Memento

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FADE IN:

1 INT. DERELICT HOUSE - DAY 1

A POLAROID PHOTOGRAPH, clasped between finger and thumb: a

crude, crime scene flash picture of a MAN'S BODY lying on a

decaying wooden floor, a BLOODY MESS where his head should

be.

The image in the photo starts to FADE as we SUPER TITLES. The

hand holding the photo suddenly FANS it in a rapid FLAPPING

motion, then holds it still. The image fades more, and again

the picture is FANNED.

As TITLES END the image fades to nothing. The hand holding

the photo FLAPS it again, then places it at the front of a

POLAROID CAMERA.

The camera SUCKS the blank picture up, then the FLASH BURSTS.

The Polaroid camera is lowered, revealing the sweaty, heavy-

breathing face of LEONARD (mid-30's). There are droplets of

blood across his face. Leonard stares, satisfied, at

something on the ground in front of him. There is WET BLOOD

on his BLUE SHIRT and BEIGE SUIT. His hand opens and catches

a HANDGUN which leaps up into his grasp.

Still staring, he crouches down and pulls a BODY off the

floor by the wet hair of its BLOODY HEAD. He slowly inserts

the barrel of the gun into the bloody mess where the mouth

should be.

Leonard FLINCHES. A DEAFENING ROAR as wet red leaps off his

face and suit and head, with a SPASM, reassembles itself

into the face of TEDDY (40's, moustache) and we-

CUT TO:

2 INT. MOTEL ROOM 21 - DAY ##BLACK AND WHITE SEQUENCE## 2

Close on Leonard's eyes. He rolls them to one side, then

turns his head.

LEONARD (V.O.)

So where are you?

Leonard lifts his head. He is lying on a queen-sized bed.

LEONARD (cont'd)

You're in some motel room.

CUT TO:

2.

3 EXT. DERELICT BUILDING - DAY 3

A late model Jaguar bumps across some railroad tracks and

approaches a large, clearly abandoned DERELICT BUILDING.

Leonard is driving. He wears a BEIGE SUIT and BLUE SHIRT (no

blood). Next to him is TEDDY. Leonard stops the car next to a

PICKUP TRUCK sitting Outside the derelict building. Leonard

kills the engine, staring at the pickup.

LEONARD:

Looks like somebody's home.

Teddy looks from Leonard to the pickup and back.

TEDDY:

That thing's been here for years.

Leonard gets out of the Jaguar and moves to the pickup. He

inspects it with a methodical, practiced eye. Teddy follows.

LEONARD:

I think you're wrong. These tracks aren't*

more than a few days old.

Leonard opens the door of the pickup and searches the

interior. On the dirty vinyl of the passenger seat he finds*

six BULLETS. Leonard picks two of them up and studies them.*

He drops them onto the dashboard then SHUTS the door.*

LEONARD (cont'd)

Let's take a look inside.

Leonard walks towards the house, patting his jacket pockets.

Teddy leans on the pickup, uneasy, watching Leonard.

4 INT. DERELICT BUILDING - DAY 4

Leonard stands in the dimly-lit, decaying former hallway. He

pulls a stack of POLAROID PHOTOGRAPHS out of his pocket and

leafs through them as Teddy starts walking towards him.

Leonard finds a photo showing Teddy with a sh*t-eating grin

standing in front of the pickup truck. On the broad white

strip beneath the photo is handwritten:

"TEDDY GAMMELL TEL. 555 0134"

Leonard flips the photo over. On the white strip on the back,

in the same small handwriting.

(CONTINUED)

MEMENTO Pink Revisions - 9/7/99

3.

4 CONTINUED:
4

"DON'T LISTEN TO HIS LIES"

"HE IS THE ONE"

"KILL HIM"

LEONARD (V.0.)*

I've finally found him. How long have I*

been looking?*

Leonard stuffs the Polaroids back into his pocket, reaches

around to the back of his waistband and draws a HANDGUN,

keeping it out of Teddy's line of sight. Teddy enters, wary.

TEDDY:

Find anything? Didn't think so, let's go,

yeah?

Leonard neither replies nor turns around. Teddy, worried,

affects a casual air, shrugging dismissively,

TEDDY (cont'd)

F*** this.

Teddy turns and heads for the door. Leonard LEAPS on him,

pistol-whipping him furiously as he shouts:

LEONARD:

YOU PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID! YOU BEG

FORGIVENESS, THEN YOU PAY!

Teddy is down. Leonard DRAGS him back, deeper into the dark

house. Leonard is in a frenzy. He dumps Teddy at the end of

the hall and stands over him. Teddy SPITS BLOOD.

TEDDY:

You don't have a clue, you freak.

Leonard crouches down and grabs Teddy by the lapels.

LEONARD:

Beg my forgiveness! Beg my wife's

forgiveness before I blow your brains

out!

TEDDY:

Leonard, you don't have a clue what's

going on. You don't even know my name.

LEONARD:

(triumphant smile)

Teddy!

(CONTINUED)

MEMENTO Pink Revisions - 9/7/99

3A.

4 CONTINUED:
(2) 4

TEDDY:

You read it off your f***ing photo. You

don't know me, you don't even know who

you are.

(CONTINUED)

MEMENTO Pink Revisions - 9/7/99

4.

4 CONTINUED:
(2)4

LEONARD:

I'm Leonard Shelby, I'm from San

Francisco and I'm -

TEDDY:

(bloody grin)

That's who you were, you don't know who

you are.

LEONARD:

Shut your mouth!

TEDDY:

Lemme take you down in the basement and

show you what you've become.

Teddy gestures towards the basement door, in pain, but

enjoying Leonard's growing anxiety.

TEDDY (cont'd)

(intimate)

C'mon, Lenny - we'll take a look down

there together. Then you'll know. You'll

know what you really are.

Leonard glances fearfully at the door, then looks at Teddy.

He THRUSTS the barrel of his gun into Teddy's mouth and WE

ARE AT THE SHOT FROM THE END OF THE OPENING SEQUENCE. Teddy

panics, shaking his head, trying to talk around the metal,

but GAGS just as Leonard pulls the trigger. A SHOT rings out

as we -

CUT TO:

5 INT. MOTEL ROOM 21 - DAY ##BLACK AND WHITE SEQUENCE## 5

Leonard lies on the queen-sized bed. He lifts his head.

LEONARD (V.O.)

So you're in some motel room...

He gets up, surveys the room as if for the first time. He

wears BOXERS and a PLAID WORK SHIRT.

LEONARD (cont'd)

... you don't know how long you've been

there, or how you got there...

There is a room key on the dresser. The plastic tag

identifies it as the key to ROOM 21. Leonard opens drawers in

the room.

(CONTINUED)

5.

5 CONTINUED:
5

LEONARD (cont'd)

Just some anonymous motel room. Won't

tell you anything. Nothing in the

drawers, but you look anyway.

He reaches for the bedside table drawer.

LEONARD (cont'd)

Nothing except the Gideon Bible.

He opens the drawer to find a Gideon Bible.

CUT TO:

6 INT. DISCOUNT INN OFFICE - DAY 6

E.C.U. of fingers rifling bills in a wallet. Leonard counts

out some money and hands it to the fat, sweaty middle-aged

man behind the counter. (BURT). Burt takes the money,

spotting something over Leonard's shoulder.

BURT:

That guy's here already.

Burt TAPS the POLAROID PHOTOGRAPH of Teddy which is sitting

on the counter. Leonard picks up the photo and turns to see

Teddy APPROACHING the glass door of the office. Leonard

watches carefully as Teddy shambles up to the office door. A

BELL CHIIIES as Teddy enters and breaks into his sh*t-eating

grin. Leonard slips the photo into his pocket.

TEDDY:

Lenny!

Leonard nods in apparent recognition, wary.

LEONARD:

It's Leonard... like I told you before.

Teddy pretends to think hard.

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