Eternal Sunshine of the Movie Metaphor

We’ve all watched a movie with that pretentious person who insists that every single narrative element is a metaphor for something. You might hear them say “the curtains were blue to symbolize death,” or “the speed limit sign was 55 to symbolize drug abuse,” and other far-reaching, nonsensical comparisons. More often than not, these people's favorite movies are the ones where nothing that is happening is actually happening. Take American Psycho, where every scene can be understood as a 1:1 metaphor of something else. For example, the main character killing people symbolizes his violent individualism and lack of empathy––he never actually kills anyone. Although there is merit in viewing films through such an analytical lens, it can be confounded by movies that are dedicated to their own literality, where a metaphorical approach leads the analyser to miss a lot of the message and impact. I’ll explain with my favorite example––and one of my favorite movies––Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. 

In the beginning of Eternal Sunshine, we are introduced to our main characters, Joel and Clementine, who are dealing with trauma and mental health issues, as well as a clinic that erases memories. This is not a sci-fi movie–––the clinic is not treated in a special way, nor explained through any vague attempt at science. Instead, the irreconcilability between the familiar, ordinary world and the outlandish concept of memory erasure leads the “over-analyser” (who understands movies through their specific metaphors, allusions, and subtexts) to try and make the pieces fit together like a puzzle. They ask what is actually happening instead of memory erasure. 

After beginning to fall in love with Clementine, Joel has a confusing interaction where she seems to not know who he is, after which he receives a card that says “Clementine Kruczynski has had Joel Barish erased from her memory. Please never mention their relationship to her again.” He asks what the clinic who sent the card; his friend says that it is “some place that does a thing.” This particular line of dialogue suggests that Joel’s understanding of the place differs from that of others in the film, leading the viewer to suspect that memory erasure may not be what the clinic actually does. Joel then makes an appointment at the clinic and confronts them about being “a hoax,” despite finding a real place with several employees and clients. This demonstrates to the viewer that he lives in a normal, unaltered reality. The clinic is not well known, and the concept of memory erasure is not presented as a landmark scientific advancement that he or others in this world would have already been aware of–which would put the movie in a futuristic semi-sci-fi genre. Instead, he lives firmly in our time and reality, and has the same reaction we would to the outlandish concept of memory erasure: disbelief. The casual and non-scientific introduction and handling of the procedure reinforce that this is not a sci-fi movie, leaving the viewer in search of another explanation. 

The casual, mystical elements of the clinic within the otherwise normal reality of the film, coupled with its clear themes of mental health, could lead the aforementioned over-analysers to believe that the clinic is metaphorical––that it doesn't actually exist. When Joel goes to the consultation, the physical environment of the place can also be easily understood as a psychiatrist's office. In seeing the film’s early events, over-analysers could make the claim that the memory erasure procedure is actually just him going on stabilizing mental health medication. They could also argue that the medication has both the literal effect of erasing his memory, but more importantly, the metaphorical effect of altering his personality and his relationship with the world. 

After Joel approves of his own procedure, the audience then sees the memory erasure technicians commencing the process in his home. At this point, it becomes clear that our perspective of Joel’s memories are being seen through his experience within the memory erasure machine. The plot point of them breaking into his home, from the metaphorical standpoint, is difficult to explain, especially after the technicians begin to interact with his environment and Joel himself. From here, we follow his memories of his relationship with Clementine in reverse order, starting from their breakup. We know that all of this is really happening because the inexplicable dent in his car from the beginning of the movie is shown to have been made by Clementine––evidence of their prior relationship. Similarly, the absence of two years’ worth of pages in his journal is explained by the procedure, which involved destroying all items associated with her memory. 

Without the division between characters who are living in reality and those that we are seeing through an altered metaphorical perspective, the entire narrative of the movie becomes the symbol, and the literal implications of the plot are what we are meant to grapple with. By contrast, in American Psycho, all characters but the protagonist Patrick Bateman are living in the real version of reality, but we only see them through Bateman’s altered version. These people and events then symbolize his thoughts and actions, and through them, we can grapple with how someone could idealize violence so much that they might as well have actually committed it. In American Psycho, we only have Bateman––and his effect on the plot and characters––to analyze. Comparatively, in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, we are free to explore themes with the other fringe characters; they aren’t in on some meta joke; they are existing on the same plane as our main character. Each person in the film is confronted with their own consequences of memory erasure and how it affects their life. 

As the film continues, we watch painful memories being erased, and slowly, Joel starts to regret his decision as he watches bittersweet yet important moments from his life being taken away. Throughout this journey, we also see him reflect on the things he wished he'd done differently, the things he never said or never did, as he finds himself chasing after memories of the woman he loved, each one being erased as quickly as he could find them because each one was tainted by the pain he felt from losing her. 

The implications of the memory erasure being real make the movie much more meaningful than if it had just been an allusion to just mental health medication. Instead, it explores how we sabotage ourselves by not allowing ourselves to love, or be ourselves, or believe we are good enough. It explores how love transcends the barriers we build: that we choose the same people over and over, no matter the circumstance, always believing that this time it might be better. Perhaps, most of all, it shows us how we are meant to learn from our past mistakes, despite how painful they are and how much we wish we could delete or change them.

Over-analysers often lose a lot of what makes Eternal Sunshine so great by strictly adhering to a metaphorical lens. They are forced to try and contort the movie back into the bounds of a non literal plot, yielding the idea of the movie as an allusion to mental health drugs. This analytical method can be an insightful way to approach movies such as in American Psycho, where the issues of violence and empathy are much clearer through the metaphorical plot elements. Contrarily, there is often criticism from casual viewers, who claim it glorifies or normalizes violence. In this case, casual viewing leads to a non nuanced understanding of the film. However, Eternal Sunshine simply does not fall within this paradigm, and while discussions between casual viewers and over-analysers will similarly lead to different standpoints, the film’s core message resides on the side of the casual viewer. When you take the narrative as entirely literal, you are less so seeing what life is like for someone who is mentally ill or the sci-fi related effects of memory erasure, but more seeing memory erasure as an avenue to explore love and relationships. 

Of course, casual viewers of films can sometimes claim to not “understand” Eternal Sunshine because they are confused by its bizarre, unexplained plot elements. It is admittedly disorienting in the beginning of the film that––in an otherwise normal world––the viewer is asked to simply accept that there is a memory erasure clinic. But often, casual viewers actually understand these movies better than over-analysers because they walk out of the theater and say, “I don't understand, he had his memory erased just to go back to her”––which is the point. By barely reading into the film, they can draw an entirely correct conclusion, and in many ways learn exactly what it sought to teach. 

The true beauty and impact of Eternal Sunshine comes from when you finish watching it and confront your own life. We all have moments, memories, or people in our lives that bring us pain to think about, but that is not solved by erasing them. Each one is important to who we are and how we grow. When those painful memories involve loved ones, having those memories that bring you pain is better than never having known or loved that person at all. This movie is not simply giving the viewer an insight into what life would be like with mental illness or under the influence of medicinal drugs–as one might be led to believe in the beginning–but instead giving the viewer an insight into themself. 

I love movies like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind for their ability to confront us with our own lives. I often find myself idly thinking about things I wish I could blot out from my brain; every time I do so, I think of Joel, imagining what I would lose if I took a trip to the clinic. There is something powerful about a film that leaves a lasting imprint on your worldview while also being able to make you understand yourself through the characters. This movie is not endearing to me through the people it shows, but through the way it reflects everyone who watches it, and how simple yet impactful its message is. Although I am very sympathetic to the analytical approach in movie watching, the literality of this movie serves as a reminder that sometimes you have to take a step back and appreciate things as a whole, and that casual viewing can yield more than you imagine.

Hadley is a freshman in Columbia College who loves television and movies a little more than she loves sleep. She is from Durango, Colorado, one of the filming sites of movies such Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid (1969), National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989), and Horizon Chapter 2 (2024). She enjoys similar movie fun facts, and hopes to learn more while majoring in film.

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