Surreal Movie
My wife and I went out for my birthday last week. We have an unwritten rule that whoever arranges for the babysitter gets to pick the movie. She almost always gets to pick out the movie. The one exception is for birthdays so I, for once, got to pick. I get Entertainment Weekly so I had the chance to over-analyze my options. I chose The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind because it got good reviews and I liked some of the screenwriter’s previous works (Adaptation and Being John Malkovich). And because it was a movie that I know my wife would never have picked on herself.
Like Kaufman’s other movies, it was very surreal. More surreal than the one with the two Nicholas Cage’s in it, but not quite as surreal as the one with the dozens of John Malkovich’s in it. I got a kick out of it, but Chris thought it was too bizarre. She was especially annoyed with the fact that I was enjoying it.
It is about a couple who decide to have their memories of each other erased after they break up. It was not your typical romantic comedy. Half the movie takes place within the mind of the lead character while he is REM sleep. The “dream state” special effects were great.
I thought the plot was intriguing, but about every ten minutes Chris would turn to me in the theater and give me a glare that telegraphed “why did you subject me to this movie?”
I would recommend the movie, but Chris was ready to have the last two hours of the her life erased after it was over.