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‘Eternal Sunshine’ unforgettable rental
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Also by Rachel Tatge:
- 'Eternal Sunshine' unforgettable rental (October 1, 2004)
- 'Cellular' is big action and popcorn movie fun (September 23, 2004)
Related Stories:
- The dynamic duo: Kaufman and Gondry (March 11, 2004)
- "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" (April 7, 2004)
- Beauty sleep: lovelorn Bernal drifts between reality, dreams (October 4, 2006)
- Local indie film 'Grodmin' to screen at Edgewood (November 14, 2003)
- Something for everyone at the cinema this spring (January 29, 2004)
by Rachel Tatge
Friday, October 1, 2004
Science fiction has never been my cup of tea. Don’t get me wrong. There is great science fiction out there, but I don’t respond to it the way, oh say, Trekkies would. Anytime I see a movie synopsis that includes the words “alien abduction” or “time travel” I get a little bit nervous because chances are when a filmmaker takes on such epic proportions, things like character development are the first to go. And I just can’t enjoy a movie where the concepts are more important than the characters. Fortunately, there is at least one other person who also feels this way and he actually has the ability to do something about it. Oscar winning screenwriter Charlie Kaufman (“Being John Malkovich,” “Adaptation”) is somebody who garners great enjoyment from the bizarre elements of science fiction but loves the characters populating his movies more. This is never more exemplified than in the newly released DVD, “The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”, which is undoubtedly one of the most confusing, yet exhilarating love stories of all time.
Joel (Jim Carrey, “The Majestic”) hasn’t had an easy go of it. After a tempestuous two-year relationship, Clementine (Kate Winslet, “Titanic”), his theatrically overbearing girlfriend, dumps him and subsequently erases him from her memory. Thanks to Lacuna Inc., anybody who has ever suffered a traumatic experience can simply pay a professional to enter their cerebral cortex and alter away! Joel is so devastated by this turn of events, he too volunteers for the procedure, only to realize halfway through that he doesn’t want to forget Clementine. His internal quest to outrun the memory erasure process envelops the remainder of the hopelessly romantic movie.
Of course, since it is a Kaufman film, the above description is pedestrian and oversimplified. After all, this is the man who created a story solely revolving around a puppeteer who discovered a portal into actor John Malkovich’s brain. In comparison to that film, “Eternal Sunshine” aspires to even greater heights of imagination when considering that the film’s perception of time overlaps, doubles over and ultimately completely ceases to exist so that the concept of a past, present and future are an impediment to the message of the movie. For example, we are introduced to Joel and Clementine during their first encounter in Montauk. However, unbeknownst to them, it is truly the second time they first meet, but because it’s the first time we meet them, we’re not supposed to realize that either. This treatment of time, combined with the lofty ideas regarding the pain of existence, time’s destructive force and the implied questions and almost philosophical consequences of erasing an entire person from memory, creates a movie more grounded in reality than some documentaries. And this is because Kaufman remains true to his characters. Amid this flurry of technical and narrative achievement, Joel and Clementine remain revolving, flawed, complex people who make the mistake of falling in love (and out of love and back in love). The ingenuity in which Kaufman’s story unfolds just heightens our experience as we fall in love (and out of love and back in love) with them.
Unfortunately, this DVD’s extras don’t pack quite as powerful of a wallop as the film does, although they have their merits. The made-for-television “making of” documentary is the least noteworthy extra, as it is simply a long trailer for the film with snippets of bland cast interviews. (Although it did adequately advertise the movie’s excellent score, which is a plus.)
More interesting was the interview between Jim Carrey and director Michel Gondry (“Human Nature”) whose thick French accent unfortunately prohibited complete understanding of their dialogue. Apparently — at least according to Gondry — there was some tension regarding trust and control between the lead actor and his director. Their amicable interview, however, proved their conflicts ended when filming wrapped, as they joyfully recalled anecdotes and reminisced over Kaufman’s convoluted ideas.
The feature commentary with Gondry and Kaufman is simultaneously fascinating and tedious. While both managed to give insights into technical achievements and shower Winslet with compliments (both she and Carrey stretched their acting wings and gave Oscar worthy performances, but she was clearly the more beloved), I secretly wanted them to shut up so I could watch the movie. Clearly Kaufman felt the same way: He rarely spoke (which was another disappointment) and when addressed with a question or comment, he seemed disinterested and at times would give no response. The four deleted scenes were far more enjoyable, but only the scene in which Joel and Clementine recall their first date has the potential to generate heartache. Also worth checking out is the Polyphonic Spree “Light and Day” music video. Not only is the song fun, but the video is extremely weird and creepy (in a good way).
The best extra however, is the movie itself. Its complexity and emotional core, in combination with an emotionally relevant subplot and a tremendously gifted supporting cast (Mark Ruffalo, “In the Cut,” Kirsten Dunst, “Spiderman,” Elijah Wood, “The Ice Storm,” and Tom Wilkinson, “In the Bedroom”), make this movie worth watching again and again so that even a mind altering procedure couldn’t erase it from memory.
