The movie really is ingenious; the plot is unique in that almost all of the story is being told from inside Joel's mind, from the point of view of Joel's memory. for most of the movie, what we see is not "reality," but the memories of Joel Barish.
There is a clinic, Lacuna, Inc., where people go to get an unusual procedure done. This "procedure" will erase select memories from one's brain.
Joel Barish (Jim Carrey) and his girlfriend, Clementine Kruczynski (Kate Winslet) have just broken up. Clementine, however, wants to forget Joel completely. She wants him gone forever. And so, Clementine undergoes this "operation" that erases Joel from here memory forever.
Joel, who can't stop thinking about her, learns of what she has done, and immediatly seeks out the clinic to undergo the procedure himself. However, things backfire on Joel. Once the procedure has started, it becomes apparent that Joel does not want to forget Clementine. It then becomes a race against time to save what few memories of Clementine he has left. If he can.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was written by Charlie Kaufman, one known for writting weird an unsual screenplays like the Oscar nominated Being John Malkovich and Adaptation.
Kaufman has most of the movie played inside Joel's brain. The basic plot of the movie revolves around Joel, trying to remember anything and everything he can about his girlfrined Clementine, before the memories are gone forever.
As wild as his antics can be ala Ace Ventura: Pet Detective or Me, Myself & Irene, Jim Carrey knows when to limit his comic genius and focus on the dramatic moment. As he did in The Truman Show, Jim plays a tragic character who is learning new things all the time and must figure out those things in order to save himself. Carrey uses subtle humor and brief glimpses of his comic genius to great results in order to bring Joel Barish to life.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of the best films of the 2004. It's Ingenious and inventive and you can't help but love and feel sorry for Carrey at the same time. You might even cry.
Plot:
The movie really is ingenious; the plot is unique in that almost all of the story is being told from inside Joel's mind, from the point of view of Joel's memory. for most of the movie, what we see is not "reality," but the memories of Joel Barish.
The film can get confusing at times but it does explain itself sooner rather than later.
Visual Effects:
There are some whicked visual effects in this film. Mostly, things disappear and reappear, but things like building also change shape and appearance. In once scene even, Jim and Kate "shrink" and go swimming in a kitchen sink.
I loved how Kaufman had Joel instantly forget a memory. Clementine would be there one minute and then gone the next; She and Joel would be running down a road and then she would just dissappear, as if someone had snapped their fingers and she was gone. Joel would just stand there, not knowing what had happened.
Sound: 
The background music works well with the dramatic feel of the film, even though it is a comedy. Any and all songs fit well into the picture.
Character Development:
You can really see a dramtic change in the way Joel and Clementine feel about each other as the film progresses. Joel takes a dramtic change from the way you see him at the beginning of the film to the way he ends up.
Atmosphere:
The film wants you to get right into it, but it pulls you in ever-so-slowly.
Realism:
You cannot have you memories erased as much as we would like to, however. The film is really neo-realistic, and is pretty far from Hollywood-ism.
Warren's Rating:
8.86/10Is the movie worth your time to watch?
27-12-04
