Cleaner

This movie made me so angry. I can forgive stupid plots... but not like this. This was just too damn stupid. I saw the bad ratings and thought "Clive Owen and Daisy Ridley, I'm sure I can still enjoy it". I was wrong. It would've been fine if an ex-soldier (Ridley) just slowly takes out terrorists, like Die Hard, just dumber. That's something I can enjoy. But Ridley's character was just so damn inept. It was truly painful to watch. I later saw that three people got writing credits. That's usually a sign that the script was passed from writer to writer in a desperate attempt to fix it and it never ever works. The acting was alright, director too. Not great, but OK. But the script was a total dumpster fire. I am still so angry at this movie.

The plot feels like a recycled version of something that's been done countless times before, with the only twist being a nerdy character carrying a "Thor hammer," as if begging for mercy from the younger audience. There's little to no effort put into character development, so we couldn't care less about the protagonist or any of the characters, for that matter. There's no suspense, no mystery, just a predictably failed attempt at being a pure action film, which also fell flat. It's hard to find anything positive to say, but here's an attempt: the villain and the cop lady somewhat tried to carry the rest of the cast, but their efforts hardly made a difference. Picture quality was good, lol. You can invite a girl over and play this when you are not really interested in watching. This is one of those movies where you wonder why they even bothered making it, and you're relieved it wasn't any longer.

This movie at its kindest review is mediocre. It's not the worst movie I've ever watched but it no where the best I've ever watched. I totally understand why it started the way it did, it gave a tiny back story. But the character of her brother having autism seemed to have no place in this movie at all. It actually made his character confusing and inconsequential until the end and even then him being autistic had no bearing on the character. The action was decent, the story is the same ole story, and the acting ehhh it just felt off. Will I recommend this movie to others, I seriously doubt it. Will I watch it again, absolutely not. On to the next.

I'm joking, of course. Looks a lot like someone was channeling Die Hard when they wrote the script. Every time I thought they weren't going to take from that movie, they found another homage...

Ridley is not bad as an action star. I'd watch another movie with her in it. Clive Own, who wasn't in the movie enough to warrant third billing, was fine. Matthew Tuck, on the other hand, was unbelievable as the autistic brother. I think that distracted me a lot.

It had a predictable ending, one I will not divulge here. All in all, not particularly good. All in all, not particularly bad...

See this one after you've seen every other movie, just for closure...

Directed by Martin Campbell, who returns to the fray after his last film, Dirty Angels, in 2024. This time, the New Zealander redefines what has been a bittersweet career. He delivers a decent action film, without any flash, with likable characters and villains you'll hate, which I think is the film's turning point.

The cast features Daisy Ridley as the film's main protagonist, in a rather bland but charismatic role, something that defines the actress's career. Also in the cast are Taz Skylar, Clive Owen, and a couple of minor supporting characters. The film's journey relies on the charisma of its cast, which allows you to connect somewhat with what's happening. The truth is, the film is quite light on the action, but it has a touch of tension that keeps us from getting too bored.

It's a film that lacks ambition, but it has interesting ideas that don't quite come together. It's true that it attempts to imitate Die Hard in several ways, but it lacks the charisma that the film starring Bruce Willis offers. Here, the charisma comes from the lead actress, but it's not enough to elevate the overall plot with which Cleaner aims to win us over.

We're left with a film that will give you a good time in front of the screen if you don't have high expectations for what you're watching. If you're expecting mind-blowing entertainment, unfortunately, this won't be the ideal film for that. Still, it's a film that achieves its moments and has a certain visual appeal and ideas that allow the film to end with an acceptable and satisfactory result. It's forgettable, sure, but it's also suitable for a family weekend without high expectations.