Eternal Sunshine of the spotless mind (2004) and the manic pixie dream girl film analysis

 

***SPOILERS***

This film is possibly my favourite film of all time. It's the perfect combination of screen writing (Charlie Kaufman), direction (Michel Gondry) and performances by Kate Winslet and Jim Carey. The premise is unique but also universal. The question of whether you'd want the option to erase a person from your memory? This film is very quirky from Kaufman's conceptual development to the great and inventive style of direction that Gondry employs using some practical and visual effects to pull it off.

The two lead actors play roles that are opposite to their usual casting. Jim Carey plat Joel a quiet, but creative guy that likes things to be "nice" much different to his loud, big roles in comedies. In contrast Kate Winslet play Clementine who is a bit "out there" wearing colourful clothes, changing hair colour all the time, swearing passionately and being impulsive in contrast to her corset wearing bonnet dramas. Both performances are stellar and believable. 

Although this is not the film that birthed the term "Manic Pixie dream girl" (hereafter MPDG) I always associate it with this film and the character Clementine. The term was first used in reference to the film Elizabeth Town (2007) in a review by Nathan Rabin.

Elizabethtown (2007)

"I defined the MPDG as a fantasy figure who “exists solely in the fevered imaginations of sensitive writer-directors to teach broodingly soulful young men to embrace life and its infinite mysteries and adventures.”"

"The trope of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl is a fundamentally sexist one, since it makes women seem less like autonomous, independent entities than appealing props to help mopey, sad white men self-actualize. Within that context, the phrase was useful precisely because, while still fairly flexible, it also benefited from a certain specificity. "- Nathan Rabin

 So in some ways the term became retro-actively applied to earlier films, specifically the female characters in them. For example I argue that Natalie Portaman's character is a MPDG in Garden State (2004) see the list of all the MPDG in films here. 

Garden State (2004)

But in terms of defining the MPDG in Eternal Sunshine Clementine is the perfect example while I still argue she retains enough of her own character outside the trope. In Eternal Sunshine Clementine describes herself in dialogue the basic definition of the MPDG for example "I'm never going to know moment to moment what I'm going to like" and "It might be the hair...it changes a lot". And the film relationship dynamic centers on the fact the Clementine is passionate and vocal and impulsive and how this contrast with Joel who is quiet and conservative is conflicting yet was once something that complimented each other. Clementine brought Joel out of his shell, and he was in love with the excitement of her. By definition as MPDG Clementine functioned for  Joel's development and journey. 

500 Days of Summer

I would argue that in terms of thematic references and the concept of the MPDG I think Eternal Sunshine is most similar to 500 Days of Summer (2009), In both films it is centered around a love story and the break up of the relationship. Granted the one in Eternal Sunshine occurs predominantly inside Joel's mind/ memory for most of the film whereas in 500 Days of Summer they go back and forth in time to serve the same function. Both films deal with a woman who doesn't want to belong to traditional female stereotypes and roles, however ironically this is in fact part of the function of the MPDG. 

Interetsingly in the case of Eternal Sunshine most the Clementine actuaally literally occurs only in Joels's sleeping mind while she is being erased from his memory. This element I argue is a twist on the current MPDG function. It acknowledges that people only truly exist wihtin our mind's and that through his journey, Joel learns that it is worth keeping the painful memories in order to keep the one's he loves and that learning from love is more important. However the erasure seems to have been successful when he wakes in the morning. 

The film goes full circle and returns the beginning sequence where Joel and Clementine supposedly meet for the first time which is actually on Valentines Day after Joel and Clementine have both erased each other. It is a moving concept that love prevails despite memory loss, that somehow they are drawn to each other unconsciously. 

The set design, imagery, constumes and effects all contribute to the themes around erasure of memory. Details of which can be found in the special features of the DVD with commentary and interviews with Michel Gondry. I particularly love how subtly some things start becoming white and disappearing in scenes before they change/ are erased. For instance see above the picture mug of Clementine the image on the mug going white during the scene before it's erased. And below the book spines start to go blank more and more. 

 "I'm just a fucked up girl looking for my own piece of mind, I'm not perfect".

This "speech" occurs twice in the film, firstly in Joel's memory before she is erased and then in the penultimate scene where Joel asks Clementine to "Wait, for just a while". She unknowingly repeats the speech that had been erased from her mind that she'd said to Joel when they first met. So the film goes full circle.

However Clementine's lability of mood, her impulsivity and passion could not only be stereotyped as MPDG, but also pathologised as Borderline Personality disorder. However I argue she's not there purely to serve as a "lesson" for Joel, despite her representation being primarily his own memory of her. So if we were to be literal the "real" Clementine MPDG exists only at start and end of film, but I choose to believe his memory of her is subjective but somewhat accurate. Clementine has her own journey in the film, but she also serves to give Joel the realisation of taking chances/ risks in life and to risk pain in order to feel love. And that there's a reason we should remember things that are painful, in order to grow. (Sounds cheesy but the film is well played and sincere).

At the end of the erasure sequence Clementine says "Remember me. Try your best" after Joel says there is no memory left because he walked away because he was "scared". And Clementine says "What if you stayed this time?" and the last line before he wakes is "Meet me in Montauk" which is because that's where they do in fact meet seen at the start sequence of the film. 

Interestingly one could view Kirstin Dunst's character also in this film as one of being a MPDG. She is the professional receptionist, but also subject to sexual pranks by her undefined lover  from work. But also she is in love with Howard who runs the clinic. She reads poetry and quotes in order to seem "smart" for him. But she also gets stoned, has sex and dances on the bed in her underwear. Her storyline in this film is so sad. And in a deleted scene you can hear how she decided to have an abortion after she discovered she was pregnant presumably with Howard's baby. Her storyline indicates that perhaps we are all doomed to repeat our patterns regardless of memory. At the end of the film she sends everyone their files in order to "undo" this "mistake".  

So is the MPDG a sexist, misogynistic trope of the male gaze that has been adopted by hipster culture? To be honest I think it is sexist to further make female characters mere plot devices for male journeys. But is the MPDG more or less realistic? In some ways yes and others no. The MPDG is the extreme version of a woman. It is not realistic, but accepting the "moodiness" and sensitivity of the female temperament could be subjugating or it could be subversive? Personally I love the MPDG I think women need role models in characters and films that are quirky, and fun and strong. But it continues to be disappointing that women are written in film are mere sources of drama and plot devices whether they are a 1950s house wife or a MPDG in the 2000s.