December 6, 2013 - Written by: Emma Farley

Feel Good Film: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Bit of a mouthful, right? Well, let me tell you, it’s worth talking about. Haven’t seen it yet? Let me fill you in.

Kate Winslet plays Clementine, an impulsive woman who has the quiet and reserved Joel (played by Jim Carrey) removed from her memory when she gets bored of their relationship. Joel decides to reciprocate this act of spontaneity but halfway through the procedure (the memories are erased backwards, starting with the disintegration of the relationship and ending with the hopeful early experiences) realises he wants to preserve his memories after all.

Whenever I talk about Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind I feel like my words fail me. It’s my favourite film of all time and I worry that whatever I say about it won’t do it justice. I love it for many reasons, some of which are laid out below:

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It stars Kate Winslet (one of my favourite actresses) and Jim Carrey in fantastic and completely atypical roles. In fact, in the making of documentary, Kate claims that she plays the typical Jim Carrey role and he plays the typical Kate Winslet role.

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It features an awesome supporting cast, including The Ruff (Mark Ruffalo to all you non-lovers, aka The Hulk), Kirsten Dunst (The Virgin Suicides, Marie Antoinette, Melancholia), Elijah Wood (that hobbit chap) and Tom Wilkinson (The Full Monty).

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It’s directed by Michel Gondry, one of the quirkiest filmmakers on the planet, and the man behind Be Kind, Rewind and The Science of Sleep.

“Some have said Gondry’s work is overrated but that one film alone captures the essence of love and heartbreak.”
Stipp from /Film

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Gorgeous cinematography from Ellen Kuras, who also worked on another indie favourite of mine, Away We Go. Which similarly has an ass-kicking soundtrack!

Amazing visual effects, primarily created in-camera. Check out the making of for more fantastic tricks!

And, above all, and for the purpose of it’s selection in this post, a realistic portrayal of relationships! Sure, the whole memory erasing thang takes some degree of suspension of disbelief (I reckon it’s within the realm of possibility) but the character types, their flaws, behaviours and attitudes are completely true to life.

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Plus I love the message that you can’t love who you love. It runs deeper than anything that can be ‘erased’ and we are doomed to repeat the same mistakes over and over – but it’s worth it! Beautiful.

So whaddya reckon? Like the realistic romance and hopeful ending? Did you fall for the haunting visuals too? Amazed by the effects? Go straight ahead and download the soundtrack? Let me know in the comments below.

I mixed things up a bit for next week and asked you to pick my favourite Emily Blunt film for us to watch together. And you voted for The Muppets. As for the next vote, I thought I’d ask you to select from the filmography of another of my favourite actors. After much deliberation between Ryan Gosling and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, I went with Mark Ruffalo cos The Gos and Jo-Go don’t have five feel-good titles each! And with that, I offer you:

You Can Count On Me, in which The Ruff plays the younger sibling of another favourite indie actor of mine, Laura Linney, who was Oscar-nominated for her performance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfBoo0XvGfE

My Life Without Me, which seems wrist-slittingly depressing at first glance but is actually rather uplifting.

13 Going on 30, one my ultimate feel-good films in which he plays the childhood bestie of Jennifer Garner, who goes from 13 to 30 overnight.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro5kCfJM_oA

Just Like Heaven, a rom-com in which he shares an apartment with Reese Witherspoon’s ghost.

Where the Wild Things Are, Spike Jonze’s adaptation of the popular children’s book.

Cast your votes over the next week and tweet me (@EmsLF) your thoughts on … You can also read more about my favourite films over on my blog, A Few of My Favourite Things.

See you next week, same Bat time, same Bat channel.

Tags: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind feel good film