Thought I'd take a quick moment and write a review of 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.'

As if I wasn't a Charlie Kaufman fan already, this movie sealed the deal. I'm a huge fan of each of his scripts that he's written. I loved both 'Adaptation' and 'Being John Malkovich' and really liked his script for 'Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.' Very few writers out there are so free with their imagination that they are able to completely bend and twist traditional movie conventions to make something fresh and new. I hope he continues to stay original and doesn't wind up in some kind of M. Night Shyamalan-esque mode of making very predictable movies.

Jim Carrey and Kate Winslett were terrific in their roles. It's not everyday that you see a movie where Jim Carrey plays the dramatic lead role and someone else plays the more humorous, carefree mode. If Jim Carrey doesn't receive an Academy Award nomination then I think that it'd be safe to say that he got robbed. Jim Carrey gave a terrific dramatic performance.

Michel Gondry is a god among directors. He is able to do things with his camera work and special effects that other directors are not able to do. Although it's cliche to say something like this, he has more talent in his small pinky than most directors have in their entire bodies. Anyone who's seen his music video compilations can attest to this. I look forward to seeing all that's in store for Michel Gondry.

I liked how the film dealt with memories and the erasing of memories. When the characters would be in different memories, but would move to locations in their memory that they didn't go to originally, things would get really bizarre. It's hard to describe I suppose. Imagine a memory where you're at the park. Now imagine what would happen if you transported yourself to the house in the far, far background. Because you didn't actually experience what the house looked like up-close, you can't remember each and every detail of what that house looked like. And in circumstances like this, the movie really got bizarre and surreal.

I also liked how Kirsten Dunst's character wasn't just a throwaway character like I thought she was going to be. I thought that there was going to be no purpose to her being in the movie, so I was pleasantly surprised to see the direction her character took. It just shows the strength of Charlie Kaufman's script that he was able to make something out of the secondary characters in the film.

The music was pretty good as well. When Beck, Jon Brion, and Electric Light Orchestra are on your soundtrack, you can't really do any wrong.

I guess how people interpret the overall themes of the movie is dependant on what you bring to the movie. With their new relationship at the end, some people ask if it's going to work this time or if they're just doomed to repeat the same mistakes they made originally. I go back and forth on it, but I guess in the end it doesn't really matter. Part of the fun of a movie like this is that it leaves so much up for discussion and movie dorks such as me, can obsess about the different ins and outs of the movie. :-)

I loved the movie and would gladly see it again. I wish all movie makers would approach their movies with all the creativity and imagination that Michel Gondry and Charlie Kaufman did with 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.'

GREAT movie!!!!

matt out