Media: Movie
Genre: Indie Drama/Dark Comedy
Production Year: 2009
Official Site Link: Sunshine Cleaning
Synopsis:
Rose Lorkowski (Amy Adams) is a single mother trying to work out how to pay the bills and raise her son Oscar (Jason Spevack) all on her own. Being a maid just isn't working. Deciding to make a change, she starts her own cleanup business with her sister Norah (Emily Blunt) cleaning up crime and death scenes. This, all the while having an internal competition with her old high school friends who all seem much more successful than her and trying to fall in love.
Overall: 5
Whenever someone says that a movie is an "indie" everyone has one of two reactions. Either, "Awesome, I can't wait to see it", or "Really? Maybe I'll skip it." This movie will not change your mind, whatever your response is. There are basically two sub-groups of indies in my opinion. There are the "main stream" indies, (Eternal Sunshine, Requiem for a Dream) and obscure indies (Pi, Kontrol). This would deffinetly fall under the more main stream genre. I would compare it to "Everything is Illuminated", but a little more "real". When watching a movie, whatever ind it is, I want to be taken away. I want to be engrossed in the story, the characters, the visuals, the sound, something that takes me away from reality and puts me into a place where anything can happen. A world with fat guys in a little coat, with valet drivers that take a Ferrari for a drive and jump it, where a guy can jump a shark on water skis and still have the perfect hair due. This movie is just a little to "real." It feels like you are more watching the day to day of someone living in the same real world that I live in. My world is a lot more boring than what happens on screen. I don't want to watch a movie in my world. I want to watch a movie based in the world where the good guy always wins, and yells out "Yippee Kay Ya, Mother F***er!" This movie just was a little bit to dry and boring for me.
Writing: 4
Showing the plight of two sisters as they deal with life after the scuicide of their dead mother is a great story. I get that Megan Holley was trying to show how each of the sisters deals with their mothers death in different ways, all the while trying to survive in their respective harsh realities. But does it have to be so BORING. I found myself wanting to get up and do something, my mind wandering away from the movie. That is not a good thing for a movie. i can enjoy a good artsy indie film, but this is just to "real" to be at all interesting.
Acting: 7
This is the one redeeming value of the movie. The parts and the characters are very well portrayed and very well acted. Having Alan Arkin play the father (Joe Lorkowski) was a great casting choice. his comedic timing and delivery is a shining star in this otherwise very dull movie. In a supporting role, his scenes are easily the best and most engaging in the entire movie. The son, Oscar, is a stand out role. Jason Spevack plays the role brilliantly, being the kid who doesn't know when to shut up, but still being a loveable character.
Directing: 6
Christine Jeffs moves this train wreck along as best she can with the material given. There is only so much you can do when you are given a plain jane script such as this. T many times it seemed as though the story was a little rushed, skipping large chunks of time making the audience infer as to what happened in the gap. I don't know if this was a writing choice, an editing blunder, or a function of the director. Whatever it is, the director is supposed to oversee the show, and this one flopped.
Photography/Special Effects: 5
The movie is set in what seems to be a suburb of Los Angles, a desert like, sandy, dry place. With no real landscape shots, or views showing larger areas than a store front, not much can be said about the photography. The only real "special effects" were of the crime or death scenes. No bodies ever, or even body parts (except the one isolated finger in a sink), just lots of blood and "bodily fluids." It is ll very well done, but nothing special.
Soundtrack/Sound Effects: 4
No memorable sound track, or special effects. This movie could have been a lot better with a great soundtrack. There were times when there was silence, watching the characters drive down a street, or talk mellow-dramatically. These times could have been taken up by a dramatic sound track that could have added to the movie.
Choreography (fighting/dancing): N/A
With no fighting, dancing, or any choreography, this section is irrelevant to the movie and has been taken out of consideration. It is not included as a part of the overall score.
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Genre: Indie Drama/Dark Comedy
Production Year: 2009
Official Site Link: Sunshine Cleaning
Synopsis:
Rose Lorkowski (Amy Adams) is a single mother trying to work out how to pay the bills and raise her son Oscar (Jason Spevack) all on her own. Being a maid just isn't working. Deciding to make a change, she starts her own cleanup business with her sister Norah (Emily Blunt) cleaning up crime and death scenes. This, all the while having an internal competition with her old high school friends who all seem much more successful than her and trying to fall in love.
Overall: 5
Whenever someone says that a movie is an "indie" everyone has one of two reactions. Either, "Awesome, I can't wait to see it", or "Really? Maybe I'll skip it." This movie will not change your mind, whatever your response is. There are basically two sub-groups of indies in my opinion. There are the "main stream" indies, (Eternal Sunshine, Requiem for a Dream) and obscure indies (Pi, Kontrol). This would deffinetly fall under the more main stream genre. I would compare it to "Everything is Illuminated", but a little more "real". When watching a movie, whatever ind it is, I want to be taken away. I want to be engrossed in the story, the characters, the visuals, the sound, something that takes me away from reality and puts me into a place where anything can happen. A world with fat guys in a little coat, with valet drivers that take a Ferrari for a drive and jump it, where a guy can jump a shark on water skis and still have the perfect hair due. This movie is just a little to "real." It feels like you are more watching the day to day of someone living in the same real world that I live in. My world is a lot more boring than what happens on screen. I don't want to watch a movie in my world. I want to watch a movie based in the world where the good guy always wins, and yells out "Yippee Kay Ya, Mother F***er!" This movie just was a little bit to dry and boring for me.
Writing: 4
Showing the plight of two sisters as they deal with life after the scuicide of their dead mother is a great story. I get that Megan Holley was trying to show how each of the sisters deals with their mothers death in different ways, all the while trying to survive in their respective harsh realities. But does it have to be so BORING. I found myself wanting to get up and do something, my mind wandering away from the movie. That is not a good thing for a movie. i can enjoy a good artsy indie film, but this is just to "real" to be at all interesting.
Acting: 7
This is the one redeeming value of the movie. The parts and the characters are very well portrayed and very well acted. Having Alan Arkin play the father (Joe Lorkowski) was a great casting choice. his comedic timing and delivery is a shining star in this otherwise very dull movie. In a supporting role, his scenes are easily the best and most engaging in the entire movie. The son, Oscar, is a stand out role. Jason Spevack plays the role brilliantly, being the kid who doesn't know when to shut up, but still being a loveable character.
Directing: 6
Christine Jeffs moves this train wreck along as best she can with the material given. There is only so much you can do when you are given a plain jane script such as this. T many times it seemed as though the story was a little rushed, skipping large chunks of time making the audience infer as to what happened in the gap. I don't know if this was a writing choice, an editing blunder, or a function of the director. Whatever it is, the director is supposed to oversee the show, and this one flopped.
Photography/Special Effects: 5
The movie is set in what seems to be a suburb of Los Angles, a desert like, sandy, dry place. With no real landscape shots, or views showing larger areas than a store front, not much can be said about the photography. The only real "special effects" were of the crime or death scenes. No bodies ever, or even body parts (except the one isolated finger in a sink), just lots of blood and "bodily fluids." It is ll very well done, but nothing special.
Soundtrack/Sound Effects: 4
No memorable sound track, or special effects. This movie could have been a lot better with a great soundtrack. There were times when there was silence, watching the characters drive down a street, or talk mellow-dramatically. These times could have been taken up by a dramatic sound track that could have added to the movie.
Choreography (fighting/dancing): N/A
With no fighting, dancing, or any choreography, this section is irrelevant to the movie and has been taken out of consideration. It is not included as a part of the overall score.
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