Why is ‘ Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’ a must watch?
I know much has been said and written about this part sci fi, part love story directed by Michel Gondry. The movie shows the love story of the lead characters in reverse, the messy side of the relationship first, then the happy side and finally, the beginning, or how they met. A statement I have often heard about this movie is that it conveys the message “ it is hard to forget your loved ones”. Yes, from a love story perspective it might be true. No matter how hard you try, sometimes it’s difficult to forget everything about a relationship. But the question here is, is ‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’ only about that? Or is there anything more?
When I watched the movie recently, I realized that the movie was not just about a couple trying to reconcile. But rather it is an ode to memories or rather the complexity of the human brain. There are times when we try real hard to recollect a memory, but just cannot. The ‘memory erasing’ procedure shown in the movie is a metaphor to this. It shows, step by step, how memories fade, of how faces are forgotten. The confusion, the frustration and occasional dizziness we feel when we try to recollect something.
While watching this movie, the audience feels the same emotions, and Michel Gondry has evoked them simply by using non linear narrative, i.e. non chronological way of story telling. The intercutting of scenes, between past and present also add on to the effect.
The movie starts off on a lighter tone, and gives one the impression that it is going to be another cliche love story. The train scene in the movie, which establishes the bond between lead characters, Joel and Clementine, reminded me of the train scene from Before Sunrise. The appearance of Elijah Wood’s character, after 17 minutes into the movie, is when the audience realises that there’s something more to the movie. This sudden change in the tone, which is usually a difficult feat to achieve, was incorporated flawlessly into the narrative.
Jim Carrey is yet another reason why I label this movie as a must watch. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a major relief from his usual loud and flamboyant characters. We get to see a more mature and nuanced side of Jim Carrey, the actor. And it was a treat to watch him in the role of Joel Barish, the introvert. With the rough, supposedly uncool look he has nailed it with his performance.
The chemistry between Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet is also something to look forward to in the movie. Kate Winslet, who’s known for serious roles, takes a detour here, by portraying an extrovert character. With the blue hair and bright clothing, she portrays the typical hippie girl perfectly.
Yet another thing I liked about this movie is its subtle commentary on science. The unethical practice of erasing someone’s memory is not glorified. Instead, the downside of using science to make things easier and how a simple procedure like this can have a huge impact on one’s life is shown.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind talks about many philosophical things, but the movie manages to portray it in a lighter way.
The movie is currently streaming on Netflix
