Summary

• Eternal Sunshine blends realistic relationship issues with surreal imagery in a sci-fi setting, offering a unique exploration of the mind in romance.
• Director Michel Gondry's style perfectly complements the talented cast, making the movie a cult favorite that delves into memories and relationships.
• Movies like Big Fish and Her share thematic elements with Eternal Sunshine, exploring love, loss, and the power of memories in relationships.

Movies like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind exist in a subgenre that includes the most inventive romantic drama movies. Eternal Sunshine blends realistic relationship problems with surreal and impossible imagery in a sci-fi atmosphere. The movie's creative exploration of the main character's mind gives the audience a better understanding of the central romance and a rare look inside the characters' minds. Additionally, its non-linear structure makes it one of the most memorable movies about relationships.

These elements are what defined the movie and made it work so well. Director Michel Gondry's visual and comedic styles blended perfectly with the performances of the incredible ensemble cast and the thoughtful work of screenwriter Charlie Kaufman. It's no wonder why this movie has such a loving fanbase. As it continues to gather irers in its journey through certifiable cult status, so too are other movies to watch that are similar to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, both in scope and emotional impact.

1 Big Fish (2003)

Directed By Tim Burton

While Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is about discovering memories and reliving happy times between a couple, Tim Burton's Big Fish is a similar story, but about a father and son. In this movie, Billy Crudup is Will Bloom, a man who remains estranged from his father, a man who has a history of telling tall tales. These stories drove them apart, as WIll never knew what he could believe. However, when Edward (Albert Finney) lies dying, Will sets out to learn who his father was.

Will starts to piece together that they might not have been tall tales after all.

Much of the movie occurs in flashbacks, with Ewan McGregor playing a young Edward Bloom. As Edward deals with the many stories his father told him over the years, Will starts to piece together that they might not have been tall tales after all. The movie's design is magical and resembles movies like Eternal Sunshine in many areas. The ending, with the people from Edward's stories showing up at his funeral, finishes this magical movie perfectly.

2 Before Sunrise (1995)

Directed By Richard Linklater

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind seems like a romantic tragedy, as Joel and Clementine want to erase the memories of their time together. However, by the end, it is also a movie about second chances as they decide to try again, even though they know they have failed. When it comes to Before Sunrise, Richard Linklater took a smaller look, but it was still a powerful look at a couple that didn't have a long time together but still found a way to give their relationship a second and third chance.

Both this and Eternal Sunshine are movies about the strength and power of memories in a relationship.

Jesse and Céline meet on a train from Budapest and start a conversation. The two decide to spend the day together just for the memories that the day would bring. By the end, they part ways and don't give each other any information, but promise to meet again. This happens in the two sequels, Before Sunset and Before Midnight, and they end up back together, this time for good. Both this and Eternal Sunshine are movies about the strength and power of memories in a relationship.

3 What Dreams May Come (1998)

Directed By Vincent Ward

What Dreams May Come is a movie that explores trauma and tragedy in a way that even eclipses Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. The movie opens with a broken family, as Chris and Ennie lose their children following an auto accident. Things become worse when Chris dies in an accident a few years later. The movie follows Chris in the afterlife, as he originally doesn't know he is dead and then realizes that he has to save Emily, who dies by suicide and ends up in Hell.

Chris is similar to Joel, in that he realizes he has to save his love.

This is a movie very similar to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, as Chris is similar to Joel, in that he realizes he has to save his love. In one case, it is Joel who wants to hold onto his love, and in the other, it is Chris who literally has to save the love of his life before she forgets everything that gave her happiness to begin with before tragedy beset her.

4 Flashback (2020)

Directed By Christopher MacBride

Flashback plays with memory like movies like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. In this movie, Dylan O'Brien plays Fred, a man with a secure job and a fiance, but someone who is missing something in his life. He starts to have visions of a girl he knew from school and decides he needs to find out what happened to her, as it might be a clue to his past. When he starts looking, he learns she disappeared right after the two of them used an experimental drug together.

This movie uses sci-fi similar to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Here, the drug doesn't erase memories. It opens the mind to endless possibilities in the past, present, and future. However, there is also a hint of trauma in Fred's life. A vision of a giant mouth haunts him, and it is that puzzle he has to unravel in Flashback if he wants to move on with his life and find the happiness he doesn't think he believes exists.

5 The Lobster (2015)

Directed By Yorgos Lanthimos

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The Lobster is a film that is even stranger than movies like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, the movie stars Colin Farrell as David, a man who lives in a dystopian society. In this futuristic world, single people only have 45 days to find a new partner or they are turned into an animal of their choice. David will become a lobster if he does not find love in the required timeframe.

Director Yorgos Lanthimos earned Oscar nominations for The Favourite and Poor Things.

The movie has an all-star cast, including Rachel Weisz, Léa Seydoux, Ben Winshaw, John C. Reilly, and Olivia Colman. The movie is an acquired taste, but that is also similar to movies like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It has very high critical reviews, and anyone who enjoyed the Oscar-nominated Poor Things should check it out, as Lanthimos directed both movies.

6 Being John Malkovich (1999)

Directed By Spike Jonze

Charlie Kaufman caught the movie world's attention for the first time with his first produced screenplay for this thrilling, weird, and dark comedy about a struggling puppeteer who discovers a portal that leads into the mind of actor John Malkovich. Spike Jonze proves the perfect director to debut Kaufman's distinctly surreal ideas to audiences, producing a movie full of unique humor and fearless performances from well-known actors.

The movie remains similar to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind because it goes into the head of one of the main characters. In this case, instead of seeing into the memories of someone, people literally go into John Malkovich's head and see what life would be like living as him. This isn't a romance, but it is a surreal look into the imagination.

7 Ruby Sparks (2012)

Directed By Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris

Zoe Kazan wrote the screenplay and stars as the title character in this offbeat deconstruction of romantic comedy movies by directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris. The plot follows a young writer, played by Paul Dano, whose latest creation suddenly appears in the flesh to become his perfect lover, only for his ability to control the bizarre situation to gradually erode.

This is similar to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind in that it is a story of two people who see very different things in their lives. This stands out because Calvin created Ruby Sparks and believes he can control her and force her to do anything he wants, including love him. Also, much like Eternal Sunshine, it is a story about letting go and letting fate take over.

8 Her (2013)

Directed By Spike Jonze

Director Spike Jonze tackled modern relationships from a sci-fi perspective with his own bitterly sweet screenplay about a lonely man who falls in love with the AI program that lives in his personal devices. Joaquin Phoenix shines in a bravely singular performance opposite Scarlett Johansson's brilliant voice performance as the AI program, Samantha, and a fan of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind should appreciate its meditations on love and loss.

A fan of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is sure to appreciate its own meditations on love and loss.

Jonze, who had worked with Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind's Charlie Kauffman on Being John Malkovich, made something more meditative here. Both movies share much in common with looking at loneliness and how hard it is to be single in a modern-day world. Jonze won an Oscar for his screenplay at the Oscars, while the movie also earned a Best Picture nomination.

9 Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

Directed By Colin Trevorrow

Before taking on the Jurassic World series, director Colin Trevorrow worked as an indie filmmaker with his writing partner Derek Connolly on this small-budget sci-fi rom-com hit. Safety Not Guaranteed is about journalists investigating a wanted ad for a companion to go back in time with. An upbeat movie befitting its cast, including Jake Johnson and Aubrey Plaza, Safety Not Guaranteed has enough honest emotion to make it one of the most standout romantic movies of recent years.

The movie involves playing with time while remaining ambiguous about what is real and what isn't. A romance begins between the man who put up the ad, Kenneth (Mark Duplass), and the intern of one of the journalists, Darius (Aubrey Plaza). The Safety Not Guaranteed ending was not as ambiguous as much of the movie, but this allows the two leads to have their chance at happiness.

10 500 Days Of Summer (2009)

Directed By Marc Webb

Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars as a lovestruck young man who falls for the enigmatic Summer, played by Zooey Deschanel. The movie sinks into a self-absorbed spiral of depression when things fall apart. This movie is very similar to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind in that it has a man in love who suddenly doesn't know what to do when the relationship ends.

One of the most beloved modern breakup movies, 500 Days of Summer may not have the quirks of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, but is nonetheless a satisfyingly alternative examination of love and relationships that many movie fans have found to be hugely relatable. Unlike Eternal Sunshine, which saw a woman erase her memories, 500 Days instead just had the woman move on and left the man to come to grips with how he saw their romance.