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Movies / Upcoming / Sunshine Cleaning
Sunshine Cleaning

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Sunshine Cleaning (2009)

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73 %
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Reviews Counted: 141

Fresh: 103

Rotten:38

Average Rating: 6.4/10

Consensus: Despite a sometimes overly familiar plot, Sunshine Cleaning benefits from the lively performances of its two stars.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for language, disturbing images, some sexuality and drug use.

Runtime: 1 hr 42 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:Mar 13, 2009 Limited

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

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Release:

Aug 25, 2009

[DVD Details]
 
 

DVD Features:

Additional Release Material:

  • Featurette: “A Fresh Look at a Dirty Business” Featurette
  • Audio Commentary: Featuring Writer Megan Holley and Producer Glenn Williamson

Trailers:

  • 1. Trailer
  • 2. Sneak Peeks
 
 
 
 

Reviews for Sunshine Cleaning

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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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.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
07/03/09
David Jenkins
Time Out

Ultimately, the film is too neat, and too cloyingly sweet to tackle anything resembling real life.

Full Review Source: Times [UK] | comment Comment
07/03/09
Kevin Maher
Times [UK]

Instead of something fresh and funny, this film is as formulaic and empty as any Hollywood blockbuster.

Full Review Source: Sunday Times (UK) | comment Comment
07/03/09
Cosmo Landesman
Sunday Times (UK)

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.

Full Review Source: Observer [UK] | comment Comment
07/03/09
Jason Solomons
Observer [UK]

Far from being a tragic grind, Sunshine Cleaning is one long, wonderful irony. It feels like a first film – delicate, fresh and female.

Full Review Source: Little White Lies | comment Comment
07/03/09
Lorien Haynes
Little White Lies

Jeffs shows economy in her direction and steers through the potentially difficult script with skilful handling of tone and mood, wonderfully striking balance between laughs and tears. What a relief it is to unearth this quietly sparkling gem.

Full Review Source: Digital Spy | comment Comment
07/03/09
Simon Reynolds
Digital Spy

Sunshine Cleaning gets an A for Amy Adams. Injecting some heartfelt, three-dimensional zest into the wispy, two-dimensional story, she spares this copycat indie’s blushes and scores a winning combo with Blunt.

Full Review Source: Total Film | comment Comment
07/03/09
Matt Mueller
Total Film

The film has poor commercial prospects, as its plot is too slender, its tone too blandly upbeat.

Full Review Source: Daily Mail [UK] | comment Comment
07/03/09
Christopher Tookey
Daily Mail [UK]

It's a film so achingly average it almost deserves an award for mediocrity.

Full Review Source: Daily Mirror [UK] | comment Comment
07/03/09
David Edwards
Daily Mirror [UK]

The plot dithers and zigzags but only because human credibility, helped by excellent acting, has been allowed to prevail over Sundance-institutionalised designer whimsy.

Full Review Source: Financial Times | comment Comment
07/03/09
Nigel Andrews
Financial Times

It's not on a par with Little Miss: there's some whimsical-tragical stuff about talking to the dead via CB radio, and the producers might want to think beyond using "Sunshine" in a title again. But I would have been sorry to miss this.

Full Review Source: Independent | comment Comment
07/03/09
Anthony Quinn
Independent

Sunshine Cleaning is a winning combination of heartbreak and quirky humour.

Full Review Source: Daily Express | comment Comment
07/03/09
Allan Hunter
Daily Express

Sunshine Cleaning will be the sleeper of this year, a movie soon to be talked about in the same breath as Sideways, Juno and Little Miss Sunshine.

Full Review Source: This is London | comment Comment
07/03/09
Andrew O'Hagan
This is London

Sunshine Cleaning is not perverse for the sake of it: its eccentricities arise from characters whose lives fall outside the life guide manuals.

Full Review Source: Teletext | comment Comment
06/27/09
Victor Olliver
Teletext

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Daily Telegraph | comment Comment
06/26/09
Daily Telegraph
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Could have been a little more darkly comic in places but the performances are superb.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
06/26/09
Angie Errigo
Empire Magazine

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
06/25/09
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon

This film is both funny and moving. It focuses on how families can provide strength in times of need.

Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | comment Comment
06/20/09
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope

It's worthwhile just for Adams and Blunt, a partnership made in movie heaven.

Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment Comment
06/19/09
Sandra Hall
Sydney Morning Herald

Best to take a page from Rose's métier and bleach this one fully out of sight and mind.

Full Review Source: Time Out Sydney | comment Comment
06/12/09
Keith Uhlich
Time Out Sydney
 
 
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Much like McG's endless grey landscapes, it was a cold, bleak dawn at the Australian box-office this weekend for Terminator Salvation, as the sequel collapsed against the debut... More...

March 26, 2009: The Amy Adams Sunshine Cleaning Insite Interview Opens in new window
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March 15, 2009: Bringing Death to Life for Sunshine Cleaning Opens in new window
Amy Adams and Emily Blunt clean up some pretty grisly stuff in the upcoming dark comedy "Sunshine Cleaning" -- but that was just for the cameras. The movie's biohazard... More...

March 12, 2009: Critics Consensus: Race to Witch Mountain Doesn't Cast A Spell
This week at the movies, we've got a supernatural quest (Race to Witch Mountain, starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and AnnaSophia Robb), a vengeance thriller (Last House on... More...

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