Analysis Of Vertigo, Seconds, And Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind

It would seem that when everything goes terribly wrong, all we want is a second chance, an opportunity to erase the mistakes of yesterday, a shot to achieve a more favorable reality. In this passionate desire, we seem to forsake the prospect of failure, a mistake that seems to ensure disaster. This theme is clearly explored in Vertigo, Seconds, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Characters in each of these films are awarded a second chance, and each of these characters fulfill these opportunities with varying degrees of success.

John "Scottie" Ferguson of Vertigo requires second chances in his professional and personal life in order to achieve some sense of peace. His vulnerability is evident early on as the audience first witnesses

This seemingly carefree woman who, like him, has abandoned a life of obligation in pursuit of a life of personal fulfillment, temporarily provides Tony with the confidence to embrace life. His brief attempt to be social results in a profession of deep discontent as he drunkenly rambles about the former life of Arthur Hamilton. The problem with this new life is that while Tony looks different and has a different job and has no family, he still possesses the mind and memories of Arthur Hamilton. This is further proven by his disappointing return home, where he claims that he wants to paint a picture of Arthur, but he only knows what the man looked like. Tony learns from his old wife that Arthur Hamilton had been a quiet man who "had been dead a long time" before he had been found dead. After this experience, Tony accepts that he has failed at his second life, and he swears that next time, he will be more successful; next time, he will make the important decisions for himself. He claims that as Arthur Hamilton, he chased after what everyone told him was important; Tony Wilson only followed the company's will, right down to developing a relationship with Nora, who had been placed near his home to ensure his successful transition; but next time—next time, he would do what mattered to him. It is rather unfortunate that despite his apparent growth as a character, Tony is labeled a mistake by the company and is killed for later use as a cadaver for future lost souls,

While "the company" in Seconds offers its clients a literal second chance at life by changing their bodies and enabling them to live their dreams, Lacuna, Inc, simply erases a person from the mind of their clients. Employing a non-linear narrative, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind follows Clementine and Joel who, despite having erased one another from their memories, give their relationship another attempt. Joel, like Arthur, was not immediately enthusiastic by the company's unbelievable promises, but he ultimately agrees to go along with the procedure because Clementine did it first. It is implied that he is motivated by pain and also by spite. It is further evident that Joel did not really want to erase Clementine from his memory when he tried to hold on to her throughout most of the procedure. While some of the memories Joel is forced to relive seem to portray the relationship as unhealthy and toxic, there is a memory shortly before Joel is to forget Clementine forever. He is remembering when they first met, but both he and Clementine are somehow aware of what is going on outside of Joel's mind; Clementine asks him to give her a proper goodbye. Furthermore, she asks him to differ from the original memory, where he leaves her alone in the house, but he leaves anyway. This seems to imply that despite having realized that he does not want to lose Clementine, Joel still struggles to fully