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Joel Barish
Played by: Jim Carrey
A bookish introvert who enters a two-year relationship with Clementine.- Nice Guy: Albeit a little withdrawn both emotionally and romantically.
- Perma-Stubble: Sports a non-manly variation thereof.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The brooding, closer-to-Earth counter to Clementine's emotional Manic Pixie Dream Girl.
Clementine Kruczynsk
Played by: Kate Winslet
A spontaneous extrovert who, after breaking up with him after a two-year relationship, erases Joel Barish from her mind.- Betty and Veronica: The Veronica to Naomi's implied Betty.
- Hard-Drinking Party Girl: Often gets "amiably drunk". Hers and Joel's breakup is prompted by her driving home from a party drunk and damaging Joel's car.
- Kaleidoscope Hair: Frequently re-dyes her hair.
- Manic Pixie Dream Girl: Subverted and thoroughly deconstructed. As a Deconstructed Character Archetype, she shows what happens once the novelty of this trope wears off and the meaning of the term becomes apparent, exhibiting that common elements of the trope would break down when applied to reality."Too many guys think I'm a concept, or I complete them, or I'm gonna make them alive. But I'm just a fucked-up girl who's lookin' for my own peace of mind; don't assign me yours."
- It's usually inexplicable that the free-spirited girl would be so interested in the quiet, reserved guy in the first place. At the beginning of the movie, it seems like Clementine is fascinated by Joel for no reason, but it's actually that her subconscious is influencing her with the forgotten remnants of her feelings for him when they were together.
- Even during their real first meeting, Clementine quickly gets bored with him. Clearly, unlike the usual MPDG, who's providing comfort to the brooding hero without demanding anything in return, Clementine is shown to be "high maintenance", which Joel struggles to provide.
- Nonconformist Dyed Hair: She is the emotional, extraverted ex-girlfriend to everyman protagonist Joel, who is not over their breakup. The multiple hair colors she sports over the course of the film solidify her as a memorable, if unstable, young woman.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The extrovert counter to introvert Joel.
Mary Svevo
Played by: Kirsten Dunst
The receptionist for Lacuna.- Hard-Drinking Party Girl: Gets drunk and smokes pot with Patrick while at work.
- Not-So-Small Role: It seems odd that Kirsten Dunst has such a small part as the receptionist at Lacuna Inc. It turns out she had an affair with Howard and had her memories erased too. And it's her who sends everyone their tapes to get their memories back.
Stan Fink
Played by: Mark Ruffalo
A technician for Lacuna who is in a relationship with Mary. Patrick Wertz
Played by: Elijah Wood
A technician for Lacuna.- Stalker with a Crush: He uses the information he has on Joel to imitate him and seduce Clementine.
Dr. Howard Mierzwiak
