Film Review: Non-linear Storytelling

Non-linear Storytelling 

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) - Film Poster

This review will investigate the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) by Michel Gondry and showcase its non-linear timeline and the effect it has on the audience. Key sources will be Jeff Saporito’s article How does Clementine's hair help us understand "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind“ (2015) and Madison Brek’s article How Editing Shapes Story in ‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’ (2018).

“After a painful breakup, Clementine (Kate Winslet) undergoes a procedure to erase memories of her former boyfriend Joel (Jim Carrey) from her mind. When Joel discovers that Clementine is going to extremes to forget their relationship, he undergoes the same procedure and slowly begins to forget the woman that he loved. Directed by former music video director Michel Gondry, the visually arresting film explores the intricacy of relationships and the pain of loss.“ (mediaknite)

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) is presented out of chronological order, partially because it unfolds through Joel’s perspective of the procedure, which erases the most recent memory of Clementine first and then goes backwards. But as the erasing process digs deeper and brings Joel’s older memories closer to the forefront, timelines shift and weave in varying directions. (Saporito, 2015) Therefore the audience is tasked with piecing the actual chronology together themselves. But Clementine’s hair colour changes throughout the film, which helps the audience piece together the events chronologically. 

The film starts in the (later to be known) future, as we see Joel meeting Clementine at the beach and talks later to her in the train. The two instantly attract, as tends to be the case with opposites. While Joel makes every attempt to shutter himself from the growing magnetism of his new acquaintance, he simultaneously can’t seem to shake her. She’s become part of him through the undefinable forces of human emotion and it’s all before the opening credits start. (Brek, 2018) In the first scene Clementine has blue hair and wears a bright orange sweatshirt. (Fig. 1) Both, the blue hair and the bright orange sweatshirt will appear again in the film and is important to understand the non-linear timeline. 

Fig. 1 - Joel and Clementine meeting for the "first" time on the train

It then shifts to a recent past, after Clementine erased all memories of Joel. That is why she is not recognizing him anymore in the bookshop and she has a new boyfriend. In that scene Clementine has blue hair, the same blue hair as in the first scene which suggests that these scenes take place around the same time. (Fig. 2)

Fig. 2 - Clementine doesn't recognizes Joel anymore

Based on this incident Joel decides to undertake the same procedure as Clementine to erase all memories of their relationship. In the process of deleting his memories the memories are shown in reverse-chronological order and go further back in time. Which means the audience is presented with the most recent memory and goes back to the very first memory of the couple at the end of the film. That order makes their relationship seem to be improving as the film progresses when the opposite is actually the case. 

That can also be seen within Clementine`s hair. “As their story marches forward (or, backward in the case of the film), the redness of her hair fades to an orange, then to a muddy orange and lastly grown out again with increased messiness.“ (Saporito, 2015) But in the film we see it the other way around. In the first erasing scenes where the two are fighting, Clementine`s hair is shown with muddy orange hair. (Fig. 3) It shows that the era of red passion has passed and the fervor has died down. 

Fig. 3 - Both are unhappy in their relationship 

But later on we see a scene of the two in a forrest, with Clementine having bright red hair. (Fig. 4) It suggests that this happened in the beginning of their dating phase. The red hair can be seen as their passion phase because red is associated with energy, strength, passion and desire. But red also represents danger - so it can be seen as a warning of how bad things will end up for them in the future. (Saporito, 2015)

Fig. 4 - Clementine and Joel are kissing in the forrest 

The very last memory that is getting erased is the very first memory of them. It is when Clementine and Joel first met at a beach party. Her hair is an acidic shade of green and she pairs it with the same bright orange sweatshirt, the same orange sweatshirt as seen in the first scene of the film. (Fig.5)  Green represents the blossoming of something fresh and alive and since it is the only time in the film that we see Clementine with green hair it can symbolize the fresh start or their relationship. Since Clementine is only seen with green hair that one day at the beach, it can be said that she died her hair to the bright red after they met for the first time. 

Fig. 5 - Clementine and Joel meet for the first time

But in the erasing process the beach day (Clementine green hair) is when everything is about to fall apart and we end up back in the present. The present of them meeting at the beach for the second time (Clementine blue hair) continues to be the future we already saw and goes beyond. So the very first scene of the film is essentially the present. 

The film in the end then continues in chronicle order and shows us their future - when they both find out they have been a couple before but erased all memories of each other. Just as confused as the characters in that situation is the audience because the film doesn’t show a conclusion if they are getting back together or not. 

Therefore Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind can be seen as a masterpiece of construction because only through the power of editing the film achieves the desired effect - that the audience wants to see Joel and Clementine back together. It all comes down to how and in what order the information is delivered. Since in the process of erasing Joel`s memories the audience goes through the negative, most recent, memories first, they have long faded at the end of the film and the viewer is left thinking more about the good times. Through the use of a non-liner time structure the film provokes the emotional reactions within the audience - they want the two characters back together, even though they still recall that these two people will eventually make each other miserable at the end again. 

Bibliography

Brek, M. (2018). How Editing Shapes Story in ‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'. [online] Film School Rejects. Available at: https://filmschoolrejects.com/editing-shapes-story-eternal-sunshine-spotless-mind/ [Accessed 10 Nov. 2019].

Mediaknite.org. (2019). Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind | MEDIA. [online] Available at: http://www.mediaknite.org/eternal-sunshine-of-the-spotless-mind/ [Accessed 10 Nov. 2019].

Sadauskas, J. (2012). Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind Timeline – John Sadauskas. [online] John Sadauskas. Available at: https://johnsadauskas.com/eternal-sunshine-of-the-spotless-mind-timeline/ [Accessed 10 Nov. 2019].

Saporito, J. (2015). How does Clementine's hair help us understand "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" | ScreenPrism. [online] Screenprism.com. Available at: http://screenprism.com/insights/article/how-does-clementines-hair-help-us-understand-eternal-sunshine-of-the-spotle [Accessed 10 Nov. 2019].

Illustration List

Fig. 1 - Joel and Clementine meeting for the "first" time on the train (image) - http://200movies.org/tag/charlie-kaufman/

Fig. 2 - Clementine doesn't recognizes Joel anymore (image) - https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/67681/15-unforgettable-facts-about-eternal-sunshine-spotless-mind

Fig. 3 - Both are unhappy in their relationship (image) - https://www.indiewire.com/2019/03/eternal-sunshine-tracy-organ-clementine-twist-ending-1202053287/

Fig. 4 - Clementine and Joel are kissing in the forrest (image) - https://weheartit.com/entry/321872704

Fig. 5 - Clementine and Joel meet for the first time (image) - http://screenprism.com/insights/article/how-does-clementines-hair-help-us-understand-eternal-sunshine-of-the-spotle