ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND (2004)Directed by Michel Gondry
Starring: Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Tom Wilkinson, Mark Ruffalo, Elijah Wood, Jane Adams, David Cross
Rated R for language, some drug and sexual content.
Availability: Available to rent from most streaming services and retailers
"How happy is the blameless vestal's lot!Charlie Kaufman is one of the most creative and original screenwriters of all time. In his first feature film, BEING JOHN MALKOVICH (1999), people discovered an anonymous door in their office building which turned out to be a portal into B-list actor John Malkovich's mind, an effect which lasted fifteen minutes before dumping them out in a ditch by the New Jersey Turnpike. For his 2002 film ADAPTATION, Kaufman had been commissioned to adapt the non-fiction novel The Orchid Thief. Instead, he wrote a screenplay about himself (played by Nicholas Cage) struggling to adapt The Orchid Thief, with one scene even taking place on the set of BEING JOHN MALKOVICH. Finally, Kaufman breaks through his writer's block, writing a script about himself trying to adapt The Orchid Thief before deciding to write a script about himself trying to adapt The Orchid Thief and so on. It sounds headache-inducing, but for an invested viewer, it's about as fun as cerebral cinema gets.
The world forgetting, by the world forgot.
Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind!
Each pray'r accepted, and each wish resign'd" -"Eloisa to Abelard" by Alexander Pope
The film which finally won him an Academy Award for Best Screenwriting was 2004's ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND. Like BEING JOHN MALKOVICH and ADAPTATION, it's an incredible mixing pot of genre elements infused with humor and genuine whimsy, and it's one of the most soothing screen romances out there.
Comedian Jim Carrey gives his best performance (not exactly saying a lot, but he really is good in this) as Joel Barish, an emotionally withdrawn and tightly-wound everyman who has a relationship with ball-busting "manic pixie girl" (despite decrying such a stereotype, she meets most of the qualifications) Clementine (Kate Winslet). The story is told non-linearly, so before the film concludes, it isn't always clear what's happening before and after, as the film weaves through a neatly crafted maze of relationship stages, perceptions of memory, the real and the surreal. Clementine's and Joel's relationship winds up on the rocks, and characteristically impulsive Clementine literally has her memory of their relationship removed from her memory. Realizing that Clementine no longer even recognizes him, Joel tracks down the source of her selective amnesia to Lacuna, Inc., a bustling little company in New York which offers to literally remove the memories of a person's badly-ended relationships. Busiest just around Valentine's Day, the company's founder Dr. Mierzwiak (Tom Wilkinson) takes pity on Joel and offers to squeeze him into his schedule as well, an offer that Joel accepts. After creating a mental map of the relationship in Joel's brain, the procedure is carried out by Stan Fink (Mark Ruffalo), and his assistants Patrick (Elijah Wood) and Mary (Kirsten Dunst) right inside Joel's own bedroom, after which they will leave and Joel's relationship with Clementine and the procedure will be completely unknown to him. Once he's asleep and the procedure is taking place, Joel sees the events of his relationship with Clementine in reverse and starts to have second thoughts, as bit by bit, both the good and the bad memories begin to fall apart and out of existence.
Through its complex labyrinth of memories, emotions and perceptions, ETERNAL SUNSHINE weaves a tapestry of romantic memory and personal evolution, love and passion, often with a great deal of lighthearted comedy and an abundance of visual inventiveness. It's in a vein similar to Woody Allen's ANNIE HALL, using fantasy, wish-fulfillment and cerebral ambitions to explore the paradoxical vast complexity and intimate simplicity of the romantic experience.
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