Memento

I found the film Memento to be very thought provoking. This film revolves around a man, Leonard, who has suffered from a traumatic brain injury. This injury destroys his short term memory and he is unable to make new memories, so often times throughout the film, Leonard forgets what he is doing. He must to rely on notes, polaroid photos, and sayings that he has tattooed on his body to achieve his goal of finding the man who killed his wife. Leonard’s memory is unreliable, so what makes up his identity… isn’t it our memories that make us who we are? This idea is also examined in Blade Runner. When Rachel discovers that she is a replicant and her memories are entirely false, her world is shattered. She has no clue who she really is. Leonard is able to remember the events leading up to his injury, so that is all he has. He knows who he was, but doesn’t really know who he is.