"Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" is a remarkably beautiful, yet equally bizarre exploration of love

Rating: 10/10 (10 August 2009)

"How happy is the blameless vestal's lot! The world forgetting, by the world forgot. Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind! Each pray'r accepted, and each wish resign'd." - Alexander Pope
Michel Gondry's Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a brilliantly heartfelt and complicated tale that delves, rather flawlessly, into the labyrinth of human emotions and the pain often involved in trying to make a relationship work. Charlie Kaufman, the main writer behind Eternal Sunshine, often allows his ingenuity and talent to infuse the film with perfectly subtle touches of emotion and humanity. His understanding of relationships and the variety of complexities involved is often wondrous to behold.
One day, Joel Barrish (Jim Carrey), after falling in love with Clementine (Kate Winslet), finds out that she, due to her recent unhappiness with the relationship, had Joel erased from her memory through a procedure carried out by the Lacuna company. Eventually, Joel, himself, wants the same operation, in order that he can forget Clementine as well. Through this procedure, the film delves into Joel's thoughts and past, chaotically revealing his memories as he eventually attempts to outrun the erasing of them, after realizing how much the lovely moments with Clementine rather largely outweighed the upsetting ones.
The cast, from Kirsten Dunst to Jim Carrey, is superb in the portrayal of their characters. In one of his more dynamic roles, Jim Carrey presents Joel Barrish as a complex and three-dimensional character, and seems wholly convincing and sympathetic throughout. Clementine is played absolutely brilliantly by Kate Winslet. Her on-screen chemistry with Carrey is thoroughly entrancing and poignant. The entirety of the supporting cast deliver a subliminally nuanced and engrossing blend of emotions as well.
The apparent surrealism deftly blends with the realism in a way that allows the viewer a more complete view of the tale. This subtle relationship between the director, the writer, and the screen is enhanced and brought to life with the assistance of the exceptional cinematography and the seamless transitions and edits.
The feelings and expressions throughout the film cast a picture so hauntingly realistic, it's difficult not to see some aspect of a past relationship unfolding on-screen. The engaging and creative ways Gondry and Kaufman explore Joel's memories and dreams is humorous, chaotic, touching, and heartbreaking all at once.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless mind is a consistently moving and thought-provoking film that remains my favorite film of all time. Simply perfect.