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Amnesia

post #1 of 11
1/29/11 at 8:40am
Thread Starter 

In the last two days I've watched two movies, Resident Evil: Afterlife and Pandorum, that utilize amnesia to differing degrees of effectiveness as a plot device. This got me to thinking about how often this trope is used.

 

Amnesia can serve a few different functions. First of all it enables exposition quite well, as it explains why characters are asking so many questions and getting long winded, detailed answers. This can also render the character with amnesia as the Audience Identification Character, as we learn as they learn and therefore see through their eyes. At other times, however (such as RE: A) it is a cheap attempt at masking a shallow character with a provocative quirk.

 

With that in mind, what are the best usages of amnesia in movies? This of course will involve spoilers, so tread lightly. 

 

One of the best? I'm reminded of the Tom Berenger starring Shattered (1991). In the movie Berenger wakes up in a hospital having been in a car accident. His face is horribly scarred, but after extensive surgery he's back to his old self. Slowly he discovers that his wife may have been having an affair, and that her and her lover may have been the ones that caused the car accident. At the end of the movie, however, (SPOILERS AHOY!) he discovers the dead body of none other than...Tom Berenger! Turns out he had been the wife's lover all along. Pretty awesome twist. (SPOILERS ENDO!)

 

Worst? Claire in RE: A, whose amnesia serves no purpose, never seems to clear up, and screams "Ali Larter wanted a bigger part in the movie!"

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post #2 of 11
1/29/11 at 8:49am

Spider-man 3!  Where Harry Osborne gets an attack of EXPLOSIVE amnesia!  Then it goes away when it's time for the plot to move on, the negative effects of which are solved by the entrance of the butler!

 

For a few years, it felt like I was seeing a glut of stories specifically involving short-term memory loss.  I can't think of any examples, but I always figured that the success of Memento and Finding Nemo (both films using the device very well) caused that.

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post #3 of 11
1/29/11 at 8:58am

I got the feeling that Claire's "amnesia" in REA existed simply so that she'd work towards getting to Arcadia for the whole second act without remembering it was a trap. Then when they learn it's a trap, she could "remember" and have a rapid exposition dump

 

Of course it was pointless and bad writing though. It seems designed to patch over basic flaws in character motivations

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post #4 of 11
1/29/11 at 12:20pm

There may be better, but MEMENTO is the best use of any form of amnesia that I've seen.

 

The worst? Just about every time it's used on a TV series since the damn thing invaded people's homes.

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post #5 of 11
1/29/11 at 12:58pm
Thread Starter 

What bothers me the most about the conventional use of amnesia is the cause: head trauma. It bothers me that someone could sustain brain damage in a fictional narrative and only lose their name and backstory but not everyday things like walking and talking. It's more acceptable, in my opinion, when it stems from repression from traumatic experience.

 

For example, we're lead to believe at the beginning of The Bourne Identity his injury is what led to the memory loss, but it becomes apparent by the end of the film (and even more so in the sequels) that guilt and shame forced him to repress the memories. This is much more provocative than an adamantium bullet to the brain. 

 

For a more realistic take on the subject, Regarding Henry in which a bullet to the head reduces Harrison Ford to a child-like state for months, which he has to work his back from.

 

For an AWESOME take, head trauma followed by Force manipulated brainwashing with Revan in Knights of the Old Republic.

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post #6 of 11
1/29/11 at 2:41pm


 

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bartleby_Scriven View Post

 

For an AWESOME take, head trauma followed by Force manipulated brainwashing with Revan in Knights of the Old Republic.



Have to agree with that one. That was excellent. In fact, amnesia seems to be much more suited to video games than movies. For instance, Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy had the player rediscovering their psychic powers alongside their memories. XIII is another video game that uses the amnesia plot quite well.

 

One of my favourite amnesia movies is the 2003 Val Kilmer movie Blind Horizon. It's not the best movie ever made but it uses the amnesia trope to good effect as Kilmer's character pieces together just who he is and how he might be connected to a Presidential assassination plot.

 

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post #7 of 11
1/30/11 at 8:30am


Angel Heart.

 

"I KNOW WHO I AM!"

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post #8 of 11
1/30/11 at 8:41am

Dark City. The idea of if you tell someone he's something often enough, he'll believe it, is strong, and a hell of an experiment for aliens to conduct to divine what humanity really means.

 

Also, it's not the basis of the film, but the scene in Ghost In The Shell where Section 9 has to tell the trash truck driver his wife never existed is pretty hard.

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post #9 of 11
1/30/11 at 2:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Disciple_72 View Post


Angel Heart.

 

"I KNOW WHO I AM!"


Good call. I'd forgotten about that one!

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post #10 of 11
1/30/11 at 6:13pm


 

Quote:
Originally Posted by MrSaxon View Post


 

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bartleby_Scriven View Post

 

For an AWESOME take, head trauma followed by Force manipulated brainwashing with Revan in Knights of the Old Republic.



Have to agree with that one. That was excellent. In fact, amnesia seems to be much more suited to video games than movies. For instance, Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy had the player rediscovering their psychic powers alongside their memories. XIII is another video game that uses the amnesia plot quite well.


Oddly enough, I just finished the fantastic "Ghost Trick" for the DS today, where amnesia plays a big part, and yes, videogames sometimes make great use of amnesia as either a plot device or a game mechanic...hell, the second "Ace Attorney" game used amnesia just as a way to justify putting players through a tutorial, which was hilarious when i think about it.

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post #11 of 11
1/30/11 at 11:38pm

The Shield had a little Amnesia story that I didn't question at all due to the trauma a character went through(getting a concussion after getting whacked in the head with an iron, then jumping out his window due to driving with said concussion).

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