The film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind by Michel Gondry, released in 2004, deals with themes of memory, identity and love. The film focuses on a lonely man named Joel Barish and his increasingly dysfunctional relationship with Clementine Kruczynski. As their relationship deteriorates, they both individually decide to erase each other's memories from their minds at Lacuna Inc. Throughout the film, Joel demonstrates to the viewer that although he is completely unhappy, he begins to regret his agreement with the procedure. and desperately tries to hold on to the happiest moments of his life. The scene just before the sequence I chose is a memory of the first and only time Joel was so happy to be able to "die now"; lying on frozen Charles with Clementine. The staging of this sequence is broad, first illustrating the trivial way people view memory loss, then contrasting this with the importance of retaining one's memories; the good and the bad. In this sequence, Joël demonstrates to viewers that he cannot run away from his problems by choosing the easy way out, because trying to deny the existence of negative people will never lead to happiness, and especially not when it results in the loss of your happiest memories. The sequence begins by introducing the idea of ​​Clementine's deletion by the program erasing Joel's memory. Beginning with a high angle shot showing Joël and Clémentine on the ground, in what appears to be the train station, darkness surrounds them. They are presented under a bright spotlight, surrounded by indistinguishable businessmen. The spotlight effect is most evident when the camera cuts to an extremely long shot of them lying there, which gives the idea that they are small specimens... in the middle of a leaf... his growing regret for choosing to erase his memory, as well as his desperation to stop him. Lacuna Inc. erases people's memories, but the procedure doesn't change their innate tendencies. This only leads to Joel and Clementine meeting again and repeating everything in a continuous cycle. With this truth, one can understand how "easy solutions" may seem like answers to life's problems, but the sequence illustrates the enormity of impulsive actions. Unlike Joel, who will continue to visit Lacuna Inc. when things go wrong with each new relationship with Clementine, the viewer is given the opportunity to learn from his actions and retain the knowledge that it takes moments of darkness to appreciate fully enjoy the moments we take for granted.Works CitedEternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Dir. Michel Gondry. Focus features. 2004. Cinema