It's worthwhile just for Adams and Blunt, a partnership made in movie heaven.
Sunshine Cleaning (2009)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:150
Fresh:108
Rotten:42
Average Rating:6.3/10
Consensus: Despite a sometimes overly familiar plot, Sunshine Cleaning benefits from the lively performances of its two stars.
Runtime: 1 hr 42 mins
Genre: Comedies
US Box Office: $12,033,702
Synopsis: From the producers of LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE comes the charming Sundance hit SUNSHINE CLEANING, a spirited comedy-drama starring Amy Adams (DOUBT, ENCHANTED) as single-mom Rose Lorkowski, a plucky... From the producers of LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE comes the charming Sundance hit SUNSHINE CLEANING, a spirited comedy-drama starring Amy Adams (DOUBT, ENCHANTED) as single-mom Rose Lorkowski, a plucky ex-cheerleader now cleaning houses and having an affair with her high-school sweetheart, Mac (Steve Zahn). When Mac, a police detective, suggests the lucrative job opportunities in crime-scene cleanup, Rose enlists her sister, Norah (Emily Blunt), to join her in the gory but ultimately fulfilling business enterprise. The sisterly chemistry between Adams and Blunt is impressive and forms the crux of their characters' growth throughout the film: Rose’s optimism--reciting self-affirmations and positive spins on her occupation ("It’s a growth industry")--complements Norah’s cynical, wickedly humorous exterior, which hides her bruised, vulnerable heart. Rounding out this likable cast is Alan Arkin, appearing as Joe, the sisters' lovably grumpy father, and Jason Spevack, who plays Rose’s eight-year-old son, Oscar. SUNSHINE CLEANING has all the familiar ingredients of a small independent feature (dysfunctional family spanning three generations, offbeat comic situations, dark emotional subtext), but thanks to the keen directorial hand of Christine Jeffs (who also directed the Sylvia Plath biopic, SYLVIA), and a smart screenplay from first-time writer Megan Holley, the film manages to transcend indie-film quirkiness, offering a heartfelt story of family bonds and the unexpected curveballs in life’s road. [More]
Starring: Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin, Steve Zahn
Starring: Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin, Steve Zahn, Jason Spevack, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Clifton Collins, Eric Christian Olsen, Kevin Chapman
Director: Christine Jeffs
Director: Christine Jeffs
Screenwriter: Megan Holley
Producer: Glenn Williamson, Marc Turtletaub, Peter Saraf, Jeb Brody
Composer: Michael Penn
Studio: Overture Films
Reviews for Sunshine Cleaning
Best to take a page from Rose's métier and bleach this one fully out of sight and mind.
It's not that Sunshine Cleaning is a bad film, more that it uses the gnarly cleaning matter as bait, and then fails to deliver the goods. What remains is enjoyable, but not so much that you'd want to go back for seconds.
Occasionally it struggles to walk the line between black comedy and bleak dysfunction. Ultimately, though, this is a fresh and refreshing outing with a surprising amount of heart.
Amy Adams [is] terrific in Sunshine Cleaning but the material lets her down. It’s as if it’s trying to push every indie film button in the book.
Although the film isn't brilliant, the script has its moments and includes some memorable dialogue: "How'd she die?" "It was a do-it-yourself kinda thing."
The irony of the Sunshine named small enterprise specialising in cleaning up post-death mess suggests the filmmakers may be aiming for a tone of dark comic entertainment, but the film does not play out that way.
Surprisingly moving, this subtle black comedy that deals with cleaning up the mess that life dishes out, has plenty more going for it than an unusual premise.
Megan Holley's script feels like it's been Sundance-workshopped to death. However, the cast - led by Amy Adams, Emily Blunt and Alan Arkin - establishes a vibrantly odd family bond that sustains "Sunshine Cleaning" through its dimmer portions.
Sunshine Cleaning has that "Sundance" vibe, in that it feels overly developed and tested for a bittersweet 'indie" feel and for maximum quirkiness.
Shows there's nothing indie dramedies can't turn into faux-regional quirk
Not entirely insubstantial, even as the bulk evaporates from the mind.
The sort of movie you root for, hoping it'll break through to be something special. It never quite does, but it still has the not-insignificant value of two fine actresses cast as sisters. [Blu-ray]
While it may sound like Little Miss Sunshine's poor relative, or Sundance by-the-numbers, this is an enjoyable, poignant, moving and - yes - funny film in its own right.
There's close to nothing about this film that isn't contrived, forced and reminiscent of movies that twist themselves into knots to achieve Harold and Maude-like quirky charm.
Everything Amy Adams touches turns to gold, and even here where she is playing a character thoroughly down on her luck, she is luminous.
Jeffs makes a good fist of the direction and Blunt proves that she can do comedy, but it’s Adams’s comforting, charismatic central turn which really gives the film its lift.
Ultimately, the film is too neat, and too cloyingly sweet to tackle anything resembling real life.
Instead of something fresh and funny, this film is as formulaic and empty as any Hollywood blockbuster.
This is nearly a decent family comedy - but like the mantra-chuntering character Adams plays, it's just not confident enough of its strong points to really stand out.
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