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Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

 -  Drama | Romance | Sci-Fi  -  19 March 2004 (USA)
8.4
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Ratings: 8.4/10 from 399,431 users   Metascore: 89/100
Reviews: 1,420 user | 243 critic | 41 from Metacritic.com

A couple undergo a procedure to erase each other from their memories when their relationship turns sour, but it is only through the process of loss that they discover what they had to begin with.

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Title: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

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Top 250 #78 | Won 1 Oscar. Another 46 wins & 54 nominations. See more awards »

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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Thomas Jay Ryan ...
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Rob
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Ryan Whitney ...
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Brian Price ...
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Young Bully (as Paul Litowski)
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Storyline

A man, Joel Barish, heartbroken that his girlfriend Clementine underwent a procedure to erase him from her memory, decides to do the same. However, as he watches his memories of her fade away, he realizes that he still loves her, and may be too late to correct his mistake. Written by anonymous

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

memory | love | crush | valentine's day | beach | See more »

Taglines:

Replace My Memory See more »

Genres:

Drama | Romance | Sci-Fi

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, some drug and sexual content | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
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Details

Official Sites:

| |  »

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

19 March 2004 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Eterno resplandor de una mente sin recuerdos  »

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$268,118 (Japan) (18 March 2005)

Gross:

$1,747,623 (Japan) (8 April 2005)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

(as dts)|

Color:

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
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Did You Know?

Trivia

In the tape recorded sessions with Kate Winslet, Carrey accidentally wrecked the tape recorder when he got so much into the scene, he threw it across the room. See more »

Goofs

During the "operation", Mary passes a joint to Stan. In the next shot, Mary has the joint again. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Joel: [voice over] random thoughts for Valentine's day, 2004. Today is a holiday invented by greeting card companies to make people feel like crap.
See more »

Crazy Credits

The credits are right justified, versus the usual center justified credits. See more »

Connections

Referenced in Wingmen Incorporated (2013) See more »

Soundtracks

"Mr. Blue Sky"
Written by Jeff Lynne
Performed by Electric Light Orchestra
Courtesy of Epic Records
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

See more (Spoiler Alert!) »

User Reviews

 
Perfect - a movie that puts 99% of all contemporary movies to shame
2 July 2004 | by (Austria, Vienna) – See all my reviews

There's only one way to describe "Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind": perfect. It's been one week since I saw the movie and I still cannot stop thinking about it. Was the ending happy or sad? I cannot tell, but it's deeply touching.

Charlie Kaufman is incredible. How does he come up with all these original, flawless scripts? Finally there's someone who uses the possibilities of cinema to the fullest. I love the way Kaufman shows the fate of individuals and derives universally true rules from it. The content of his story is always highly philosophical without ever being smart alec.

Some say "Eternal Sunshine..." was over-directed. I disagree. Having read the script, I know that Gondry deserves lots of credit for bringing this beautiful story to life. Sure, there are five creepy images per minute, but have you ever seen such an original, weird picture? Mind you, I'm not saying that lots of effects automatically make for a good direction, but in this case it really helped to underline the story, not distracting from it.

Jim Carrey... wow! I've always liked him as the hilarious Comedian he is, but I never thought that his performances in "The Truman Show" and "Man On The Moon" were that much of a departure from his funny-man side. As Joel, however, he is a completely different person. It's like Jim Carrey had a serious twin brother. Unbelievable. I bow to this performance! Give this man more chances to show his acting abilities, I say!

Finally I have to mention Beck's cover of "Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime", which fits perfectly into the movie and won't leave my CD-Player for the next months.

A movie like "Eternal Sunshine..." really shows how much time and money Hollywood wastes on producing crap like "Bad Boys" or "The Fast & The Furious", and its box office result demonstrates how little people care about quality in movies. Personally, I have found my first contender for best motion picture of the year. I need to see the movie again, because I have a feeling that this one gets even better with each viewing. I can't wait until it's released on DVD.

I feel the need to say more, but I can't put my feelings into (English) words. All I can say is: GO SEE THIS MOVIE! You won't regret it.


143 of 168 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

Message Boards

Recent Posts
Large fanbase, and little Kaufman max-nilsson5
If you could erase something from your past, what would it be and why? TJensen0022
My One Problem With An Otherwise Perfect Movie asm85-39-573435
I don't see all the hype Laamy
Did they meet twice? Or do they continually meet - Infinte times? HarryHawcroft
Clem = mentally ill? blueathena623

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