Memento Opening Sequence Analysis

The opening sequence of 'Memento' uses extreme close-ups of the objects that are seen during the sequence when the audience can see the objects involved in or are significant to the murder or can be used as evidence. The use of the extreme close-ups show detail to the objects which shows the audience that the objects are important and makes the audience start to ask questions such as, "What is important about these objects?" These objects create the grim atmosphere which tells the audience that this movie is part of the thriller genre. The use of the extreme close-ups makes the audience feel worried about what had happened when they see the shots of blood, bullets and other objects involved in the murder.

In the opening sequence of 'Memento', the main character is dressed quite formally in a suit. This contrasts with the murder that the character committed. The use of this costume makes the audience wonder whether the murderer did this as a job and whether he was highly trained to do what he did. The suit makes the character look menacing and makes the viewer feel uncomfortable at the fact that he is not dressed like a murderer. The audience ask themselves whether the character is an assassin and whether there was a reason for him to murder the other character.

Non-linear narration is used in the opening sequence of 'Memento' which means that the sequence of events in the opening sequence happened after the events in the story. This use of non-linear narration makes the audience ask questions such as "Why has this man been murdered?" and "What has led us to this point?" Continuity editing is also used throughout the opening sequence of 'Momento'. This use of continuity editing makes the sequence easier for the audience to watch and understand the message of the opening sequence.

The non-diegetic soundtrack builds up during the part of the opening sequence when the titles appear. At the beginning of the sequence the soundtrack is slow, low pitched with long violin cords. As the opening sequence continues, the soundtrack becomes higher pitched which adds to the shock the audience feels when they see the objects and the blood which are significant to the murder. Throughout the sequence, the audience feel sorrow and grief at the character who has just died even though we do not know who he is. The music makes it seem like the character was important and maybe even a close friend to his murderer. This gives the audience the feeling of the character being betrayed by the murderer.

The titles at the beginning of the opening sequence are a dark blue colour with a serif font. This colour and font is used to show the audience that the film is serious, therefore building the suspense for the audience as they wonder what will happen in the film. The blue is a cold colour which adds to the sorrow of the event that happens in the opening sequence. They fade in at a slow pace to show how calm the character that we first see is even though he had just killed someone which gives the audience the impression that he was trained to kill and it was his job. This makes the audience dislike him eventhough we do not know why he killed the other character.