A Love Story from a Different Perspective

Rating: 8/10 (3 November 2013)

'Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind' is a love story that differs from the norm. I really like the unique approach of guy falls in love with girl, they fight, breakup, but then the opportunity arises to erase the memory of each other from their mind. The thought of this actually being feasible in real life makes you question your understanding of what is ethical and morally right. I mean imagine some of the consequences of a procedure such as this.
Joel and Clementine are the polar opposites of one another; she's impulsive, spontaneous and unstable, whilst he's reserved, quiet, unforthcoming and circumspect. This is what makes their relationship distinctive because she challenges him and makes him do things he wouldn't usually do - she brings him out of his shell.
It's not until after erasing most of the memories Joel has of her that he really begins to love and appreciate her as a person, despite her obvious insecurities. I enjoyed seeing this and is what I took away from this movie. Their relationship is not perfect, in fact far from it, but it's through those difficult times that you realize how much you need each other. The idea of erasing memories from the mind is not one I personally condone. The ongoing effects can be harmful to the individual, for example Clementine's spontaneous behaviour with Patrick and Mary's perpetuated attraction to Dr.Mierzwiak. These are the results of recollecting subtle perceptions of the person they erased, which demonstrates that no matter how much you try to forget someone from your mind, there'll always be some fundamental part that prolongs.
This movie embodies some really important ideas that can be explored meticulously after the film ends which I really appreciate. It's an engaging, romantic love story that entails a bit of thinking, but a love story none the less.