Houston does Christopher Nolan [NSFW]

[Villain]

There is a re-edited version of Memento out there that allows you to watch the movie in a linear timeline. I haven't gotten around to it (mostly because I figured out how it worked and then watched the movie again.

[calgaryballer]

There is a re-edited version of Memento out there that allows you to watch the movie in a linear timeline. I haven't gotten around to it (mostly because I figured out how it worked and then watched the movie again.

Believe it is simply an easter egg on most newer copies of the DVD

[NAHSTE]

Believe it is simply an easter egg on most newer copies of the DVD

Yeah this is it. I have that edition and it allows you to select the "linear" story.

I haven't tried it, but it'd be interesting to see if it could hold up. The non-linear structure is a huge part of what makes that movie so great so I'm worried the story would just lack juice if it had a traditional beginning, middle and end.

[Houston]

The linear version is on youtube for anyone interested.

 

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blmWKa1vqAk"]Memento Linear Part 1.mp4 - YouTube[/ame]

Might have to watch it one day to see how it is.

[Houston]

Definitively doesn't feel like a Nolan movie. Not only was it a remake, but it's the only movie of his not written by him. It's pretty straight forward and conventional...for the most part, but there is one thing that really sticks out.
Due to their location in Alaska, it's daytime 24/7..throughout the entire film. Even while watching movies, we use daylight and night time as a way to measure the time that's passing. Insomnia takes that resource away from us. Also there appears to be no huge leaps in time. In any regular movie, scene A can be taking place at 7PM, then when it ends...scene B can blatantly start at 10AM the next morning. Insomnia does this very discreetly, and adding to the effect is the fact that the main character never sleeps or gets rest. So by the end of the film, maybe a week has passed but it manages to just feel like one long day. This creates a weird time warp between us and the main character, he's losing his mind due to the fact that he hasn't slept in days, yet to us it feels like night time has never even come yet. It's kind of a weird feeling when you step back and think about it after the movie is done.
I hope that paragraph makes sense.


In terms of comparisons to other movies. I really got a "Strangers on a Train" vibe from this. It's written all over the way the good and bad guy interact with each other.
Insomnia started off really fast and good, but I feel like the end was kinda dragged out too long. Was beginning to lose interest in what happened. I think the constant daylight adds a unique feel to it, but the story isn't anything special.


Nolan ranking:
1. Memento
2. Insomnia
3. Following

[Houston]

Ah, the classic tale of an apprentice who takes on the master


First Nolan movie I've seen when alot of time was spent and info was giving on a characters background. The beginning was definitely my favorite part of it. I'm giving most of the credit for this to the directing/writing, and little to the story. For example I'll compare it to the first X-men movie. I thought the basic story from the comic held it up, and was a lot better then any personal touches from the writing or directing of it.
Also you have to factor in that audiences were desensitized to Batman. While on the flip side you had Spiderman, Daredevil, The Hulk and whoever else flying on the big screen for the first time. Batman's story was hardly new to anyone, you have to bring some really good directing for it to feel intriguing again.

This is how you reboot a franchise, and obviously the rest of hollywood took notes. But there'll be no overtaking of the master in this sense

I like the casting except for Katie Holmes, hate her. Wikipedia tells me that Rachel McAdams was in the running for the role. Doesn't seem like she'd fit for this type of movie but I'd much rather have her.

Nolan ranking:
1. Memento
2. Batman Begins
3. Insomnia
4. Following

[Houston]

I really don't have much to say about this alone, so I'll just compare it to Memento.

While Memento seemed to be changing every 5 seconds. In The Prestige you have time to actually relax and watch the scenes and characters, and the plot twist..while big, are few. Surprisingly though, I think this ended up hurting it. For as long as the movie is, there really is no character development outside of the plot twist, which as I mentioned are few. Too often the movie dragged along. There were times when I really couldn't care less about the characters, I just wanted to get to the next twist or reveal. With the exception of Cutter(Michael Caine), nobody really drew me into the story.
I did enjoy it though, has some nice tricks and gimmicks to keep you occupied. On top of the great cast/acting to partially make up for characters lack of substance.


Nolan ranking:
1. Memento
2. Batman Begins
3. The Prestige
4. Insomnia
5. Following