Creative, Original, Enjoyable, Insightful, Heartfelt

Rating: 10/10 (25 March 2004)

Rule number one: This is NOT a "Jim Carey comedy." Jim Carey does a marvelous job, but it is not one of his typical over-the-top roles. This movie is a fascinating and touching look into what actually, specifically makes up the content of thought and memory. When you remember something, what actually goes through your mind? What part of you "plays back" the memory, and what part of you observes this memory being played back? What if you could consciously effect all of this? And- forgive me for asking so many questions- would you want to be able to choose which memories to keep, and which ones to lose? How would you choose? In this story, someone makes this choice and then regrets it. What I found so touching was how this movie shows the power of love over all the usual things that we consider to be powerful. The movie asked me what can I reasonably expect from a committed relationship, and what measure of happiness and contentment will satisfy me. Of course, these ideas aren't original to "Eternal," but they are handled well. And for those of you who have ever referred to the stuff going on in your head to be your "tapes," their's an incredibly good and very literal part about the "tapes" that we play for ourselves. I very highly recommend this movie for anyone who cares (one way or the other) about the nature of the relationships we choose.