Following on from the research I have done from watching the film Memento, it reminded me of a film I had watched a long time ago called 50 First Dates. So, for the purpose of this project and to remind me of the storyline again, I rewatched the film.
50 First Dates is a romantic comedy starring Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore and Rob Schneider, which is real life story of a vet called Henry, who falls for a woman with daily memory loss. She was involved in a car accident a year ago which gave her a head injury, permanently damaging her ability to form new long term memories, forgetting everything when she goes to bed and starts the next day as though it was the day of the accident. Her closest friends and family have resolved to let her believe it is the day of the accident, meaning they live the same day over and over again.
Scene from 50 First Dates (2004), Lucy finds out it's not the day of the accident thats she's been led to believe, but instead a year later.
This film is very similar to Memento, as both of the main characters in both films suffer from Anterograde Amnesia, meaning their long term memory is the same, but they can’t create any new memories.
In Memento, polaroids are used by Leonard to remember people, places and events, but in 50 First Dates, Lucy (the main character) watches a video made by Henry every morning to let her know about the accident. Her short term memory never comes back, but she learns to trust the new people who have entered her life (including Henry) since the accident.
Both of these are mementos in their own way to the characters, as they are objects kept as reminders of people or events.
Scene from 50 First Dates (2004), Lucy watches the video for the first time to know about the accident.
The film is based on the true story of Michelle Philpots, who suffered two head injuries, in 1985 and 1990. Like the movie, Philpots’s memory resets when she sleeps, so her husband has to remind her of their marriage, the accident and her progress every morning.
Like Memento, 50 First Dates uses flashbacks to make the audience aware of what happened to Lucy, but because she can't remember the accident, there is no flashbacks involved when she is trying to remember the past.
References:
TV Ropes, 50 First Dates, Available at: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/FiftyFirstDates (Accessed 28/1/22)
Heggeness, G (2021), Purewow, 15 Movies You Never Knew Were Based on True Stories, Available at: https://www.purewow.com/entertainment/movies-based-on-true-stories (Accessed 28/1/22
Comments