Top Ten Movies of all Time #8-Eternal Sunshine
By bonesaw 4 Comments
Jim Carrey is known for his comedic excellence in films such as The Mask and Liar Liar which clearly show the acting talent Carrey is capable of. However, while all these films are great in their own right, they aren't nearly as impressive or as entertaining as Eternal Sunshine, a compelling drama which stars Carrey as the lonely and confused Joel Barish, who unbeknownst to him as forgotten about his previous ex girlfriend Clementine. Which make this extremely unusual is the fact that Joel chose to forget about her because he just simply couldn't forget about her and saw no other way to ease his suffering. So, Joel decides to completely erase every memory he has of her so that he may live his life without having to gone on thinking about the one woman he truly cared about. However, as Joel is in the process of having his memory erased, he discovers that he loves and cares about her so much that he will do anything to just keep one simply memory of her. Now, I know that you must be thinking that this simply nothing more than another cheesy romance with a weird plot to move the cliche events forward. Initially, this appears to be true, but as the movie progresses from one memory to the next, highlighting all of the events Joel has been through with his girlfriend, you start to realize that this not your typical romance film. The fact that Carrey alone is able to portray such a serious and dedicated role by far makes this more than that. Coupled with the excellent story and interesting settings in which each memory unfolds, it starts to become more apparent that this is a film that will go down in history as one of the most original and thought provoking romance of all time.
I'll admit though, the ending is fairly predictable, ending how you would expect, but in the end this is actually a good thing, since for once you are actually glad to these two dysfunctional lovers actually find each other in the end, despite them both having their memories wiped of each other completely. This makes for a expected yet appreciated ending that will warm your heart and make you appreciate the connection you have with your loved ones who you could never imagine forgetting about even for a second.
Ok...maybe it won't have that deep of an impact on some of you, but for what its worth, Eternal Sunshine is a masterpiece that combines superb acting with a story so unique and awe-inspiring that you'll actually forget all those crappy romance movies you've been forced to watch with your girlfriend...I know I did anyway.
