By Dan Ferrisi

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is the year’s first great film, and a welcome haven for any filmgoer who has gotten tired of the B and C level movies that inhabit the theatres following Oscar season. Eternal Sunshine is exactly what you’d expect from scribe Charlie Kaufman working at the top of his form-inventive, mind-blowing storytelling with a helping of sharp dialogue and a dash of bizarre characters. Kaufman’s typical problem areas, pacing and detachment from the audience, are nowhere to be found here, making the film substantially better than Being John Malkovich and perhaps a notch better than Adaptation.

Joel Barish (Jim Carrey) is a single New York schlub who drags his feet through life, a victim of his own inability to take risks and break from the comforts of habit. Clementine Kruczynski (a remarkably accent-less Kate Winslet) is Joel’s foil, a hair-dyed, spontaneous rebel who is easily bored and repelled by routine. Against all odds, the two hit it off tremendously and begin a long and tumultuous relationship. Over the course of two years together, their partnership is a roller coaster of manic-depressive magnitude.

Eventually, they harshly split up, with Clementine determined to not just end the relationship, but to eradicate every trace of its ever existing. She goes to Lacuna Inc., a company that has pioneered a new procedure that wipes from the brain unpleasant memories. When Joel finds out that Clementine has erased him, he spitefully decides to do the same. He meets Dr. Howard Mierzwiak (a really good Tom Wilkinson), as well as secretary Mary (Kirsten Dunst) and geeky tech guy Stan (a wild-haired Mark Ruffalo). Shortly after, Stan and his assistant (Elijah Wood) are in Joel’s apartment, ready to cleanse his emotional wounds.

Unfortunately, Joel is in a conscious dream state while his memories of Clementine are being deleted, and he slowly begins to realize that though the relationship turned sour, tender memories die hard. He changes his mind, and with the help of Clem, tries to evade the permanent loss of the only person who ever pushed his boundaries and challenged his robotic lifestyle. Frenetic and touching simultaneously, the two explore the crannies of Joel’s mind in a frantic dash for togetherness.

Carrey and Winslet are both great, reaching career highs and approaching Oscar caliber work. Director Michel Gondry balances the comedic and dramatic tones skillfully, as well as the Candyland glitter of a dream and the flatter mundanity of a Long Island train station. Kaufman’s script is full of real gems, such as an exchange between Clementine and Joel in which she accuses him of using the oldest trick in “the stalker book.” “There’s a stalker book?” he asks. “I’ve got to read that.”

Eternal Sunshine unfolds in a loopy, non-linear way, however, in many cases such a structure is either a rip-off or a gimmick to hide weak material, in this case it works flawlessly. The “bookend” scenes at the beginning and finale add a layer to the material that is only fully realized, and appreciated, during the long conversation the film provokes on the ride home. Also to its credit, Eternal Sunshine is fairly easy to grasp, accessible not only to those who like having their minds bent, but to everyone who gives the film the attention it warrants. A second viewing will come from appreciation, rather than incomprehension.

There are a couple of sequences, particularly one where Joel is remembering back to being a young child, when Carrey’s tendency toward zany overacting becomes a bit overbearing on a story that walks the line between creativity and outrageousness. One scene in particular, when he’s hiding under the kitchen table, is detrimental to the film’s tone. Yet, even with Kaufman’s creative flourishes, genuine emotion is captured in the third act. As the film winds toward its finale, numerous possible endings are in reach. It is a major accomplishment that the filmmakers chose just the right one. In other words, don’t miss “the passion” of Charlie Kaufman.

Final Grade: A-

Jim Carrey (right) plays Joel Barish, in this story of a man who wishes to have some of his memories removed after a harsh break-up.