admin
22 December 2023
The great thing about Freak Films is that I only review the movies I love. The bad thing is trying to put into words why I love them. This month’s Freak Film is Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, and I’ve wanted to write this review since I saw it in the theatre.
Eternal Sunshine... is about a couple who break up and have the memories of each other erased. This movie put me through an emotional wringer. Kate Winslet has always reminded me of the one who got away, but her portrayal of Clementine here was like seeing that girl again. The movie flipped me this way and that, and made me question and examine my own life as I was sucked into the unfolding story.
There was a woman in the seat in front of me that I had seen a couple days before, but couldn’t figure out where I recognized her. By the end of the movie, I was convinced that we had been in love or maybe even married, but somehow forgot it all. Before we lost our memories, we promised to meet at this movie. Like an idiot, I almost talked to her as if we were old friends on the way out, and felt like she wanted to do the same. We lost site of each other, and I walked home in the rain.
In that moment of mental illness, I knew that this was Charlie Kaufman’s best movie. Kaufman is an amazing writer, but it’s only within the last couple movies that I think he’s really become brilliant. Being John Malkovich was a great idea, but sounded better than it actually ended up. With Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind and Adaptation, I think he’s really been firing with all pistons, hitting the perfect balance of the bizarre and the touching.
Eternal Sunshine..., I feel, is his masterpiece. It’s a romantic comedy for people that don’t like romantic comedies. It’s so full of true-life moments; the kinds of interactions that couples have in real life, but have never been seen on screen before. The acting is top notch, with Kate Winslet proving once again that she’s the best actress working today. Jim Carrey is amazing, knowing exactly when he can push it and when to pull back. And the relationships are so grounded in real life that it makes the erasure of their relationship completely believable.
Michel Gondry more than makes up for the horrible Human Nature that he did with Kaufman a few years back. The visuals will melt your mind and have you wondering how the hell they pulled it off.
This easily could have become a car wreck with everyone pushing the movie over the top, which is what I think some of the problems with earlier Kaufman movies were. But Eternal Sunshine... is perfect in its give and take. It makes room for great acting, the actors make room for amazing visuals, and they all pay attention to the beautiful writing in the script.
Eternal Sunshine... is about a couple who break up and have the memories of each other erased. This movie put me through an emotional wringer. Kate Winslet has always reminded me of the one who got away, but her portrayal of Clementine here was like seeing that girl again. The movie flipped me this way and that, and made me question and examine my own life as I was sucked into the unfolding story.
There was a woman in the seat in front of me that I had seen a couple days before, but couldn’t figure out where I recognized her. By the end of the movie, I was convinced that we had been in love or maybe even married, but somehow forgot it all. Before we lost our memories, we promised to meet at this movie. Like an idiot, I almost talked to her as if we were old friends on the way out, and felt like she wanted to do the same. We lost site of each other, and I walked home in the rain.
In that moment of mental illness, I knew that this was Charlie Kaufman’s best movie. Kaufman is an amazing writer, but it’s only within the last couple movies that I think he’s really become brilliant. Being John Malkovich was a great idea, but sounded better than it actually ended up. With Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind and Adaptation, I think he’s really been firing with all pistons, hitting the perfect balance of the bizarre and the touching.
Eternal Sunshine..., I feel, is his masterpiece. It’s a romantic comedy for people that don’t like romantic comedies. It’s so full of true-life moments; the kinds of interactions that couples have in real life, but have never been seen on screen before. The acting is top notch, with Kate Winslet proving once again that she’s the best actress working today. Jim Carrey is amazing, knowing exactly when he can push it and when to pull back. And the relationships are so grounded in real life that it makes the erasure of their relationship completely believable.
Michel Gondry more than makes up for the horrible Human Nature that he did with Kaufman a few years back. The visuals will melt your mind and have you wondering how the hell they pulled it off.
This easily could have become a car wreck with everyone pushing the movie over the top, which is what I think some of the problems with earlier Kaufman movies were. But Eternal Sunshine... is perfect in its give and take. It makes room for great acting, the actors make room for amazing visuals, and they all pay attention to the beautiful writing in the script.
artid
2938
Old Image
7_5_freak.jpg
issue
vol 7 - issue 05 (jan 2005)
section
entertainmental