Turned it off after twenty minutes

A film with utterly no pulse. It was impossible for me to get engrossed in a plot that basically consists of self-absorbed slackers and drifters who just dwelled and perpetuated their own misery.

After watching 20 minutes of Carrey feeling sorry for himself and Winslet behaving like a patient on a day's pass from the ward, I turned it off. I'm glad I did.

Unforgettable

The one thing you must remember when viewing this film is to WATCH IT BEYOND THE FIRST 20 MINUTES! That first bit of the film might make you think you are watching another insufferable Jim Carey movie about a couple of simpleminded (brain damaged? mentally ill? Borderline retarded?) people who fall in love. What becomes clear after the 20-minute point, however, is that "Eternal Sunshine" is a much richer and more interesting film.

The main plot device is a company called Lacuna, Inc whose job is to erase bad memories. The rest of the film involved a love story, but also explored the complicated realities and ethics involved when you lose your bad memories but others don't. There are some scary moments in the film, mostly revolving around a character who changes his mind about the procedure. There are intense chase sequences that take place inside a person's memories that are at least as frightening as any chase involving cars or bad guys.

Carey and Kate Winslet are perfect as the crazy-in-love couple. Elijah
Wood is perfect as the geeky tech who wants to date Kate. Tom Wilkinson, Mark Ruffalo and Kirsten Dunst are fantastic as the workaday team busy changing brains while eating pizza and flirting.

The real star of the show, though, is artistic. The writing, editing
and lighting had to be perfect to represent the dreamlike mindscapes in which the characters maneuver for much of the film. Sections of the film take on a surreal quality with quick cuts, pinprick lighting, bizarre (but comprehensible) scene changes and repetitions.
The effects used to represent the disappearance of cherished memories were varied and quote convincing.

A phenomenal achievement on every level.

HINT: do not ruin the film by watching Jim Carey mug through the DVD extras. But do watch the infomercial for Lacuna, Inc.

Vastly Overated

I found this movie offensive, only occasionally funny, and not just a little bit depressing. Perhaps I'm too far removed from the zeitgeist to appreciate the emotional ties, the current "language of love," and the easy jump in/jump out of relationships among modern couples. In years past, the young would extend more courtliness to whores than these people extend to each other. I thought this movie stunk. It's a shame too, since Jim Carrey, one of those "Look at me, how outrageous I am" clowns, acts almost human herein. And he does it well.