Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a 2004 American science fiction romantic drama film directed by Michel Gondry, based on Charlie Kaufman's screenplay developed from a story by Gondry, Kaufman, and Pierre Bismuth. Starring Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet, along with supporting roles from Kirsten Dunst, Mark Ruffalo, Elijah Wood, and Tom Wilkinson, it follows two individuals who undergo a memory erasure procedure to forget each other after the dissolution of their romantic relationship. The title of the film is a quotation from the 1717 poem Eloisa to Abelard by Alexander Pope. It uses elements of psychological drama, science fiction, and a nonlinear narrative to explore the nature of memory and love.[1]
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
- Michel Gondry
- Charlie Kaufman
- Pierre Bismuth
- March 19, 2004 (United States)
108 minutes
United States
English
$20 million
$74 million
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind opened in cinemas in the United States on March 19, 2004, to widespread acclaim from critics and audiences, who hailed the visual style, editing, writing, score, themes, Gondry’s direction, and the performances of the cast, especially Carrey and Winslet. The film was a box office success, grossing $74 million on a $20 million budget, and was named by the American Film Institute one of the Top 10 Films of 2004.[2] At the 77th Academy Awards, Bismuth, Gondry and Kaufman won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, and Winslet received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress.
In the years since its release, the film has become a cult classic;[3] it is considered by many critics as being one of the best films of the 2000s and one of the greatest films of all time.[4] The film has been the inspiration behind several music projects, such as Bastille’s 2022 single "Remind Me" and Ariana Grande's 2024 album Eternal Sunshine.
Plot[edit]
Joel Barish discovers that his estranged girlfriend, Clementine Kruczynski, has undergone a procedure to have her memories of him erased by the New York City firm Lacuna. Heartbroken, he decides to undergo the same procedure. In preparation, he records a tape recounting his memories of their volatile relationship.
The Lacuna employees work on Joel's brain as he sleeps in his apartment so that he will wake up with no memory of the procedure. One employee, Patrick, leaves to see Clementine. Since her procedure, he has been using Joel's and Clementine's memories as a guide for seducing her. While the procedure runs on Joel's brain, the technician, Stan, and the secretary, Mary, take drugs, party and have sex.
Joel re-experiences his memories of Clementine as they are erased, starting with their last fight. As he reaches earlier, happier memories, he realizes that he does not want to forget her. His mental projection of Clementine suggests that Joel hides her in memories that do not involve her. This halts the procedure, but Stan calls his boss, Howard, who arrives and restarts it. Joel comes to his last remaining memory of Clementine: the day they first met, on a beach in Montauk. As the memory crumbles around them, Clementine tells Joel to meet her in Montauk.
In Joel's apartment, while Stan is outside, Mary tells Howard she is in love with him and they kiss. Howard's wife arrives and sees them through the window. Furious, she tells Howard to tell Mary the truth: that Mary and Howard previously had an affair, and that Mary had her memories erased. Disgusted, Mary steals the Lacuna records and mails them to the patients, including Joel and Clementine.
Joel wakes up, his memories of Clementine erased. He impulsively goes to Montauk and accidentally meets Clementine on the train ride home. They are drawn to one another, and go on a date to the frozen Charles River in Boston. Joel drives Clementine home and Patrick sees the two of them, realizing they have found each other again. Joel and Clementine receive their Lacuna records and listen to their tapes. They are shocked by the bitter memories they had of each other and almost separate again, but agree to try again.
Production[edit]
Development[edit]
The concept of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind came from conversations between director Michel Gondry and co-writer Pierre Bismuth in 1998.[20] The pair had met and become friends in the early 1980s during Gondry's drumming career in the French pop group Oui Oui.[21] Bismuth had conceived of the idea of erasing certain people from people's minds in response to a friend complaining about her boyfriend; when he asked her if she would erase that boyfriend from her memory, she said yes.[21][22] Bismuth originally planned to conduct an art experiment involving sending cards to people saying someone they knew had erased the card's recipient from their memory.[23] When he mentioned this to Gondry, they developed it into a story based on the situations that would arise if it were scientifically possible.[21][23] Bismuth never carried out his experiment idea.[23]
Gondry approached writer Charlie Kaufman with this concept,[22][23] and they developed it into a short pitch.[24] While the writers did not believe the concept was marketable, a small bidding war began over the idea.[20][24][25] Steve Golin of Propaganda Films purchased it on June 12, 1998, for a low seven-figure sum.[5][26] Kaufman, who was responsible for writing the screenplay, did not begin immediately, instead opting to suspend writing while he was working on Adaptation, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, and Human Nature, the last of which Gondry directed as his directorial debut.[20]
During this time, filmmaker Christopher Nolan released his film Memento (2000), which similarly deals with memory. Due to the similarities, Kaufman became worried and tried to pull out of the project, but Golin made him complete it.[5] During writing, the pitch's ownership changed several times resulting in Kaufman not having to deal with the studios until the end of the scriptwriting process.[20] The final script made the studios nervous.[20]
Release[edit]
Box office[edit]
Produced on a budget of $20 million, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind opened on March 19, 2004, in the United States, earning $8.2 million in its opening weekend from 1,353 cinemas. The film placed seventh in the weekend's box office, and remained in cinemas for 19 weeks, earning $34.4 million in the United States and Canada, and $39.6 million in international markets, for a total of $74 million worldwide.[47]
Legacy[edit]
Music[edit]
American singer-songwriter Halsey sampled dialogue from the film for her song "Ashley", the opening track on her 2020 album, Manic,[90] as well as the following track "Clementine" being titled after and lyrically inspired by Winslet's character.[91]
American post-hardcore band Circa Survive released their first record, Juturna,[92] in 2005. While the album is primarily about lead singer Anthony Green (musician)'s battle with addiction and substance abuse, the film is referenced both directly and indirectly in its lyrics.[93]
American rapper and record producer Jay Electronica sampled five different tracks of Jon Brion's film score for his 2007 debut mixtape Act 1: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge).[94]
American rapper and record producer Mac Miller sampled a track of Jon Brion's film score for his 2013 song "The Quest".[95]
American singer-songwriter Jhené Aiko said the film inspired the songs "Eternal Sunshine" and "Spotless Mind" on her 2014 debut album, Souled Out.[96]
South Korean singer-songwriter Taeyeon took inspiration from the film in the music video for her song "What Do I Call You", the title track on her 2020 EP with the same name.[97]
South Korean rapper and singer-songwriter B.I said that the film inspired his song "Tangerine", the fourth track on his 2022 release Love or Loved Part.1.[98]
American singer-songwriter Ariana Grande titled her 2024 album Eternal Sunshine after the film. Her music videos for the songs "Yes, And?" and "We Can't Be Friends (Wait for Your Love)", as well as the rest of the album's songs, contain references to the film.[99]
Video games[edit]
Kan Gao, founder of Freebird Games, said his video game To the Moon, which is about two doctors traversing through the memory of an old man to fulfill his last wish, was inspired by the film.[100]
