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.
Oh, how Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind is embedded in our memories forever!
It’s the kind of film that crushes the soul but still brings sunshine to the heart. Watching it without exhausting an entire tear reserve is probably not even possible, especially when Jim Carrey cries like that in the opening scene.
There’s no perfect love, this cult classic tells us in an unforgettable way.
Charlie Kaufman, a world-class storyteller, brings to us a script that shook the Hollywood industry, and left audiences lost in its fictional stupor. It has been hailed as one of the greatest films of the 21st century by critics around the world.
But more notably, this piece of imaginative art left us drained as we went on an exhaustive journey, so similar to our own experiences, with the lead characters.
We’ve all been crazed lovers, pushing and pulling, till the rope finally snapped. Moving on seems to be the toughest reality. Not everyone is replaceable. So you can’t, oh no, you won’t let go.
The bittersweet pain of love, guys. Who hasn’t secretly craved or lived it? Who doesn’t want to feel something real or belong to another? It kills you, yeah. It might just break you eternally.
But you hang on.
This is exactly what we see, thanks to two extraordinary performances by Carrey and Kate Winslet. That’s why actors do what they do. They take you into their made-up worlds and make you believe.
When we first meet Joel and Clementine (that meet-cute at the railway station), we have no idea what an emotional roller coaster we’re in for. Each scene slowly and steadily takes us deeper into their story, till later we realise that,
“Hey! Most of this movie is happening in Joel’s mind!”
And we loved his thoughts. This masterpiece is a tribute to the power of memories. It’s a reminder of how we can stay attached to something or someone if we really want to, no matter the odds. That’s why certain people are never really forgotten. The rest is destiny.
The saying, ‘opposites attract’ also comes out beautifully here, with no pretence whatsoever.
Clementine is troubled, full of life, and completely bonkers. She runs from problems by changing her hair colour. An anxious riot, she’s the troubled yet self-assured woman men fall for. Through her lover’s fading memories, we see her in all her shades, from her best to her worst.
Nonetheless, she brings Joel to life. Before her, he was barely scraping through the monotony of existence, one slow day at a time. He’s awkward and shy, barely speaking his thoughts out loud. But she pulls him out of his shell and shows him wonderful stuff.
Not before long, their 2-year relationship is spirally downwards. They both start falling. Neither can control it, till Clementine decides to nip it in the bud and erase every memory of him. Out of hurt and ego, Joel does the same.
They show us such real, messed up love. No cheesy, sugarcoated lies.
They cuddle in bed and bicker on the streets. They argue, then kiss and make up. They laze on the couch and party drunk. They laugh and cry, shout and scream. Together, they’re the perfect clash (or balance?) of goofy and serious, impulsive and logical, loud and quiet.
Then suddenly, they become strangers.
The mind-fuck quotient is pretty high in Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind. We get desperate and root for Joel to keep chasing flickers of Clementine till the final stop. We can’t bear the tragedy. Cheers to the director’s profound vision and ingenious time-play.
He had us sobbing uncontrollably over a science saga.
We can’t even take sides. Clementine is a free-spirited girl who hates being tied down. You can tell she has major commitment issues. But she’s still Joel’s weakness. He’s miserable without her.
Which is why even after they find out the truth about getting the procedures done, their non-existent past dilemmas seem to vanish as they hesitatingly start dating again.
They’re like kids once more, cracking up over their own insecurities and shortcomings.
Now, who recalls mourning an ex-lover or getting back with one?
I feel you, my friend.
This film was pure poetry, and a personal experience for every romantic out there.
The tension was high as we jumped from one flashback to the next. It sucked us into the gloomy atmosphere of dying love. But it also gave us hope to keep going and never give up. Love will always be a struggle.
Thankfully, some feelings are beyond the mind; they’re in the heart.
And towards the end, there’s a new beginning, just like there’s light after every long night.