Absolute power corrupts absolutely

Rating: 10/10 (19 September 2010)

This film has both Jim Carrey and Kate Winsett playing roles that you are probably unaccustomed to seeing them in. Jim Carrey plays plain-vanilla introvert Joel and Winsett plays extroverted salesgirl Clementine who likes to express herself by dying her hair an odd combination of colors and dressing up potatoes like Barbie Dolls. At the time he meets Clementine, Joel is living with someone named Naomi that he mentions several times during the film in only positive terms as "very nice". Joel must be searching for something other than "very nice" since this doesn't prevent him from throwing over this woman that the audience never sees for the unpredictable unknown quantity, Clementine. However, eventually the relationship ends so badly for this mismatched couple that Clementine has all memory of their relationship erased from her mind by a company that has the technology to provide such a service.
When Joel discovers what she has done he is so hurt that he wants the same thing done to him so that he can erase the pain. The process takes an entire night, and during this process Joel relives all of the moments he and Clementine had together and realizes that Clementine brought enough happiness into his life that he doesn't want her erased from his mind after all. However, he is now unconscious and unable to communicate his wishes to those handling the procedure. Thus, he tells Clementine - inside his mind - what is going on and they attempt to hide from the "mind erasers" in places in his memories where he would have never taken her. Specifically, he takes her to particularly humiliating points in his childhood and adolescence. It seems telling that the pair have been together for two years yet Joel has apparently never told Clementine about any of these memories, apparently having shut her out of selective portions of his life. However, these evasion tactics are no match for the mind-erasing team of Lacuna Inc., and ultimately Clementine is cleansed from Joel's mind. Just before the last memory of her is erased, she tells Joel to meet her in a particular spot that was special to both of them. The next day he awakes, is drawn to this prearranged meeting place for reasons he doesn't understand, and she is there. Neither one of them knows who the other is, but the relationship is beginning to start all over again when a disgruntled Lacuna employee gives them their files, which include tapes of what both Joel and Clementine thought of one another at the the time each requested to have the other erased. They listen to each others tapes and are both shocked and embarrassed. These are not flattering revelations, to say the least. Will they decide to part before all of these awful things start happening all over again, or will they take a chance? Watch and find out.
The plot may be hard to follow as it bends back and forth through time, but it is worth it, and Jim Carrey gives the best performance he has given since "The Truman Show". The movie has a lot to say about how we are the product of our memories and our choices - both the bad and the good. It also illustrates how absolute power corrupts through the unconscionable actions of some of the employees of Lacuna Inc. who start out helping people and end up helping themselves. You'll find yourself catching something you missed before each time you watch it. I highly recommend this film.