why eternal sunshine of the spotless mind (2004) is probably the peak of cinema

i'm probably a tiiiiiny bit biased since this movie changed the chemistry of my brain

i’m a creature of comfort and consumption. when it comes to shows i watch the same ones religiously to the point where i can recite them- and i’m happy. when it comes to movies however i’m completely different. i love going to the cinema, but i’ll very seldom watch a movie out of boredom. it doesn’t make sense to me. i can appreciate good cinematography and writing, but choosing to watch a film that’s an hour or so long when you could watch a series with multiple seasons and episodes that are an hour in length will never make sense to me.

but then, two nights ago on a whim, i decided to watch the eternal sunshine of the spotless mind and i will forever thank myself for making that decision.

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the story of joel and clementine is tragic, and that tragedy is found in its realism. their love is turbulent and messy and strange and clumsy. enough to make the two of them want to completely erase each other from their memories. but as we venture through joel’s mind- we see the passion, love and connection within their relationship. reliving those moments of absolute love and joy makes joel regret his hasty decision to forget clementine, and makes him realize that maybe he does want to remember some of their time together. that’s what i adore about this movie. once joel starts the process of erasing his memories with clementine that’s it. there’s no way for him to go back or to hold onto the precious ones. there’s no bargaining.

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one of the many things i love about this movie is how it deconstructs the ‘manic pixie dream girl’ archetype.

at first glance, clementine seems to fulfil this stereotype. she’s an enigma. charismatic and friendly- a complete juxtaposition to the reserved and observational nature of joel.

later on, she even acknowledges this herself, warning joel that she’s “just a fucked up girl” who’s looking for her“own peace of mind.” and to not assign her the responsibility of fixing him; exactly what he later goes on to do- further highlighting their incompatibility. joel sees clementine as his spark, she lights him up but for clementine joel grounds her and grants her a semblance of the peace she so desperately desires.

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another thing that i absolutely adored about this movie was how clementine’s hair was utilized to show the audience how both time and their relationship progressed.

green revolution: when joel and clementine first meet, the green of her hair represents the growth and development between them.

red in love: the burning red of clementines hair is a visual representation of their relationship at that point in time; full of passion, love and excitement.

agent orange: the faded version of burning red, this orange colour represents the fading passion within their relationship- and how things begin to fall apart.

blue ruin: this is the colour of clementines hair when she meets joel (again). chunks aren’t dyed, and it’s reflective of two things: the harsh winter and clementines mental state.

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this film absolutely obliterated me emotionally, i can’t tell you how much i cried as joel begged and pleaded for them to let him keep “just one memory”, or how i silently nodded as i agreed with clementine when she said “I’m always anxious, thinking I’m not living my life to the fullest, taking advantage of every possibility, make sure I’m not wasting one second of the little time I have.”