eternal sunshine of the spotless mind Tagged Articles at Cinematical

The pounding beat of a headache, or the sear of a migraine, is something I rarely have to face. That makes me lucky, for the most part, but it also means that when one hits, like today, all I can think of is heads and brains like a zombie in training. Naturally, this has me thinking of movies that focus on the stories of the noggin. Should I go for The Man with Two Brains or other similar brainy fare? Nah.

Instead, I'm going to focus on a man behind the camera, one who brought us two of the best stories of the mind to date: Mr. Charlie Kaufman. It all started with a little Malkovich Malkovich, and then continued with the overwhelming urge to erase love from the mind -- two stories that make a little headache seem like nothing. On this warm Friday, I give you: Being John Malkovich and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind ...

What makes a film romantic? Is it the setting, the dialogue, the actors, the sex? And when your snuggling up next to your significant other this Valentine's Day, which films will you prefer to slide into the DVD player? Moviefone has assembled the definitive list -- the top 25 romance films of all time -- and now it's up to you to decide what they got right, what they got wrong and what they didn't get at all. Of course, Casablanca tops off the list at number one (is there a list in which Casablanca is not featured in the numero uno spot?), but following closely behind are Titanic (#2), Wuthering Heights (#3), An Affair to Remember (#4) and Gone with the Wind (#5). Obviously, when we're talking romance flicks, they don't make them like they used to.

When it comes to films made within the past few years, we don't find one until Brokeback Mountain shows up at number 12, followed by Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind at number 15, and last year's Atonement at 18. Personally, I have a few issues with placement -- not so much with the films themselves -- like why Sleepless in Seattle is at 25 when it should've been higher. Films that didn't make the cut? Surprisingly, not many romantic comedies made the list. Even though they rely more on humor, some of us enjoy a little laughter with our cheesy romance. That being said, why not throw When Harry Met Sally a bone? Or even last year's Knocked Up? Either way, let us know what you think about the list below -- which films belong in different spots, which don't belong on the list at all and which are your favorites?

Though he still has to debut his latest -- and perhaps most commercial -- effort, Be Kind Rewind, writer-director Michel Gondry is constantly looking ahead toward his future projects. The man behind two of my favorite films from the past few years, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Science of Sleep, revealed to MTV a new project he's working on called The Return of the Ice Kings (which may or may not have something to do with that project he's working on with his son). Once again Gondry plans to return to the world of science for a story he describes as being "about kids who invent a water that makes you hear music when you drink it." He claims to be already scoping out talent to star in the flick, though he admits the script needs to be completed first. Gondry adds: "It's going to be a scientific story, but completely unrealistic." Not sure about that -- I have friends who hear all sorts of things when they drink.

When asked about his obsession with science, Gondry explained: "I'm into science - in fact, I read more about science and astronomy than about movies. Science is re-questioning itself all the time, and it's still at a stage where anything is possible." Additionally, he teased one scene from the film that still needs to be written: "At one point, they see the end of time in the movie. So, we'll have to shoot it somewhere that looks like the end of time." While Gondry often taps into his childhood for inspiration, this would mark the first time the writer-director works with children in a film -- so I can't be the only one excited to see where he goes with it. We'll be reviewing Be Kind Rewind this month as part of our Sundance coverage, and the film will officially hit theaters on February 22.

Well, it's official. The Writers Guild of America is going on strike tomorrow. Here's hoping the strike ends quickly and that all parties come away happy. And writers? Use this time off to study my choices for the seven best screenplays of the 2000's:

The 40 Year Old Virgin by Judd Apatow & Steve Carell

The blending of improvisation and the written word gives Apatow's two classic comedies -- Knocked Up would be the other -- a feeling of authenticity that is all too rare in today's film world. Apatow takes the strategy of writing for specific performers and their strengths, and it really pays off. Scoff if you want at a sex comedy making the list, but for a movie to be this incredibly funny -- while keeping an oddly touching romance and a spot-on character study afloat -- the screenwriters deserve high praise.

About Schmidt by Alexander Payne & Jim Taylor

One of the saddest comedies ever made, and one of the most truthful and painful portraits of old age. Payne and Taylor specialize in scripts about people on the verge of cracking, depressed souls who tend to find the smallest redemption possible. Payne/Taylor characters never go from Point A to Point B over the course of the screenplay, they go from Point A to Point A.1. The small, gradual changes in their characters are reflective of the way actual humans (as opposed to movie humans) work. Warren Schmidt's personal growth is so minor that it is confined to the last thirty seconds of the film, but when it comes it's an emotional punch in the gut.

Sometimes the work of film directors just amazes me. Classic films like Orson Welles' Touch of Evil, Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather or Steven Spielberg's Shindler's List serve to remind us just how well films can be made and yes, that "magic" can happen -- at least once in awhile. Another such director is Michel Gondry. His films Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, the upcoming Be Kind Rewind and a fantastic array of music videos and commercials superbly demonstrate his immense talent and show what the "art" in filmmaking is all about. In short, I think he's pretty much a genius.

Apparently, Gondry's genius stretches into other areas besides directing -- like geometry and contortion -- because if you watch this video you'll see the amazing Gondry solving a Rubik's Cube with his feet! Yes, I said his feet. Most people have enough trouble solving the damn things using their hands and this guy uses his feet. Impressive. I don't know about you but watching this sorta makes me feel like less of a man somehow. I really need to do something to feel better about myself. Where's Pauly Shore so I can punch him?

Focus Features ran into a fairly large obstacle on Tuesday when stars Jim Carrey, Cameron Diaz and director Gabriele Muccino all vacated their posts from A Little Game, due to begin filming Oct. 19. Ouch. Both stars had problems with the third act of the film, based on a French play, and a promised rewrite failed to make everyone happy, which has turned A Little Game into A Big Mess.

Studio head James Schamus is tackling the rewrite himself, having written The Ice Storm and other films, in the hopes the movie can still be salvaged, at least with Jim Carrey onboard.

Carrey is finding himself in turbulent waters without anything to guide him to shore lately, having had Used Guys and Ripley's Believe It or Not! fall apart before shooting. He also fired his agents recently, which in Hollywood effectively states "do over!" We'd fire our agents too after both saddling us with the Tea Leoni curse and failing to capitalize on our excellent turn in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

Carrey's problem, it seems, is that he wants to be taken as a serious actor after appearing in both Eternal and The Majestic. However, this guy is goofy to the core, and that's a good thing. But he's already crossed the line of taking himself, and his press, too seriously. Hopefully he can find a happy medium without doing films like Ace Ventura III, which is happening without him anyhow.

Related Posts:

Carrey and Diaz Reunite for Muccino Pic

Muccino Learns Consequence

The WTF Files: Ace Ventura 3??

While some of us try to merely ignore Kirsten Dunst's irritating existence, some of the gossip blogs despise her so much, they'd like to either erase her from their memory, or rewind her career in order to block it from beginning in the first place. The film I was most easily able to tolerate her in is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, where she was directed by Michel Gondry. Now she's negotiating a possible reunion with the visionary filmmaker for Be Kind, Rewind. The film will star Jack Black and the plot is, of course, a bit complicated (Read Martha's original report).

Now, even without screenwriter Charlie Kaufman, I'm still excited about the tricks Gondry has up his sleeve. He's a remarkably imaginative director, and no matter how insufficient his own scripts might be compared to Kaufman's, he still gives the audience a lot of worthwhile visuals. And yet, I can't quite get around the fact that by adding Dunst to Black, I am likely to be in annoyance overload. The best I can hope for is that Black will not be left to ham it up -- I bet he could be quite good if allowed to be serious, and perhaps he can follow in Jim Carrey's Eternal Sunshine footsteps -- and Dunst's acting will once again be overshadowed by Gondry's talents.