Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

‘Eternal Sunshine’ Illuminates Screens

Charlie Kaufman has finally gotten it right. Kaufman, the man who wrote the screenplays of Being John Malkovich and Adaptation, has once again written an incredible movie. In truth, it is probably his best film to date. Kaufman’s sense of writing involves interesting stream-of-consciousness voiceovers and many psychological character driven scenes. His characters are always lovingly created with a serious humor to them that makes them fun to watch. In the past, Being John Malkovich won appraise and was nominated for several Oscars as was Adaptation. However, the problem with Kaufman’s writing was that it was too intellectual for most audiences, including the Academy. The intelligence of his prior movies could easily keep the audience from enjoying it due to the constant change of pace and rhythm as seen in Adaptation, or the references and allusions in Being John Malkovich. His recent endeavor, known as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, reveals itself to be the perfect balance of intellect and entertainment. The Academy will have no cause to deny Kaufman’s current masterpiece.

Eternal Sunshine for the Spotless Mind acts as a reminder to everyone that ignorance is not blissfulness. Since the movie is about a couple of lovers who want to forget each other but can not, it is much more watchable for an audience. Although the first 20-30 minutes or so are hard to follow at first due to scenes that do not seem to intertwine, the movie quickly remedies itself. At the end, in denouement style, the beginning of the movie is explained and all is revealed by showing the beginning in context of the movie’s time frame. So do not worry that you will not understand at first, because it does get much better.

Besides the story being amazing, the acting is also remarkable. At first the cast list seems fairly hokey, as if the movie was another teen comedy of some sort. Yet, the movie takes itself quite seriously, in style and acting. Jim Carrey plays Joel Barrish, the young man who realizes that his long-standing girlfriend has taken a procedure to forget him and he decides he wants one too. Carrey plays the role as a nervous quiet man and rarely ever uses any of his style of comedy. Instead of playing to the comedy that is inherent in the movie, Carrey acts his character and remains Joel Barrish. It is a delightful breathe of fresh air for viewers and his best job in a movie. His co-star, Kate Winslet, is also spectacular. Her job of playing Clementine, the impulsive and daringly neurotic love interest is touching to the soul. Kate Winslet’s performance of the multi-color haired woman is perfect. Together, Winslet and Carrey seem so real and life-like in their interactions, that they are completely believable.

Other cast members include Mark Ruffalo, Kirsten Dunst, Elijah Wood, and Tom Wilkinson. In many movies, the main characters have to carry the story. Not true though for this one. Kirsten Dunst does a good job and does not come off as just another pretty actress of Hollywood. Tom Wilkinson, Mark Ruffalo, and Elijah Wood all score a touchdown. Despite the fact that Wood’s character as well as Wilkinson’s is almost flat, they are still wonderful to see. All in all, the movie is a soon to be classic and should be watched for this year’s Oscars. Lastly, for all those in love with Elijah Wood, he is sadly not given enough screen time to make it worth your while to ogle him. 4.5 out of 5

Wannabe