Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Sunshine Cleaning Blu-ray Movie Review

Clean off a space on the bookshelf for this Blu-ray release of 'Sunshine Cleaning.'

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 24, 2009

You are strong. You are powerful. You can do anything. You are a winner.

Originality. It's not a word that's often associated with motion pictures in this era of sequels, prequels, remakes, and scripts yanked from the pages of a comic book or novel, but it fits the independent Sunshine Cleaning rather well. Constructed around a novel concept that allows a family to come to grips with a past that they've placed behind them but not yet come to terms with, Sunshine Cleaning tells a moving story that's not overly sentimental but instead just poignant enough in its delivery of its more subtle themes that offer sound messages on the importance of love, friendship, trust, faith, and family. Neither a tear-jerker nor a routine Comedy, Sunshine Cleaning is a rare experience that offers everything in just the right proportions and leaves the viewer feeling satisfied but not at all overwhelmed with the experience. Constructed around an easygoing directorial style and several standout performances, Sunshine Cleaning makes for yet another first-rate independently-minded moviegoing experience.

It could be worse...maybe.

Rose Lorkowski (Amy Adams, Enchanted) is a struggling single mother doing her best to raise her elementary-school-aged son Oscar (Jason Spevack), deal with her down-on-her-luck sister Norah (Emily Blunt, The Jane Austen Book Club), and understand her quirky father Joe (Alan Arkin, Gattaca). Oscar's youthful exuberance and sometimes oddball behavior gets him the boot from "regular" school and Rose needs to come up with a plan to earn enough money to send him to a good private institution. Enter her former high school sweetheart Mac (Steve Zahn, Rescue Dawn), a married cop with whom she's having a secret affair. He suggests to her the lucrative business of crime scene clean-up as a potential money-earning endeavor. In desperate need of cash, she and sister Norah take on the unappealing job and soon find themselves with a thriving business. Will their relative inexperience, sisterly feuds, personal problems, and a resurfacing past threaten their newfound success?

On the surface, there's not a whole lot to Sunshine Cleaning. This is straightforward filmmaking through and through, with superficially simple characters and an equally easily-digestible and generally fun, if not slightly morbid in an alluring way, plot line. For the first half of the picture, Sunshine Cleaning seems to be gliding along with no real point, though the story never falls off the straight-and-narrow path and remains cohesive and focused in its storytelling prowess. It begins simply enough with a tale of two sisters struggling to make it in the world and the sudden opportunity to begin their lives anew by cleaning up after others' lives that have -- messily, they hope -- come to an abrupt end. After the film has some fun with the concept and going through the admittedly predictable but nevertheless enjoyable escapades as the sisters bumble their way through their first jobs, the true meaning of the story slowly but surely comes to light as their work begins to remind them of their mother, herself a suicide victim. A call to clean up a suicide is welcomed almost gleefully by Rose and called "a good thing" by Norah, but the sight of a confused old lady unsure of how to cope with the death of her husband begins to reveal the true purpose of the job. It's not necessarily the cleaning of the blood but the cleansing of the heart -- working to rebuild lives both others and their own -- and coming to terms with tragedy not by merely scrubbing it out of existence but through an open soul, a kind word, and a friendly smile. That's Sunshine Cleaning: it's not only polishing the floor but sparkling the heart and fully understanding that the difficult job of cleaning up and moving on after a death doesn't end with soap and a bucket but instead with time, tenderness, and an understanding of what death means for both the living and the deceased.

Meshing the story together is a collection of first-rate, smartly-written characters and the equally good performances that bring them to life. Amy Adams and Emily Blunt share a fine chemistry and a palpable sense of loss as they slowly come together and cope with the many issues that define their lives, the death of their mother in particular. The film does remarkably well to slowly bring the issue to the surface, with only, at first, the occasional hint at the defining moment in their lives and gradually allowing several aspects of their job to bring it to the forefront, culminating with a special moment that defines the movie and brings the entirety of the story full circle. It's the film's remarkable simplicity and gentle approach that allows the material to work; anything else, be it a more blunt presentation of the story, too much comedy, or a more tearjerking approach wouldn't have worked quite as well. The morbidity of the basic plot line demands a gentle touch, and Director Christine Jeffs keeps that in mind throughout Sunshine Cleaning. Underneath both the laughs and more poignant aspects that come to define the film in its second half is a sweetness that keeps everything in check. As alluded to earlier, no one element dominates the picture. In that way, it feels far more real than would a take on the material that's more slapstick or, on the other end of the spectrum, far more morbid than need be. Sunshine Cleaning gets it right in just about every frame. While not a perfect movie -- not as emotionally gratifying as Last Chance Harvey or spiritually satisfying as Henry Poole is Here -- Sunshine Cleaning is well worth watching and is a generally excellent example of independent filmmaking.

Sunshine Cleaning Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Blu-ray puts the spit-and-polish on a top-notch 1080p, 2.39:1-framed transfer of Sunshine Cleaning. Colors sparkle throughout the film's brighter segments with a rich, natural appearance. The image remains consistently sharp and deep throughout, with both the foreground and the background exhibiting superb clarity and top-notch levels of detail that rival some of the very best images yet found on Blu-ray. Textures are wonderful throughout; many scenes bring the imagery to deep, three-dimensional life, though again not quite as perfect as the best the format has to offer, for instance The International. Some darker interior shots, such as a school conference in chapter three, don't enjoy quite the same level of crispness, clarity and color saturation as the exterior daytime scenes, but they do appear to remain true to the source. Black levels are superb, flesh tones retain a true-to-life shade throughout, and the transfer features no visible blemishes but does come with a thin veneer of grain that puts the finishing touches on what is a superb 1080p transfer from Starz.

Sunshine Cleaning Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Sunshine Cleaning comes to Blu-ray with a paltry but suitable Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Not the sort of mix to test the limits of any sound system, Sunshine Cleaning features a reserved track that's dialogue-heavy and boasts a fair sense of environmental ambience. Said dialogue is delivered naturally throughout, with no problems to report in discernibility and clarity. The front speakers carry what's left of the track; there's a palpable lack of rear-channel presence, but then again this isn't the sort of movie that lends itself to an all-out sonic attack, either. Atmospherics are good throughout; chirping birds and barking dogs are often heard in the distance, such nuances bringing the track to life. Music plays with the expected level of crispness and clarity across the front half of the soundstage. There's not much else to discuss with this one. It's a basic Comedy/Drama soundtrack that gets the job done and delivers all it has to offer with the utmost in clarity and realism. It's no great shakes, but it's not a letdown in any regard, either.

Sunshine Cleaning Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Sunshine Cleaning features only two extras of note. First up is a commentary track with Writer Megan Holley and Producer Glenn Williamson. The two deliver a fine but unremarkable commentary track, recalling how the project came about, shooting locations, the advice gleaned form a real-life crime scene clean-up outfit, the work of the ensemble cast, the emotional themes of the film, and more. Sunshine Cleaning: A Fresh Look at a Dirty Business (1080i, 11:17) is an all-too-short piece that recalls the basic plot line and features interview segments with cast, crew, and, primarily, a real-life biohazard recovery duo discussing what makes the film both real and funny and the effort that goes into cleaning up messes in the real world. Also included is BD-Live functionality and 1080p trailers for Sunshine Cleaning, Henry Poole is Here, The Visitor, and Sleepewalking.

Sunshine Cleaning Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Sunshine Cleaning's most remarkable feature is how unremarkable and understated it is. That's not to say that it's not a good movie or has nothing more than its superficial plot to offer; quite the opposite. In fact, its ability to weave a somewhat complex tale with a charming simplicity is what makes it work, and its understated nature serves it well. Supported by a collection of equally understated but nevertheless genuine and effective performances, as well as steady direction from Christine Jeffs, Sunshine Cleaning is another standout independent feature from Starz/Anchor Bay/Overture. Likewise, the Blu-ray release is of the high quality format aficionados should now expect from Starz. Boasting a pristine 1080p transfer and a reserved but perfectly effective lossless soundtrack, the disc is technically sound. Unfortunately, there aren't many extras to speak of, but Sunshine Cleaning nevertheless comes recommended based on the strength of the film and its technical presentation.