Clean

Yes it's not a new story, man wanting quiet life after being a killer, thusly returning to his graphic nature. However it is slow for a reason, it's Brody he's a proper actor, not an all action hero, he wants to convey reason and not just show up basically having a tantrum over some injustice. The middle section is padded as are all these type of films, what do the critics expect? All out reflection or all out war? It's a better than most big budget movies and kills an easy hour and thirty, with not having to ponder over where the movie will go.

Nothing new: repentant assassin lives a simple life and gets affectioned to a young girl in a poor neighborhood. When she faces danger, he appeals to his skills.

It could've been better if was shorter. It has a slow rythm until the action begins.

Brody is fine. I don't mind the clichè story.

I wouldn't pay too much attention to the extremely negative reviews for this movie, nor the extremely positive. Clean isn't that bad, nor is it an Oscar winning movie. It is entertaining though, and that's what it's all about for me. The story is well told, even though I think the flashbacks the main character has could have been done better. It's rather slow paced in the first half but towards the end it's all getting more interesting with some good action scenes. Adrien Brody is always convincing when he's playing his characters and in Clean he did a good job again. This role fitted him well. The rest of the cast was also convincing so I really don't get what people disliked about it. It's not a movie for everyone, you just need to like that kind of stories, crime/dramas turning into violence, and that's fine by me.

Adrien Brody and Glenn Fleshler are both great actors and this movie is no exception but aside from the acting the story was very simple and almost boring, it's no wonder they shelved the movie for over a year. I was not invested in any of the characters and the "brooding" narration that Brody does throughout the film is supposed to resonate with the audience but honestly it does nothing. The final showdown was cheap and by that I mean it looked and felt underwelming and under financed. The movie overall just felt so cookie cutter that by the end I was almost glad it was over since the build outweighed the conclusion. The only selling points were the location, the atmosphere and the aformentioned acting. Sorry but there is no need to rewatch this. Had potential but just disappointing.

5/10.

The storyline is not new, but tried and true. It could've been a good movie, maybe even a great one. The actors do their jobs, and the cinematography is sufficiently bleak. The ingredients for a good redemption story are all there, so what happened?

It's the small things that add up. The viewer is pulled out of the story with WFT moments. It's the number of these moments that spoil the film. Style over substance is never going to work, it's distracting. The constant exposition of why Clean feels dirty is excessive, we understand his motivation. You don't need to hit us over the head with a monkey wrench, we get it.

It's a misfire, style over substance.