Sunshine Cleaning, a light, paint-by-numbers flick about a former high school princess who never quite made it past the cheer squad, is not a bad movie.
It delivers on everything it promises: a sad but hopeful tale about Rose Lorkowski (Amy Adams), a single mom who desires more than just cleaning houses. Her little son (Jason Spevack) is very bright but misunderstood, her sister, Norah, (Emily Blunt) is a deadbeat who blames herself for a terrible life, and her father (Alan Arkin) is still coping from the suicide of his wife. The movie does a satisfactory job portraying the family's struggle, and in the end, everything is looking up for the Lorkowski clan. The problems may not be solved, but they are certainly on their way.
To be fair, layers of meaning do exist within the film. In an attempt to send her son to private school, Rose and Norah start a biohazard removal service - another way of saying they clean up after dead bodies. Considering that the mother of the two sisters committed suicide, cleaning up after mostly self-inflicted deaths will inevitably lead to some emotional stress. In perhaps the film's best scene, Norah and Rose travel to a house where an elderly man has recently killed himself - and find his wife sitting on the front steps. She is lost without her husband, caught in between dementia and grief. While Norah begins to clean the house, Rose sits with the widow and doesn't say a word; her presence is enough comfort. The pathos is natural, and in this moment, the film succeeds.
Further complications, of course, exist. Rose continues to see Mac (Steve Zahn) her high school sweetheart and husband to a wife pregnant with her second child. Mac is not a character so much as a piece of scenery, a backdrop against which Rose can further self-actualize. The more Rose sees him - while claiming she is attending real estate classes - the more she feels wanted but not loved, good but not great.
Members of the audience may be inclined to feel impatient with Rose, because in reality, she is still a cheerleader; she refused to let go of her popularity and success in high school, and as a result, she can achieve neither in the real world.
This is highlighted (a little too obviously) when Rose attends an old friend's baby shower. While all her old girlfriends are now married or engaged, living respectable lives, Rose is cleaning houses. She feels a need to prove herself to them and is practically ecstatic to announce her new occupation: cleaning up after corpses.
An interesting plot twist occurs while the Lorkowski sisters are cleaning a recently deceased woman's house. Norah discovers evidence of the woman's daughter and proceeds to seek her out - only to become friends and fall for her.
This leads to some hilarious and touching moments, like when Norah first meets Lynn (Mary Lynn Rajskub) at the blood bank. Norah's homosexuality is never stated but heavily hinted at, and her relationship with Lynn is about as real and authentic as Sunshine Cleaning gets.
Of course, for the purpose of the film's theme, Norah screws up her relationship as well as the business: She inadvertently lights a client's house on fire. Enter livid Rose, now positive that she has to take care of her sister constantly. The problem, though, is that none of it is real.
The fire is forced, a device utilized by the filmmaker to bring about Rose's epiphany. Much of the movie, indeed, is noticeably contrived. Far too often one will notice the puppet strings and forget to care about the puppets. In an attempt at authenticity, the film acts in manners antithetical to reality.
The strongest feature of this film are the performances. Amy Adams has never been better, and she creates a tormented, insecure girl who believes she's lost all her talent. Adams effects a change in her character, and, to her credit, it is believable.
She is in her element, and although ill-equipped with script and plot, she prevails. Watching her chew the scenery is enough to warrant watching the movie. Blunt, too, pulls off a solid performance, capturing the necessary sense of self-deprecation and depression. Alan Arkin is superb as always, and little Jason is the one character you'll want to root for.
Perhaps the biggest problem with the film is the unexplored relationship between Winston (Clifton Collins, Jr.) and Rose. Winston owns a shop that specializes in biohazard removal products, and his interplay with Rose and Jason is heartfelt and real. If the director (Christine Jeffs) was searching for some authenticity, she was looking in the wrong places.
The most cringe-worthy moment of the film? When Rose and Norah see their mother, who once appeared in a TV movie, on television. Tears drop down Norah's face as she sees what her mother used to look like. If anything, the scene induces tears through its heavy-handed symbolism and forced sentimentality.
A movie has to pull; Sunshine Cleaning, unfortunately, only pushes.
