Kudos to Kaufman, Gondry, Carrey and Winslet

Rating: 8/10 (10 October 2004)

How refreshing to watch a film which doesn't assume its audience is braindead. Outstanding script (although I'm onto your formula Kaufman!), magical directing - not just great performances, but wrapped up with brilliant special effects around time/memories/changing scenes.
Quick time-out: if you're not familiar with Michel Gondry, you're in for a treat. He's the visual genius behind music videos like Bjork's Hyperballad & Joga, Chemical Brothers' Star Guitar and Let Forever Be, White Stripes' Fell In Love With A Girl, and many many more. You can see them on a 'Directors' DVD, which I highly recommend - and where you can see all the techniques (and more) which are used in Eternal Sunshine.. It's best described as 'stage magic'; although most of it is post-production, a lot of things are traditional tricks with lighting/scenery/camera shots/stop-motion, and no obvious 'Attack of the Clones' glossy CGI nonsense (although that's fun too). Michel Gondry: write that name down!
Jim Carrey & Kate Winslet are both brilliant in these straight dramatic roles, with good support from Frodo, Kirsten Dunst and others. I'm sure there's an explanation somewhere of why comedians are so good at drama (something to do with huge demands on stage material, internal pathos etc.), and Carrey doesn't disappoint.
You finish the film with enormous affection for the characters, and find out why, in love (and life), the bad is as important as the good. Which we should all know anyway, but it's nice to be reminded in such an imaginative way. And there's nothing wrong with nice. Honestly.