An absolute masterclass in cinematic layering by the most distinctive screenwriter of our age, Eternal Sunshine is Charlie Kaufman's most ambitious script yet.

Cast against type, Jim Carrey's reclusive Joel and Kate Winslet's exuberant Clementine go through relationship woes, and, following a particularly bitter fight, she impulsively gets all memories of Joel erased from her brain.

Initially perplexed, Joel is incensed to learn of this action and decides to erase Clementine from his brain as well... except he can't quite bring himself to let go of their terrific memories together.

In one powerful sequence, we see Joel and Clemetine huddled beneath a blanket. She asks him if she's ugly, and, almost without waiting for his reply, starts telling him about her about when she was eight. She talks of an eponymous doll, and how she wills the ugly toy to become beautiful. He starts kissing her and she vanishes, and Joel pleads to be allowed to keep that memory.

In the next shot, the two glide around and lie down on a frozen river, and Joel expresses complete contentment before the memory of Clementine is literally yanked away from him. Joel pleads to the skies, but his desperate cries fall on partying ears. Just watch the scene.

Michel Gondry's film is a complex, labyrinthine work that requires a great deal of attention and multiple viewings to completely appreciate its genius. Yet that's not what makes it a truly great film; that comes from it being, above all else, a romance for the ages.

Also Read: The Review

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