Sunshine Cleaning

I watched this movie in a sneak Preview, so I had no idea, what I had to expect from this. The title is not giving away too much, which I will respect, so if you want to read something about the story, read the summary here on this site.

The acting in this is really great, but some might have a problem with the pace of the movie. It moves along slowly and it's not "in your face" funny, but more a subtle kind of humor (most of the times). It's actually more a drama than a comedy. And Alan Arkin is exceptional as ever, even if he's not the main role here. With a few up and downs, this nice little film has a winning charm, that is worth a view.

I find that when people ask me what this movie is about I have a hard time successfully telling them. Read the synopsis by all means, but like most summaries it barely scratches the surface. It's a story about a mother who leaves her family in the most permanent way imaginable. It's about a father struggling to maintain his unflappable optimism, a sister whose self-esteem leads her into self-sabotaging habits, another who is in complete emotional freefall, a son who is becoming aware of his family's dynamic and how it compares to the rest of the world's and how they manage to regain their footing by pursuing a very unusual profession. At its heart it is always about family. At their best Amy Adams and Emily Blunt are some of the most talented actresses working today and I was happy to see them both in a script worthy of their skills. Both are gifted at line delivery, but some of their most powerful scenes are nonverbal. The dynamic between all the characters is thoroughly real and enjoyable. I found myself very satisfied by all their resolutions. It was an excellent story to watch unfold.

Reviewed August 2010

Though you know how the story is going to turn out, it was made captivating by fantastic performances by ever too reliable Amy Adams and fast shining Emily Blunt.

I have seen references to Little Miss Sunshine by some of the critics, what's the relation? Checked the writer and director's past movies doesn't include it. I wonder at this this because I thought it felt like Little Miss Sunshine at some level before reading the references. It's a story of a positive minded slightly dysfunctional family who are going through some tough times for bad choices made in the past. The screenplay and conclusion are conventional and made to the writer's comfort. Emily Blunt has a terrific voice diction, hope to see her in some good animated character.

The character Oscar is charming and Grampa is the same as in Little Miss Sunshine. Though this movie does not break any ground, I couldn't find anything that I did not like in it.

Greetings again from the darkness. Ahhh, the first 2009 script (by Megan Holley) that has the depth, nuances and multiple sub-plots that keep me addicted to movies. Sure one can view this as a simple story of the emotionally struggling sisters who start a bio-hazard clean-up company to connect not just with each other, but also with those who have been the victim of a profound event involving a loved one. It works just fine on that level.

Of course, I never make things that easy. For this viewer, I was absorbed in the connection the sisters had to their dead mother. The quest for a glimpse of her one movie of the week performance as a waitress had the sisters trained to stop in their tracks whenever a "waitress" scene appeared on TV. The sisters are played exceedingly well by the extraordinarily talented Amy Adams and Emily Blunt. Their performances lift a really good script to greatness.

For most movies, that would be plenty. Not here. Director Christine Jeffs ("Sylvia") gets to play with Alan Arkin as the always scheming father, a quick commentary on the disgusting "solution" of public schools tendency to require medication on less than robotic kids, emotionally empty relationships, and the absolute need of people to connect with others.

The fine acting continues with Steve Zahn as the former high school hero turned local cop, whom Adams' character has maintained a long term "bond". Trouble is Zahn's character picked someone else to marry. Clifton Collins Jr adds a wonderful dimension as Adams' possibly new prospect. Mary Lynn Rajskub is just plain fascinating as the lonely lady Blunt thinks she is helping.

Being promoted as from the creators of "Little Miss Sunshine", this one offers up a nice story complimented by many quirks that make it stand apart from the masses. Hopefully it will find wider distribution as we can never have enough top notch story telling.

From Pasto, Colombia-Via: L. A. CA, CALI COLOMBIA &ORLANDO, FL

There is quite a lot going on in this film with quite a surprising number of cinematic names that really resonate!

But Before beginning my DEEP DIVE...FIRST, Let us FOCUS on the Titles's Content and Context.....

GREAT TITLE! ...BUT Cinema that provokes a strong reaction from me, for good or for bad, is easier to review. "Movies in the Middle", like "SUNSHINE", always present much more of a challenge. "From the same people who brought you 'Little Miss Sunshine'..." This phrase was used a lot in the SUNSHINE PROMOs. Maybe it got in the way of me getting more out of the film. It didn't set very well with me that...

A) Both titles employ the word "SUNSHINE".

B) Alan Arkin basically does a warmed over version of his role in "LITTLE MISS"

C) Both films are about dysfunctional families with a precocious Kid!

Taken as a whole, it just seemed too obvious that "The same people who brought you..." wanted desperately to cash in, AGAIN, and SUNSHINE(2???) is just a vehicle for doing so!

Still, it does have ingratiating qualities. If you can tolerate the slow as molasses initial 30 minutes...(OK-Wait, make that as DELIBERATE as Molasses!), you'll probably feel it was worth your while, a pretty good little indie film, which could easily have been a LOT better.

Catharsis, healing, coping, forgiveness and moving on, are some of the operative buzz-words for "Sunshine Cleaning". Perhaps just a tad too dreary for such a cheery title? "Sunshine" would have benefited from the injection of just a little more comic relief in the mix. The acting fell a little short of expectation. With Amy Adams (Junebug/Doubt) and Emily Blunt (The Devil Wears Prada) perhaps my expectations were too high! Something was missing. The script was spotty and rather lackluster at times.

The on-screen chemistry was variable. Often, Alan Arkin's presence seemed to be a hindrance to the flow and balance of the scene and the story. SUNSHINE did have a very down-to-earth, realistic feel to it. The problems, reactions to them, and solutions encountered, or not, as the case may be, were believable and mundane; stuff that we all can relate too. Immediately after viewing, I had settled on a 6 Star rating, thinking "Sunshine" was going to be sans ricocheting...But, there has been some of that going on in that 'ID' of mine, hours after viewing. So, we'll up it 7 Stars!

..... ENJOY! / DISFRUTELA!

Any comments, questions or observations, in English o en Español, are most welcome!