Sunshine Cleaning’s a Little Cloudy

Sunshine Cleaning feels like a movie you’ve seen before – probably because you have. It’s a murky blend of two better movies: Little Miss Sunshine and In Her Shoes (and probably a dozen others). But what saves Sunshine Cleaning from falling victim to forgotten indie syndrome is its dazzling leading ladies: the always charming Amy Adams (Enchanted) and quickly up and coming star Emily Blunt (Devil Wears Prada). Their super-large expressive eyes are what keep the tired plot from seeming commonplace. You want for these women who find their own little pieces of salvation and confidence in the morbid business of crime scene clean-up.

Like Little Miss Sunshine, Sunshine Cleaning is chock full of quirky moments and lost souls. Its dark comedic moments are never really funny, they’re often too troubling for that, yet somehow they make you laugh. And its redemptive spirit is nothing exceptional as far as movie plots go, but it feels exceptional for these characters. Then there’s Alan Arkin, playing the same yelling grandpa role he played in LMS. It’s a particular kind of type casting he’s found himself stuck in.

But more than LMS, Sunshine Cleaning reminded me of In Her Shoes for its sisters and their burdensome relationship. They lost their mother young – and like another Rose and her little sister – never seem to get over the loss in their adult lives so they find solace in cleaning up the tragedies in other peoples. They screw up, fight, make up, and battle through their abandonment issues and tragically low self-esteem.

Amy Adams is a single mom, still sleeping with the high school boyfriend (the always underappreciated Steve Zahn) who dumped her for his wife long ago.  Her son’s been kicked out of school – again – for licking things, and she doesn’t have the money to send him to private school. So she forgoes the real estate license she’s pursuing for the crime scene clean up business. Plus she’s tired of being a maid, especially for the people she went to high school with who married well, while she peaked as captain of the high school cheerleading team. But her Sunshine Cleaning gives her the opportunity to help others and herself, and revive her self-worth.

However, it is relative newcomer Emily Blunt who steals the show. Her devil may care personality masks a truly unhappy little girl, the kind who’d keep the old photographs of a dead woman and track down her daughter.  Her wide, darkly lined eyes give way to an unnerving deep sadness while her sardonic sense of humor keeps her loveable and charming.  Ultimately, it’s Blunt’s brilliance that keeps Sunshine Cleaning from becoming too cloudy.

So Sunshine Cleaning may not be the indie sleeper hit I was hoping it would be, but it was decent enough fare for a rainy afternoon – a simple and sweet flick about the sunshine after the rain.

Click here for Jaimie’s review!