In Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, writer Charlie Kaufman and director Michel Gondry take the phrase "I wish we'd never met" to a disturbing and inventive conclusion. Kaufman who also wrote Being John Malkovich and Adaptation delivers another thought-provoking and quirky story. 

Introverted wallflower Joel Barish, played by a barely recognizable Jim Carrey, falls for free-spirited alcoholic Clementine Kruczynski (Kate Winslet). While the opposites initially attract, what brought them together eventually tears them apart. After the breakup, the impulsive Clementine gets a controversial procedure to erase all of her memories of Joel. When the heartbroken Joel finds out, he rushes to have the same procedure done - only half way through the procedure he has a change of heart. Much of the 'action' in Spotless Mind occurs in Joel's mind as he and Clementine try to hide from those who seek to obliterate what few memories he has left. The staff at the Lacuna facility, Dr Howard Mierzwiak (Tom Wilkinson), his smitten receptionist, Mary (Kirsten Dunst) and his memory technicians (Mark Ruffalo and Elijah Wood) do more than just attempt to extract Joel's memories. Without giving too much away, they add complexity and dimension, providing other perspectives to the themes of memory, love and loss.

I'm not a huge Jim Carrey fan. In fact, I've found most of his 'serious' roles rather painful to watch (hated Man in the Moon, couldn't sit through The Majestic and was less than impressed with The Truman Show). This time around, I actually enjoyed his performance. While there are several glimpses of Carrey, the funnyman, fans who enjoy hearing him talk out of his butt cheeks are in for a disappointment. A few commercials I've seen lately are promoting this as more of a straight comedy. It is funny, in its own way, but it is not a typical comedy.

If we don't remember the past, are we doomed to repeat it? Is it better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all? Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind proves that there are no easy answers to these questions and there is no simple solution to heartbreak. For those interested in those kinds of questions, this movie is worth the effort. If you are looking for a laugh out loud comedy, better to take a pass on this one.