Review: Sunshine Cleaning (2009)

[Steve Rhodes]

SUNSHINE CLEANING
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2009 Steve Rhodes

RATING (0 TO ****):  **

Not nearly dark enough to be even close to being a black comedy and not 
funny enough to be a comedy at all, SUNSHINE CLEANING works, when it works 
at all, as a small drama about people living a hardscrabble life.  Mainly, 
however, the film is little more than a long series of misfires, which will 
likely have viewers leaving the theater disappointed.

No matter how much the studio has tried to market the film as the next 
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE, SUNSHINE CLEANING is no LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE, even 
though both films star Alan Arkin, share producers and have SUNSHINE in the 
title.  LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE sizzled because of the sharply written script 
by Michael Arndt, who is currently working on TOY STORY 3.  In contrast, 
Megan Holley's writing for SUNSHINE CLEANING completely lacks punch.  With 
one exception, the character of Rose Lorkowski (Amy Adams, ENCHANTED), the 
characters are never developed enough to make us care for them, and the 
humor, which comes sporadically, is never worth more than a few fleeting 
smiles and certainly no laughs.

The story does possess a promisingly off-beat set-up.  Rose and her sister 
Norah (Emily Blunt, THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA), a quintessential screw-up, form 
a business cleaning up after deaths.  When people are murdered, commit 
suicide or die of natural causes, Rose and Norah's company, the 
euphemistically named SUNSHINE CLEANING, is called in to clean up the mess, 
which is usually horrifically smelly and almost always contains some sort of 
biohazard.  Of course, others are in this business as well, and most, like 
Carl (Kevin Chapman, "Brotherhood"), resent newcomers without the proper 
credentials who try to undercut the going rate in order to get customers.

The movie consists of slow, plodding episodes that all sound funnier and 
more interesting than director Christine Jeffs can ever make them.  This is 
the third film for Jeffs, and, at least in my book, three was not a charm 
for her.  I really liked her first two films, RAIN and SYLVIA, but SUNSHINE 
CLEANING did nothing for me.  It is never bad film, but, other than Adams's 
fine performance, there is nothing to recommend it.

Looking more haggard and forlorn than ever, Adams is quite good as a poor 
woman with boundless ambition but no real skills, other than the willingness 
to work as hard as necessary in order to make a living for her 
eight-year-old son Oscar (Jason Spevack) and herself.  Still stuck 
emotionally in high school, Rose is a former head cheerleader who continues 
to have an affair with her high school sweetheart and quarterback Mac (Steve 
Zahn), a local police officer who is married with a family and a very 
pregnant wife.  Yes, you guessed it.  Oscar is Mac's son.

"You are strong," reads the post-it on Rose's mirror.  "You are powerful. 
You can do anything.  You are a winner."  But, although Rose repeats these 
positive affirmations to herself, she is just the opposite of her little 
homilies.  Like her dad (Alan Arkin), a loser of a salesman who drives an 
old Cadillac junker and who goes from one hopeless get rich scheme to 
another, Rose seems destined to be constantly falling behind on life's 
treadmill.

SUNSHINE CLEANING is a frustrating film, since one suspects that, with some 
major script rewrites, it could have been terrific, especially with a cast 
this strong.

SUNSHINE CLEANING runs 1:40.  It is rated R for "language, disturbing 
images, some sexuality and drug use" and would be acceptable for teenagers.

The film opens nationwide in the United States on Friday, March 20, 2009. 
In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the CineArts theaters.

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