Spotless Mind Techniques

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind incorporates many stylistic strategies to convey the central message over to its audience. The science fiction aspect of the movie, which was being able to erase someone from a person’s memory, incorporated with the dramatic aspect, made the film make more sense in regards to time. I was very confused after watching this movie for the first time, but after the second time, many revelations came forth and I saw what certain things really meant, why some things were said, and what events took place at what times which enabled me to determine the theme. This film forces it’s analyzer to focus on minute details because of its complex story line. The smallest and shortest lines connects the movie the second time it is watched. The deep plot and intimate situations demonstrate to the audience the main theme that they are supposed to be focused on. The film’s interesting strategies such as, foreshadowing, a backwards movie plot, camera placement, and repeating key phrases and scenes all play a part in the theme. Through these strategies was the director able to express the theme of fate and how people are destined to be together.
In the beginning, the audience is introduced to Joel then Clementine.
The two exchange words on a train “for the first time” and discuss things such as the book store, her unusual name, the song behind her name. These words could not be deemed as important the first time watching the movie because the audience has yet to see further beyond what they mean. This foreshadowing is a strategy to express the message because it is a symbol of what has yet to come. It is fate because their very discussion on her name and the book store was discussed the actual first time they met. A memory that both erased is right back in their heads, only in a different setting.
The sequence of events is switched along the time travel. This is a strong move by the director Michel Gondry because this intrigues or confuses the reader more. For example, during Joel’s depletion of Clem from his memory, the audience joins Joel on a journey of his memories of her, beginning with his latest memory of her to his last. So, while the movie is progressing, it actually is going back in time to the first time he met Clem. This also confuses Joel, which is a reference to fate because his memories are in an order that led her to telling him to meet in Montag, which is the last memory before he woke up. While the end of the movie was shown in the beginning, the audience begins to understand what really is happening at the end. The organization of the scenes plays a heavy role in understanding the movie. The contorted movie plot is important because it makes the audience connect the puzzle together to understand what is happening.
The most noticeable and probably only obvious thing about this movie is that the theme has to do with love and destiny.
It is evident that the audience must learn something about love and open heartedness. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind expresses that love and destiny are a theme because of two primary examples. Joel and Clem, and Mary and Howard. Joel and Clem are destined for each other. Both of these lovers got their memories erased of the other, yet they still remained in contactr in the end. They were soul mates in the beginning. Even though they broke up at one and point and had an uncertain agreement to a relationship in the end, the fact they met each other after the whole ordeal proves that something is there between
them.
However, for Howard and Mary, the situation does not remain the same. Mary was able to get her memory erased of her ex-lover, and just like Clem and Joel, she unconsciously carried her love for him still and still manages to fall for him. But unlike Joel and Clementine, she does not remain with the man she erased from her memories. This is important because destiny plays a large role in determining whom people are supposed to be with. These two cases show that fate determines who people are supposed to be with under any circumstances. Mary proved that even though it seemed as if she belonged with Howard, she ended up turning against him in the end.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless skillfully relates its purpose to the audience. This movie is easily comparable to a puzzle that needs to be put together. When a movie’s central message revolves around fate, its implications are that people sometimes do not have control over what their fate is and sometimes they do. This film gives its audience a perspective on what people do not want to happen, but it must happen anyway.