Year: 2004
Director: Spike Jonze
Country: US
Language: English
Charlie Kaufman was the most gifted screenplay writer of the 2000's. Even in the 90's he was making superb scripts like 1999's Being John Malkovich for director Spike Jonze. He was clearly fascinated by the process of thought and memory, many of his characters were curiously complicated because of this. Sometimes heavy with symbolism, Kaufman knew how to dissect modern life and strip it to the bare. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind delivers the normally wacky Jim Carrey in his most serious role yet.
When their relationship turns sour, Joel (Jim Carrey) and Clementine (Kate Winslet) undergo a procedure to have each other erased from their memories. However, it is only through the process of loss that they discover what they had to begin with.
The film begins like a melancholic romantic comedy; extremely depressed Joel meets quirky Clementine and they fall in love. It has Sci-Fi elements but nothing in the picture suggests that they live in the future, not even the near distant future. The film is non-linear which is confusing at first, but as Eternal Sunshine progresses the chronology becomes a little more clear. Much of what happens is in Joel's memory, and as we know from psychology, the memory is very fickle.
While the main plot is ingenious, the subplot involving Mary (Kirsten Dunst), Dr. Mierzwiak (Tom Wilkinson) and Patrick(Elijah Wood) is mediocre at best. We don't care at all for these characters, rather they are an inconvenience to the audience and only serve as some odd form of comedy which distracts from the main problem. Kaufman shows wisdom in the way he illuminates memory and love. Too often we focus on pain, which distracts us from the amazing experiences we have had. If Joel was not so focused on revenge and all the bad in his life perhaps he would have stayed a happy man.
In conclusion, such a unique concept like this would have gone to waste with any other director, screenwriter and cast but this near perfect ensemble manages to make a memorable picture. It is a feast for the mind, analyzing how memories are assembled and disasembled while simultaneously dissecting how the heart and mind work together. What would you choose if you could completely erase the memory of your ex? Praise it! 4/5
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