eyewitness testimony is reliable. According to Waller, four things need to be taken into consideration in determining the reliability of eyewitness testimony: 1) "was the witness in a position to make accurate observations;" 2) "how were the witness's observations influenced by the witness's state of mind, her prior beliefs and expectations, perhaps even by mental disorder;" 3) "in what ways have the witness's recollections of the events been influenced during the time between making the observations and giving testimony;" and 4) "is the witness testifying to the truth as she remembers it, or is the witness lying?" (Waller). Throughout the film, Shelby asserts he is on a quest to find and kill his wife's second attacker. While the existence of a second attacker is denied by the police and Teddy argues he and Shelby have already found and killed the second attacker, there is no doubt cast that there was an attacker to begin with. While Shelby may not quite be in the position to claim that there is a second attacker, a claim that is further supported by his injury, there is no denying his wife was brutally attacked. Secondly, Shelby's observations of the attack can be considered to be reliable to a degree because he did not simply witness the attack, but was also an active participant in trying to stop the crime; Shelby claims, and it is most likely documented in the police report he has, that he strangled and killed one of the attackers. Shelby's inability to form new memories himself does not mean that he does not remember any events leading up to his wife's attack. Shelby, himself, asserts, "I remember everything from before the injury, I just can't make any new memories" (Nolan).