Editorial: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and the Significance of Hair Color!

I have a problem. I can’t watch a movie that is hyped by everyone and one such movie is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, but this time I forced myself to watch it on Netflix. Charlie Kaufman wrote something in which he also managed to read minds. Once you start watching, then you will realize that there are multiple layers to this film. It is a circular narration, and you will find yourself in a loop from the very beginning.

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Also, I’ve got an issue. I can’t watch a film that everyone is raving about. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one such film, but I had to make myself watch it this time. Charlie Kaufman created a masterpiece. As soon as you begin watching, you will notice that this movie has many layers. It is a circular story, so you’ll be stuck in a loop right from the start.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind tells us a tragic romantic story of Joel (Jim Carrey) and Clementine (Kate Winslet), a loving couple who, after breaking up, opt to have their traumatic memories of each other permanently erased.

In the beginning, when Joel opens his damaged notebook and begins writing in it while sitting on the rocks, it is evident that the last entry was made in 2001, and he also notices that several pages have been pulled out. This gives us the impression that something major is about to occur.

This is where we find out that he has lost his memories. To bring the story full circle, the filmmakers ensured that these characters remembered details of their past life even after the procedure, just as Clementine did, and so did Joel.

Throughout the movie, Clementine’s hair was dyed. The color of Clementine’s hair is crucial to the plot of the film. It assists us in keeping track of the timeframe. Whenever her hair is blue that we are in the present; when her hair is orange, or a deep reddish auburn, we know that we are in Joel’s mind; and when her hair is green, we know we’re witnessing Joel’s memory of the first time he met her.

The various colors used in different segments of the film also define their relationship with one another in that chronology. They primarily used four hues.

1) Green: It all started with the color green. This color was also called the Green Revolution. Green is commonly associated with spring. Green here represents renewal or the beginning of something new. The beginning of their friendship/relationship with one another. It represents the happy days of her life.

2) Red: Red has long been regarded as a religious symbol of love. The time when Clementine had red-colored hair was the time when they realized that they love each other. It was the honeymoon phase of their relationship. They started dating each other when Clem’s hair was red. It represents the fiery passion in the early days of their relationship.

3) Orange: This color was also known as Agent Orange. The color orange is commonly associated with autumn. It is also regarded as the fading color of red, their love. During this stage, they became increasingly estranged from one another. “Are we dying dead?” was the line they used for their relationship during this phase. This was the time their love for each other began to fade and when they started fighting with each other a lot.

4) Blue: They named it a Blue Ruin. The time when Joel and Clem are finally reunited. Blue represents the freshness of starting over something. The usage of colors in the movie is stunning, and it was an emotional and beautifully crafted drama that evoked a wide range of emotions in me. It will always have a special place in my heart. This is the time when they meet each other again after their memory loss procedure.

It is not The Truman Show that made me believe that Carrey is the real deal as far as dramatic roles go. It was this film, that helped Jim Carrey score a home run in the drama genre. Eternal Sunshine was an emotional, beautifully spun feature that brought out the best of the actor in Carrey. Watch the film on Netflix here.

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Aditi Parikh

Senior Associate Writer at Just for Movie Freaks

Aditi is yet another artist stuck in the body of an IT professional. Books, dark humor and twisted stories. Her life revolves around it, and some might even say that she's blunt, and even agree that she is the fakest real person they have ever met. She is loving and exploring the unexplored side of cinema and hopes that people will watch through her eyes.

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