Why I Love Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Honestly, I am sick of talking about myself because that is not what I am only about. I have stopped talking about my passions in a passionate way. I have stopped talking about my ideas. NaNoWriMo, our writing escapades, the material I am currently reading, the movies I have been watching have all told me that I should finally shift my attention. My next posts will feature the beautiful and the ugly, the good and the wicked. But before I reach those depths, allow me to lighten the load. I will be talking about one of my favorite films, a film I have watched dozens of times but haven't tired of: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Gondry, 2004).

This is not supposed to be a film review. It's more of a eulogy and perhaps I might splurge it in biases.

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Most people would find films as purely didactic or cathartic. Some would dismiss sexuality or vulgarity in films because it clashes with their moral beliefs. Others would dismiss the "boring" films because they expect a kind of emotional provocation. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind surely has a "message" and the very premise of the film is emotionally gripping but those are not the only reasons why I love the film. I bow to Charlie Kaufman and Michel Gondry.

The beginning of anything produces lasting marks. The impression the very first scene gives me is of elegance.  It begins with a zoomed-in focus of Joel Barish (Jim Carrey) waking "on the wrong side of the bed". Playful background music plays. Then, the camera angle follows the angle of the Joel's bed. Then, Joel kicks the blanket. The hue is even in cold blue. Jim Carrey's voice over is a solemn stream-of-consciousness. (Note, however, that the voice over scenes are very sparse.) The voice over is purposeful. It gives us a perspective of our hero's consciousness. This comes in handy as it hints Joel's clueless-ness--a clue of the memory erasure. When Clementine Kruczynski  appears, we are forced to seek a different perspective. Joel is no longer the focus here; the chemistry of the couple at "first sight" is limelighted. We are given the impression that the two have a sense of familiarity.

Eventually, more characters are introduced and several back stories are revealed. The dysfunctional couple Carrie and Rob who fight in every scene they appear in poses a case study for fluctuating relationships. Another notable couple is Dr. Mierzwiak and Mary who both give us another case study of romantic affairs and their ramifications. All these back stories show that each character has deeper roots and that this movie simply captures snippets of grander chronologies, making the film more human. These characters are not simple or static, their behavior in the present-time of the film are grounded on their pasts. Instead of being used as instruments to expound on Clementine and Joel's narrative, they enrich the plot of the film and gives us the impression of people, relationships and lives.

Although the film is presented as a story of people erasing memories in order to stop suffering and move on with their lives, it speaks a lot about being human. Every single detail in the film is aesthetically utilized to express its message. Clementine's potatoes expounds on her jumpy personality. Mary's using of quotations serves multi-utilities: a predication of her character (how she seeks to strike a conversation with Dr. Mierzwiak), further expressions of forgetfulness as freedom from suffering and the last piece of the puzzle for our poetic title. We seek emotional solace to continue our functionality but at the same time, emotions are the rudimentary pieces of being human. This multi-layered film beautifully packages the messages, but not perfectly, into something expressive on every single level.

 I am glad to have experienced this film. Every viewing of mine stimulates a different response. Sometimes I find myself contemplating on the details. Other times, I find the calmer scenes tear-jerking. But that is precisely what love does: it compels you to seek different perspectives and by those perspectives, appreciate and love the object even more--although object is such a detached word. If a movie were to be a carnal man in my life, it would be Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It is not only didactic or cathartic. It has an organic unity. It has the ability to capture moments' that matter and present it in such a beautiful manner--like Nabokov's writing (I keep rambling about it, I know).

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There's an emotional core to each of our memories, and when you eradicate that core it starts its degradation process. - Dr. Mierzwiak

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Movies like this remind me of why I take pains in downloading films and watching them no matter how boring or how lengthy. It's the processing of crushing the films and breathing them in that keeps me alive. (Excuse the drug reference.) The same goes for all other mediums of art. I am currently high on beauty.

My last film discussion, by the way, is David Lynch's Eraserhead. Read it here.