tis better to have loved and lost than loved and erased

Rating: 9/10 (10 April 2004)

Charlie Kaufmann is a very clever and creative screen writer. He's comfortable with the uncomfortable moments we can all relate to!
I enjoyed this film immensely, which was actually hard for me to do after my wife bailed on account of the "shaky camera syndrome." It doesn't bother me, but for those of you like her I guess wait for the DVD. Sigh...they can get an "all-star" cast and can't afford a steadicam??
Good news re that all-star cast...Winslow gets to be the wacky one, and her idiosyncracies feel real. Confused and concupiscent! Meanwhile, Carrey is hopped down on medication and delivers a poignant performance. His inner fire chief is thankfully watered down in nearly all scenes (but I'll wager that the Mystery Science 2000 treatment of the drive-In film scene was ad libbed...yawn).
Tom Wilkinson should get more love here, I thought he was outstanding.
This film is wistful but never maudlin. If you've read other reviews, yes the plot is scrambled...but definitely not lobotomized. Seemingly confusing, but underneath it has crystalline clarity. What a construction, and a de-construction at the same time. Chocolate on my peanut butter....
All that and Lata Mangeshkar and a Kiss "Love Gun" t-shirt too! Usually I'll feel a more cathartic empathy with characters, but this film really triggered my own awkward ganglia and tender dendrites.
Thanks very much to Kaufmann and kritters for this
9/10