Nothing short of perfect...

Rating: 10/10 (21 August 2005)

Have you ever wondered what it feels like to forget everything? It seems like it would be weird, not remember what you know. Like a favorite movie that you bought and watched over and over again. What if all that was gone when you woke up? What if someone has you erased from their mind completely without you being aware? In Michel Gondry's Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Jim Carey plays Joel Barish, an average Joe trying to survive. When Joel finds out that his girlfriend Clementine (Kate Winslet) has had him and all the times they spent together erased completely from her mind by a doctor who specializes in the field, Joel gets very upset and has the exact same thing done to her. Dr. Howard Mierzwiak (Tom Wilkinson) and his three employees, Mary, Stan, and Patrick (Kirsten Dunst, Mark Ruffalo, and Elijah Wood) go to work on Joel's memories. Howard is the man in charge, Mary is the secretary, Stan is Howard's assistant, and Patrick is sort of Stan's assistant and gets himself into quite the pickle when he decides to date Clementine using Joel's memories as a guide to her. Now the process of erasing Clementine begins.
Once inside Joel's memories we discover how this whole mind erasing duel started. Joel went to see Clementine at work and she didn't recognize him whatsoever, but she certainly was familiar with the boy at the store, whom she kisses, and remains anonymous. The thing with memories is it is hard to see things from a different point of view. The mood is the same, the emotions are the same, and the situation is the same. When Joel realizes that he doesn't want to forget her, he tries to hide her in different memories. Anything from childhood to random embarrassing memories. Stan and Mary don't know what to do...except smoke pot and fool around in Joel's apartment. When they lose Joel in Joel's mind, meaning that Joel has hidden Clementine in a different memory and his subconscious is doing the hiding, they call Howard over to take a look. What follows is a cat and mouse game in Joel's head all the while realizes what a great person Clementine is and how he wishes he con't forget her.
Michel Gondry's vision is one that boggles the mind. This is one of the most original ideas made into a film in a long, long time. Along with the help of writer Charlie Kaufman (Adaptation, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind), this story of how love can exist between two people on opposite ends of the spectrum harmoniously. Carey is great as the subtle yet obnoxious Joel and gives the character a great boost of comedy. Winslet received an Oscar-nomination for Best Actress for her portrayal of Clementine, the exuberant, spunky woman of Joel's dreams. She makes him feel excited and adventurous and just plain good. Her performance is stellar.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is an instant classic. It's a league all on it's own. It has comedy, drama, romance, and a science fiction background. Gondry delivers the goods with this movie and I anticipate his future releases. Eternal Sunshine is a must own movie that any collector would be sad to miss out on. You can watch it 30 times and still find something new to appreciate every time. It will blow your mind...