JaRon Crawley
November 12, 2015
“Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind”
Character Development:
Although the main character is Joel, through out the film we see multiple characters being revealed and how they assist in not only progressing the film as a whole, but also adding to the progression of our main character. Clementine plays a huge role in the development of Joel’s character. His misery can be equated to the distant memory of the love he felt once before. The story is told mostly through Joel’s POV being as though it is based solely off his memories. We start off showing guy down on his luck, in the gritty, grey streets of NY. We immediately are drawn in to feel empathy for Joel. As the movie progresses Joel’s is taken through a whirlwind …show more content…
The sound can be equated to other cerebral like films I.e. “The Matrix” and “Mr. Nobody”. Like the Matrix, the audience is unsure if the main character is dreaming or awake as the shots cut from him waking up, to him waking up again and this is similar to what Joel is experiencing. When Joel is going through his “memory” sound effects and outside sounds are mixed with the audio from his memory. Joel thinks that he’s in a dream, but he is really experiencing the past. Through the sounds of the outside characters talking, he learns that they are erasing his memories and that a guy named Patrick is trying to assume his identity and steal Clementine from him. This happens because he really isn’t in a dream at all, but still a participant in what is happening in the real world. Another example occurs when he wants the erasing to stop and all he can hear is the song that is playing in the room. These sounds are presented in an extremely unique way to the audience. Sounds overlap one another in memories and in the real world suggesting a blending of the …show more content…
This was most likely done to give the film a realistic feel to it right up front. I believe that the cinematographer, Ellen Kuras, was trying to make sure that the audience knew that this part was “real”. Having a handheld camera made the distinction between the real word, and imaginative world (Joel’s memories). The realism of these scenes continues as lighting is brought into play. In the “real” word, most of what is seen is lit by available lighting. The film turns formalistic when the audience is traveling with Joel through his memories. The cinematographer used direct lighting to light the subjects. In most of the memories it seems that the camera is attached to a flood light, moving and focusing only narrowly on what can be seen as Joel’s memories are being erased. The camera moves smoothly around Joel increasing the stylization. The cinematographer creates a contrast between the real world Joel lives in and the memories he is seeing while they are being erased. The special effects in the film also add to the stylistic nature of Joel’s memories. In the beginning and end of the film, virtually no special effects are used to any extent. When his memories are being erased by the “eraser people,” books disappear from shelves, cars fall from the sky, and Joel is lost on a street that never seems to be going in the right direction. All of these
November 12, 2015
“Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind”
Character Development:
Although the main character is Joel, through out the film we see multiple characters being revealed and how they assist in not only progressing the film as a whole, but also adding to the progression of our main character. Clementine plays a huge role in the development of Joel’s character. His misery can be equated to the distant memory of the love he felt once before. The story is told mostly through Joel’s POV being as though it is based solely off his memories. We start off showing guy down on his luck, in the gritty, grey streets of NY. We immediately are drawn in to feel empathy for Joel. As the movie progresses Joel’s is taken through a whirlwind …show more content…
The sound can be equated to other cerebral like films I.e. “The Matrix” and “Mr. Nobody”. Like the Matrix, the audience is unsure if the main character is dreaming or awake as the shots cut from him waking up, to him waking up again and this is similar to what Joel is experiencing. When Joel is going through his “memory” sound effects and outside sounds are mixed with the audio from his memory. Joel thinks that he’s in a dream, but he is really experiencing the past. Through the sounds of the outside characters talking, he learns that they are erasing his memories and that a guy named Patrick is trying to assume his identity and steal Clementine from him. This happens because he really isn’t in a dream at all, but still a participant in what is happening in the real world. Another example occurs when he wants the erasing to stop and all he can hear is the song that is playing in the room. These sounds are presented in an extremely unique way to the audience. Sounds overlap one another in memories and in the real world suggesting a blending of the …show more content…
This was most likely done to give the film a realistic feel to it right up front. I believe that the cinematographer, Ellen Kuras, was trying to make sure that the audience knew that this part was “real”. Having a handheld camera made the distinction between the real word, and imaginative world (Joel’s memories). The realism of these scenes continues as lighting is brought into play. In the “real” word, most of what is seen is lit by available lighting. The film turns formalistic when the audience is traveling with Joel through his memories. The cinematographer used direct lighting to light the subjects. In most of the memories it seems that the camera is attached to a flood light, moving and focusing only narrowly on what can be seen as Joel’s memories are being erased. The camera moves smoothly around Joel increasing the stylization. The cinematographer creates a contrast between the real world Joel lives in and the memories he is seeing while they are being erased. The special effects in the film also add to the stylistic nature of Joel’s memories. In the beginning and end of the film, virtually no special effects are used to any extent. When his memories are being erased by the “eraser people,” books disappear from shelves, cars fall from the sky, and Joel is lost on a street that never seems to be going in the right direction. All of these