Directed by Michel Gondry
Whenever I watch this movie over and over, I find new layers to the story. It is important to note the origins of this film, before its meaning can be explored. The film was written by Charley Kaufman at a time which many consider the peak of his career a writer not afraid to step outside the conventional and explore ideas of a more weird and hypothetical nature films like "Being John Malkovich" and "Adaption" had both great success whilst being odd ideas compared to the norm.
The film, as I could describe, as a circular narrative.
After fight with her boyfriend, Clementine Kruczynski pays Lacuna, inc to erase Joel Barish from her memories. After Joel found out about this, he decided to undergo the same procedure to lighten the weight of their breakup.
As we travel through Joel's mind and recount his happiest memories with Clementine, he changes his mind and tries to find ways to never forget her.
Joel and Clementine are complementary characters. Joel is very cautious, so he needs someone to push him out of his comfort zone. Clementine is the added color to his life.
As the film progresses we realize that they have met before and we begin to see the salient points of their relationship in reverse order. This gives us understanding, but as a viewer our perception of events is distorted, fragmented like the real story is.
By the end of the film, a full loop has been made, with us now understanding how more recent storyline fits in with the older one.
The final scene shows Joel and Clementine on the same beach we have seen them on before, but this time, in the present timeline blissfully unaware they have been here before. This tells us something. There are other clues as to what implies as well Clementine remembers when lying on the ice as Patrick recreates Joel's relationship, that she has been here before. There is a suggestion that at least some fragment therefore transcends the procedure.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a story about two people who are destined to meet, to fall in love, fall apart, erase each other from their memories and then meet again.
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