cassandra
April 20th, 2001, 06:00 AM
Ok, so it's not sf or fantasy, but its an amazing example of extremely good writing in any genre.
Try to go see the movie Memento. It's excellent. The story is told backwards, by a man who has lost the ability to create new memories. He's trying to solve a murder mystery, but he can't remember what he did 5 minutes prior.
I was sitting in the theatre doubting that this movie needed to be told backwards, but by the time you get to the end (beginning), it's clear there's no other way you could possibly tell the story.
Because it's sort of an anti-story. The author (Christopher Nolan) knows the rules: stories are about people growing, changing, understanding. Knowing that, Nolan set about breaking all the rules. The main character in Momento can't create new memories. He is incapable of change. He has no concept of time. The story also relies heavily on the myopia of first person. We only know what he knows. And that's not very much, since he forgets anything he doesn't write down.
I was very impressed. It's one of the most original movies I've seen since Pulp Fiction redefined plot for us. Highly recommended.
[This message has been edited by cassandra (edited April 20, 2001).]
Try to go see the movie Memento. It's excellent. The story is told backwards, by a man who has lost the ability to create new memories. He's trying to solve a murder mystery, but he can't remember what he did 5 minutes prior.
I was sitting in the theatre doubting that this movie needed to be told backwards, but by the time you get to the end (beginning), it's clear there's no other way you could possibly tell the story.
Because it's sort of an anti-story. The author (Christopher Nolan) knows the rules: stories are about people growing, changing, understanding. Knowing that, Nolan set about breaking all the rules. The main character in Momento can't create new memories. He is incapable of change. He has no concept of time. The story also relies heavily on the myopia of first person. We only know what he knows. And that's not very much, since he forgets anything he doesn't write down.
I was very impressed. It's one of the most original movies I've seen since Pulp Fiction redefined plot for us. Highly recommended.
[This message has been edited by cassandra (edited April 20, 2001).]