MEMENTO- Spoilers and Questions... (1 Viewer)

[Rob Varto]

I finally got to watch the DVD this weekend and I was definitley intrigued by the plot. I just had a couple of questions: WARNING - SPOILERS in the QUESTIONS!!
1) Who was Leonard talking to on the phone during the black and white scenes?
2) Why would Teddy / John G. constantly help Leonard if he already had his "revenge" months before?
3) Was Leonard really Salkis (I think that's his name: the name of the guy tatood on his hand)? In other words, was Leonard really the guy who killed his wife by OD'ing her on her insulin or was that just what Teddy told him to screw with him?

 

[Sean Moon]

Might want to make a spoiler window as well dude...but in response to your questions.
1.Spoiler:Leonard was talking to Teddy on the phone, watch again very closely towards the end and youll see.
2.Spoiler:Teddy was trying to get Leonard to help him take out a drug dealer, that is who Leonard killed at the end(r beginning, whatever). When that happened Teddy told Leonard that he killed the kids already, but Leonard refused to believe it so he wrote down Teddy's tag number and began tracking him down, thinking he was the killer. Teddy was simply trying to get Leonard out of town for the rest of the film since Leonard already took out the drug dealer.
3.ahhh...the big question. This is the one that sparked a lot of arguments in theaters and on my home viewings.Spoiler:Who knows if Leonard really is Sammy Jamkis, who knows who really killed his wife, or how. It is all a mystery. No matter what answer you pick it is the right one, as both make sense in the context of the film. I think it is a personal decision as to what really happened.
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[Jussi Tarvainen]

I stronly disagree. Leonard believed Teddy but knew that since he was going to forget what he said in a few minutes, he could lie to himself that he was still on the lookout for the killer. He deliberately chose to give himself clues about Teddy being the killer. His last line in voice-over gives this away; it's something like "Will I lie to myself to be happy? Yes."

 

[David Illingworth II]

I don't know how to do the link thing (if someone wants to tell me, great!), but go to salon.com and search for Memento there. This will bring up an article written by film critic Andy Klein, and it is pretty much a definitive work that answers all the questions (as well as they can be answered) and explores many different possibilities. In fact, this is something that should be printed out and stuck in the case for easy reference! Definitely read it.

 

[Sean Moon]

Sorry for my oversight on the quote...it has been since May or so since I saw the whole movie through. My fault on forgetting that obvious line Leonard has at the end
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[Matthew_S]

Here's That Salon.com link:
http://www.salon.com/ent/movies/feat...sis/index.html

 

[DougB]

If he can't remember anything. How does he now he has a condition?

 

[rutger_s]

Spoiler:
He knows he has a condition because he can remember everything up to a certain point. Including the story about Sammy Jamkis, which could be him or it could not.

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[Stephen Teffner]

He can remember Sammy because he has a tattoo on his hand that tells him to remember,plus all that happened before the accident. And if he had the same condition as Sammy, then why didn't Sammy realize he had a condition too. He seemed pretty much of a vegetable to me. I know that there were flashes of both of them sitting in the "hospital" so that would indicate that they had the same condition. right?

 

[Richard Kim]

quote: 2) Why would Teddy / John G. constantly help Leonard if he already had his "revenge" months before?[/quote]
Spoiler:Teddy is a corrupt cop who has connections with drug dealers, and he has Leonard do his dirty work. Because of his condition and his thirst for revenge, he is useful to Teddy.("There are plenty of John G's in this world.") The reason Teddy has Leonard kill Jimmy Grantz is because of all the cash in Jimmy's car.
[Edited last by Richard Kim on September 24, 2001 at 10:34 AM]

 

[Rob_McK]

Serious spoiler about Leonard killing or not killing his wife:
Spoiler:In the extra materials in the DVD, there are a series of psychiatric reports. Reading carefully, you can learn that the 'incident' in which Leonard lost his memory happened in February, and his wife died in November of the same year. Therefore he is Sammy, and invented the story to protect his psyche.

 

[Richard Burzynski]

At the end of the movie he is driving down some street and has his eyes closed as he rememebers items that we see as flashes. I paused one, and it was him and his wife (not Ms. Moss) in bed and he has all the tattoos all over his chest.
He got the tattoos before he killed his wife???
Rich B.

 

[Ted Lee]

it was him and his wife (not Ms. Moss) in bed and he has all the tattoos all over his chest.

also, if i remember correctly, the "open" space on his chest had "i did it" or something similar. what's up with that?
i just don't get why teddy didn't just kill leonard when he (clearly) had the chance. i do think teddy was a bad cop though.
i think i understand how carrie-anne moss used leonard to get rid of dodd
i believe that leonard & sammy were the same person (per the flashback scene in the hospital).
i think i'll be watching this (again) this week. what a great flick!
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You step in the stream,
But the water has moved on.
This page is not here.

 

[Yohan Pamudji]

i believe that leonard & sammy were the same person (per the flashback scene in the hospital)

I think at least Leonard's version of Sammy Jankis is actually himself. Teddy was probably telling the truth when he said that the real Sammy Jankis didn't have a wife. In other words, Sammy Jankis existed but not the version that Leonard would always talk about.
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[Dmitry]

quote:
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i just don't get why teddy didn't just kill leonard when he (clearly) had the chance. i do think teddy was a bad cop though.
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My guess: he wanted to make Teddy pay for using him and his condition, but he didn't want to live with the guilt of killing Teddy. If he killed Teddy thinking that he was John G., he wouldn't feel guilty.

The question was why didn't Teddy kill Leonard, not why didn't Leonard kill Teddy?

My take would be that:
1. Teddy was not a cold-blooded killer, as evidenced by the facts that he got Leonard to do his dirty work for him and him insisting on letting Dodd go;
2. He thought he had Leonard under control and never perceived him as a threat to himself

 

[greg_t]

Spoiler below!!!!!
Near the end of the movie, there is a scene where Leonard is describing how Sammy "killed" his wife and he ends up in the pscyh hospital. In the scene, you see a doctor walk past sammy sitting in a chair in the psych ward. After the Dr. walks by, you see that it is Leonard sitting in the chair. It is very brief and hard to notice but it is there. Therefore, it was Leonard who "killed" his wife and ended up in a psych unit.

 

[Calvin Cullen]

I think a lot of people make hasty assumptions based on:
1. What Leonard remembers, and
2. What Teddy tells him.
It should be pretty obvious from the film that Lenny's memory is extremely unreliable and that Teddy is willing to lie whenever its to his advantage.
I haven't taken time to do this myself, but I think it would be possible to clear up any questions about the film by logically analyzing the FACTS presented in the movie (and possibly on the website).
Spoiler:
One of the questions I have is why, exactly, did Lenny hire the prostitute? I feel the answer may clear up any confusion over the true nature of his condition (physical vs. psychological). This could also lead to insight about the Sammy character.

 

[Mike_Ped]

LEONARD IS SAMMY!!
Watch the scenes in which Sammy is with his wife, if you watch closely (I can't remember the exact scene/time) Sammy is actually Leonard. Kinda like the hidden Tyler Durdan's in Fight Club. With that in mind I think the director is trying to convey that fact. Could be wrong...
Mike
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I will strike down upon thee with great vengence and furious anger, those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers...

 

[TheoGB]

THe official site (presumably on the DVD) is very cool and has lots of stuff about the background:
http://www.otnemem.com
Theo

 

[Ted Lee]

Therefore, it was Leonard who "killed" his wife and ended up in a psych unit.

this i agree with. i believe the website even details a story about how lenny escaped from the hospital.
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You step in the stream,
But the water has moved on.
This page is not here.