'Memento' remake is in the works

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 16 (UPI) -- AMBI Pictures says it plans to finance and produce a remake of Christopher Nolan's 2000 psychological thriller Memento.

The writer-director based his black-and-white and color hybrid film on "Memento Mori," a short story penned by his brother Jonathan Nolan.

Starring Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss and Joe Pantoliano, Memento is a cult-classic film that examined memory, perception and self-deception. It follows Leonard, who is hunting down the man who raped and murdered his wife, but who is hindered in his pursuit by the fact he suffers a rare form of memory loss.

No stars, director or release date have been announced for the new version of the tale.

"Memento has been consistently ranked as one of the best films of its decade. People who've seen Memento 10 times still feel they need to see it one more time. This is a quality we feel really supports and justifies a remake. The bar is set high thanks to the brilliance or Christopher Nolan, but we wouldn't want it any other way," Andrea Iervolino, co-head of AMBI, said in a statement. "Our acquisition of the [Exclusive Media Goup] library reinforced our commitment to build a strong global studio with a strong pipeline of commercial films that can play to a worldwide audience. Bringing a new Memento to audiences is an initial example of how we intend to execute this strategy."

"Memento is a masterpiece that leaves audiences guessing not just throughout the film, but long after as well, which is a testament to its daring approach," added AMBI co-head Monika Bacardi. "We intend to stay true to Christopher Nolan's vision and deliver a memorable movie that is every bit as edgy, iconic and award-worthy as the original. It's a big responsibility to deliver something that lives up to the mastery of the original, but we are extremely excited and motivated to bring this puzzle back to life and back into the minds of moviegoers."