Joel Barish – Character Quotes

What a loss to spend that much time with someone, only to find out that she's a stranger.

This is the day we met. You were down by the surf. I couldjust make you out in the distance. I remember being drawn to you even then. I thought, ''Wow, how odd. I'm drawn to someone's back.''

— You're not a stalker or anything, right?
— I'm not a stalker. You're the one that talked to me. Remember?
— That is the oldest trick in the stalker book.
— Really? There's a stalker book? Okay. I gotta read that one.

Why do I fall in love with every woman I see who shows me the least bit of attention?

— You don't tell me things, Joel. I'm an open book. I tell you everything. Every damn embarrassing thing. You don't trust me.
— You don't have to be afraid of silence, Clementine. Constantly talking isn't necessarily communicating.
— I don't do that. I want to know you. I don't constantly talk. Jesus. People have to share things. That's what intimacy is. I'm really pissed that you said that to me.
— I'm sorry. I just don't have anything very interesting about my life.

— Wait.
— What?
— I don't know. Just wait. Just wait.
— What do you want, Joel?
— I don't know. I want you to wait for... just a while.

I still thought you were gonna save my life, even after that.

Sand is overrated. It's just tiny little rocks.

Please let me keep this memory. Just this one. <...> I wanna call it off. I'll give you a sign. I wanna call it off! Can you hear me? I don't want this anymore!

Are we like those poor couples... you feel sorry for in restaurants? Are we the dining dead? I can't stand the idea of us being a couple people think that about.

— What if it breaks?
— ''What if'? Do you really care right now?

Oh, man. I can't remember anything without you.

— It's a pretty name, though. It really is nice. It means "merciful", right? Clemency?
— Yeah. Although it hardly fits. I'm a vindictive little bitch, truth be told.

Clem! Can you hear me? By morning you'll be gone! The perfect ending to this piece-of-shit story!

— I wish you'd stayed.
— I wish I'd stayed too. Now I wish I'd stayed. I wish I'd done a lot of things. Oh, God, I wish I had... I wish I'd stayed. I do.

— I'm not a concept, Joel. I'm just a fucked-up girl who is looking for my own peace of mind. I'm not perfect.
— I can't think of anything I don't like about you right now.
— But you will. You will think of things. And I'll get bored with you and feel trapped because that's what happens with me.
— Okay.
— Okay.