“I could die right now, Clem. I’m just… happy. I’ve never felt that before. I’m just exactly where I want to be.”
– Joel Barish (Jim Carrey), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), story by Charlie Kaufman & Michel Gondry & Pierre Bismuth, screenplay by Charlie Kaufman
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GiLxkDK8sI]
Even though his structure and plotting get all the attention, Charlie seems to me to be one of the best at really revealing his characters through their dialogue. The psyche of his characters always comes through clearly.
I’m working up a post on Charlie Kaufman, gleamed from several interviews. He has an interesting approach to screenwriting that is, as you note, Tom, very dialed into and motivated by his characters. In fact, in one interview, he discusses how he came up with his approach to writing Adaptation by following the instincts of one of his characters: himself, Charlie Kaufman: screenwriter! Look for that post soon.
Can’t wait.