"I wish I had stayed, too. Now I wish I had stayed. I wish I had done a lot of things. I wish I had. I wish I had stayed. I do."

I don't typically crave romantic features, nor do I like to indulge myself in such 'soft' movies. Not that I detest them or anything, but I do happen to have reservations in regards to how these films deal with their subjects. Specifically for the fact that they more often than not come across as sugarcoated, with their world dipped deep into the crème of fantasy, where characters are strictly one dimensional and are devoid of depth and realism, "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind' seems to be a rare anomaly in that collection.

For starters, it's not your usual romantic movie; this is more of a psychological drama, with a plot about the value of connections, the difficulties that arise, and the eventual end of all empathy and sense of belonging. The film juxtaposes thousands of real-life couples and their dilemmas and muddled consciences, which frequently leave them in the dark, alone, and separated from the lovely world they once knew and expected to share.

The story not only supports the idea of moving on and recovering from toxic infatuations, but it also teaches us to self-reflect and makes us believe in giving second chances to those we believe deserve them. Just as the famous English poet Charlotte Brontë once stated, and I quote,

"Life appears to me too short to be spent nursing animosity or registering wrongs,"

And I believe it is time we contemplate the same.