The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind proves that Jim Carrey is an acting genius. Whether it be on a comic or artistic level, the man delivers. He’s a risk taker who not just takes the big risks, somehow makes them look easy.

The story is slightly less complicated than the title. Both partners in a relationship elect to have a surgical procedure to remove all memories of the other person. The rub is the operation fails for one of them and they want the other person back. Your typical love story.

boy: I remember when we walked barefoot on the sands of Montuak by candle light. Later I served you strawberries and wine from a gold chalice.

girl: And you are?

The bulk of the movie steps through the many connected and distorted memories of their days together, bringing the good and bad elements of their relationship into perspective.

It’s told in non linear fashion, read – flashback, flash forward, flash left, flashlight. Look out behind you! The director is loose in the theater with the editing machine and license to jump through space and time! Is the end the beginning or is the beginning the end?

Despite the winding story structure, ESOTSM comes together. That does not mean it’s the easiest thing to follow. ESOTSM is a film more than it’s a movie, which by my definition means there is a message.

If you like offbeat films, give this one a whirl. Definitely worth a DVD purchase.