Representation of Women in Memento

Christopher Nolan's representation of women in his films are generally mostly negative, and his 2002 first mainstream film, Memento has much evidence for the poorly representation of his female characters. In the revenge Thriller, Leonard is on a quest to avenge his wife's rape and murder, although, it might be evident it was he who mistakenly killed her with an insulin overdose - which is the fate of another woman's death in the film - unless the two women are the same.

Anneke Smelik states that, "Fetishising the woman deflects attention from female 'lack' and changes her from a dangerous figure into a reassuring object of flawless beauty", this can be linked to Natalie, a female antagonist in Memento. Natalie is presented as a femme fatal in the film from her first appearance in the film, but she is also presented sympathetically with her wearing of sunglasses to disguise a bruise and her enigmatic comments intended to conceal information and true emotions.