Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Review by Jason Gaston
This is one freaky movie... sort of a
cross between When Harry Met Sally, Being John Malkovich,
and Total Recall. It's Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless
Mind, a flick that I missed earlier this year but just
happened to see at the cheap theater the other day. In it, Jim Carrey
plays Joel, an everyday guy who learns that his ex-girlfriend
Clementine (Kate Winslet whose character comes off as a real
psychopath at first) has had all memory of him medically erased from
her brain. Hurt and a little vindictive, Joel decides to go in and
have the same procedure done to him but as he relives his memories of
Clementine, he begins to remember why he loved her so much and, soon,
he's scrambling to try and protect his memories from the procedure he
can't stop.
It's a little
tough to describe Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind as a
romantic comedy... because it's not sappy or insipid nor does it
possess any of the other irritating qualities you'd expect in a
romantic comedy. Granted, it's romantic and it's funny... but it's a
different kind of romance and a different kind of funny. Brilliant
screenwriter Charlie Kaufman captures those odd moments that pulls at
your heart other than the sappy crap that most other movies think is
romantic hits us with a humor that is cynical and black that you just
don't associate with romantic comedies. There's also a gamut of
emotions as well from happiness to sadness as the strangely tragic
affair plays out.
What this movie is, however, his human and deliciously mind-blowing.
This movie will confuse and confound you right before making you smile
at something cute, laugh at something funny, or cry at something that
is so real.
Eternal Sunshine is a trip, that is for sure. Much of the movie
takes place inside Joel's head while his memories are being wiped and,
if you take your eyes off the screen for just a second, you may get
lost as locations, people, and themes are constantly changing. As a
matter of fact, if you keep your eyes on the screen, you're liable to
still get confused.
But it's not just the story inside Joel's head that is important...
there's also a subplot that at first glace looks superficial and only
there for a cheap laugh, but as the story goes on you see that it's
not only essential, but also a cornerstone of the movie.
Both Kate Winslet and Jim Carrey turn in a couple of great
performances... I just wish the Academy would stop screwing around
with Carrey and just give him an Oscar. Both stars are sweet, goofy,
and a little crazy and even though they spend the movie trying to
forget each other, you'll be remembering them for a long time.
Ironically, for a movie about forgetting things, you'll be remembering
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind for a long time as well.
It's a sort-of romantic comedy that is actually about something and
goes for your heart rather than playing off phony sympathy. Eternal
Sunshine won't be for everyone... I noticed several confused
Neanderthals leaving the theater about halfway through the movie, but
I enjoyed it and would recommend this bad boy in a second. It's one of
the best of the year and, at the very least, the most thought
provoking.