1,919
16
Evaluation Essay, 8 pages (2000 words)

Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind

Imagine undergoing a procedure that could erase a person from one’s mind completely. Some would say that it solves personal problems. Others would say that, in reality, it creates many more. This is the case for Joel Barish in the movie Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Joel is heartbroken to find out that his girlfriend, Clementine Kruczynski, went through the process of erasing him from her memory. He, then, decides to seek out the same procedure for himself. As Joel’s memories of Clementine disappear, he realizes that he is truly, deeply in love with her. Is it too late to undo his mistake?

This incredible, very strange movie was produced in 2004 by Michel Gondry. It is a remarkable experience which is only to be expected from the screenwriter Charlie Kaufman. This film bounces around crazily on its timeline but the director never abandons the audience. Jim Carrey and Kate WInslet are our leading stars in this film, playing Joel Barish and Clementine Kruczynski. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a beautiful romantic comedy mixed with a little fantasy and science fiction. It is full of real emotions and real characters that will be rooted for as they slowly but surely reserve a special place in hearts everywhere.

Eternal Sunshine is the type of movie that will only get better as the years go by as it is passionate and has a unique flare unlike others. The three criteria that makes this film a definite favorite of thousands is the casting, the performance of the actors and actresses, and the theme. The most important criteria for judging this film is the great casting. The cast was excellently picked. Actors in a movie must be believable and able to pull their roles off extremely well. If not, the audience will become bored and uninterested. Jim Carrey does perfectly.

In this film, he is absolutely brilliant and deserves extensive praise for this role. Kate Winslet has done consistently well in every film she has starred in. She is easily one of Hollywood’s best actresses. The supporting cast does superb as well. The second most important thing about this movie is the performance of the actors and actresses, in general. This must be Jim’s best performance to date. I feel as though it will open the eyes of Jim’s haters everywhere who mainly know him as Ace Ventura or a clingy, irritating cable guy.

Jim Carrey has made such a mark in the film field and his role in this film is only complimented by his interaction with Kate Winslet, who is his polar opposite. Their characters are extremely different. Joel and Clementine’s surface actions make them out to look as if they are not compatible with each other in any way, and that is what the filmmakers are trying to express. Elijah Wood, Mark Ruffalo, and Kirsten Dunst play the roles of the assistants to Tom Wilkinson. Tom Wilkinson plays Dr. Howard and he is the manager and head doctor at Lacuna, the memory erasing agency.

The third element that makes this production stand out is the multiple themes. One of the main themes is that people don’t realize what they have until it is gone. Joel and Clementine fight so often in their relationship and take each other for granted. Joel made the choice to erase Clementine, but during the process, he tried everything in his power to hold onto her. He made the choice to erase her while he was angry and jealous. Another strong theme is that some people are simply meant to be together like soul mates. Clementine and Joel fell in love when they first met in the beginning of the movie.

After they erased each other from their memories, they both went back to the same place they met and fell in love all over again, as total strangers. Even another theme is that to get to the good things, one must venture through the bad. Joel and Clementine’s relationship has rocky roads but when they get through the bullshit, they have the ability to conquer the world together. Previously stated, Jim Carrey has made an enormous mark in the film industry. This production is just another success for him. Carrey has extraordinary comic talents and in this film, they never remind us of that fact!

Kate Winslet is scary talented and is as beautiful as ever. She can play a role as an innocent, lovesick girl in Titanic to an exotic, hell raising woman in Eternal Sunshine. Kirsten Dunst is the receptionist at Lacuna. She is a playful, giddy school girl when it comes to her boss, Dr. Howard. She fell in love with him and he fell in love with her and cheated on his wife. Dr. Howard has to delete her memory continuously because he can’t keep cheating on his wife. It’s for the better. Oddly enough, even Lacuna, the memory erasing agency itself, has secrets.

Elijah Wood, in his first film away from Lord of the Rings, surprised me in Eternal Sunshine. He basically has that persona from Lord of the Rings stamped on his forehead. I never once thought he could take on such a different role in this film compared to a hobbit, but indeed he does, triumphantly. The performance of all the actors and actresses in this film absolutely exceeded my expectations. Jim plays Joel Barish in this film and he’s an awkward, lonely soul who would rather stay inside that to experience any human interaction outside.

It’s incredible how Carry can switch up the roles from being a goof in the movie Liar Liar to a meek, responsible guy in this movie. One winter day, Joel is waiting for the train to work and all of the sudden has an uncontrollable urge to jump on a train going in the opposite direction. There, on the train, he meets Clementine Kruczynski, a very eccentric woman. Her hair is colored a loud blue and it seems as though she doesn’t think before she speaks. Clementine is blunt and rather aggressive and that is what turns Joel on; her opposite nature.

After only a few minutes of speaking about life, they click in this natural way and share some amazing chemistry. Kate Winslet plays this role in such an extraordinary way. She is a breathtaking woman and seeing her perform so perfectly in such an odd role was great. Winslet almost overdoes Clementine’s role in such a kooky way in the beginning but we slowly begin to realize that this craziness is part of Clementine’s armor. She’s an odd woman, but a fragile, vulnerable one. Kirsten Dunst’s performance was entertaining as she plays a love-struck staff member.

She is involved with Mark Ruffalo’s character as when they go to a patient’s house to erase memories, they raid the house for alcohol. They then proceed to party, smoke weed, and have sex. Most importantly, she is involved with the head doctor, Dr. Howard. She continuously falls in love with him with no consideration for his wife and kids. He has to erase her mind and their memories very often, as she will never leave him alone. The many themes in this production make it so incredibly relatable to lovers everywhere. A main theme is that people simply don’t realize what they possess until it is gone.

Joel is miserable without Clementine and he decides to put himself through the same treatment in order to forget her. Joel is completely zonked out and wearing an electrode helmet but he is struggling to hold onto the happiness in all of the flashbacks. What Joel thought would tend to his sorrows is turning into a nightmare that he is frantically trying to escape. Another theme is that some people in this world are meant for each other. Even Clementine and Joel’s amnesia is no match for their fate to be together. Gondry finds the perfect balance and tone between all of the themes and conveys to us the serious madness of love.

A film that is similar to Eternal Sunshine in genre and content is Lost in Translation. It is the story of a fading movie star, Bob, who meets a bored, mistreated house wife, Charlotte, somewhere in Tokyo and they form a bond that is so unexpected. Just like Joel, Bob goes through his mediocre life with an uninteresting marriage. Just like Clementine, Charlotte is just trying to find her place in life or somewhere she truly belongs. They both have significant others, yet they continue to meet in Japan as traveling companions. Bob and Charlotte need to stop these trips… Or should they?

Clementine and Joel are in completely separate life paths and when they meet, they immediately fall in love. A relationship blossoms until they decide to delete each other from their memories in frustration until they cross and fall in love all over again, as separate strangers. Should they keep this cycle ongoing, or should they not? I cannot judge whether which movie was better than the other because I believe both are fabulous productions. “ It’s the kind of film that could mean more to people after they’ve left the theater and thought about it awhile. Like Joel, they can summon up the good parts (and forget the bad).” (Rainer)

I strongly agree with what top critic, Peter Rainer, has stated. This movie is most definitely the kind that really makes people think about their own feelings towards everyone else in their lives. “ Carrey tones down his usual herky-jerky persona much more successfully here than in The Truman Show or that flabby Oscar bid The Majestic (which was also about the hazards of memory); the role clearly touches something in him – a sense of personal loss, perhaps. ” (Rainer) I couldn’t agree more with Rainer here as Jim Carrey normally plays very funny, playful characters.

However, in Eternal Sunshine, he surprises us and flips flops into a relatable, vulnerable man. “ About a race against the erasers by Joel Barish, a guy who wanted to forget his girlfriend, Clementine Kruczynski (Kate Winslet), it has the feel of a science fiction short story stretched too far in order to expand it into a full length motion picture” (Rhodes). I strongly disagree with this statement in a review from Steve Rhodes. I believe Eternal Sunshine is a bit confusing at some points but the producer never abandons the audience.

Gondry has a way of bringing the audience back every time the movie throws a flashback curve ball. I believe this film is easily understood by people who have been through heartbreak which is the majority of the population. In our current day and age, divorce is becoming uncomfortably common. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of the greatest films produced in 2004. The three main things that make this production so lovely is the cast, the performance of the actors and the actresses, and the many truthful themes. It challenges the mind and breaks hearts at the same time.

The timeline is insane as it throws the audience into different dimensions but that’s ok, as there is logic to every single twist and turn. Joel Barish waits for his train to descend to work one day and has this itchy need to jump on a train going in a different direction. As he squeezes into his seat, he spots her. This sexy, blue-haired woman named Clementine, who is an agitated motor mouth, chats with him and its destiny. They fall in love and form a relationship that brings them down roads they’ve never journeyed down. Heartbreak happens as it always does and there is a bitter end to their relationship.

Joel finds that Clementine has had every memory of him erased from her mind and is so hurt. He decides he wants to opt for the same procedure from the mad scientist Dr. Howard. Joel prepares for the operation at his home as the audience watches his memories of Clem unfold and fall away. While Joel’s unconscious mind experiences and interacts with this, he realizes how much he needs Clementine in his life and how big of a mistake he has made. If it were possible to vanish all the thoughts and memories of a certain someone from a person’s mind, would one want to take that chance and follow through?

Thank's for Your Vote!
Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. Page 1
Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. Page 2
Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. Page 3
Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. Page 4
Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. Page 5
Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. Page 6
Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. Page 7
Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. Page 8

This work, titled "Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind" was written and willingly shared by a fellow student. This sample can be utilized as a research and reference resource to aid in the writing of your own work. Any use of the work that does not include an appropriate citation is banned.

If you are the owner of this work and don’t want it to be published on AssignBuster, request its removal.

Request Removal
Cite this Evaluation Essay

References

AssignBuster. (2022) 'Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind'. 1 January.

Reference

AssignBuster. (2022, January 1). Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. Retrieved from https://assignbuster.com/film-evaluation-eternal-sunshine-of-the-spotless-mind/

References

AssignBuster. 2022. "Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind." January 1, 2022. https://assignbuster.com/film-evaluation-eternal-sunshine-of-the-spotless-mind/.

1. AssignBuster. "Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind." January 1, 2022. https://assignbuster.com/film-evaluation-eternal-sunshine-of-the-spotless-mind/.


Bibliography


AssignBuster. "Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind." January 1, 2022. https://assignbuster.com/film-evaluation-eternal-sunshine-of-the-spotless-mind/.

Work Cited

"Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind." AssignBuster, 1 Jan. 2022, assignbuster.com/film-evaluation-eternal-sunshine-of-the-spotless-mind/.

Get in Touch

Please, let us know if you have any ideas on improving Film evaluation – eternal sunshine of the spotless mind, or our service. We will be happy to hear what you think: [email protected]