Last week I wrote an article about “Little Miss Sunshine”
and it got me thinking about the film “Sunshine Cleaning.” Now “Sunshine
Cleaning” is from the producers of “Little Miss Sunshine”, it also stars Alan
Arkin, and, you know, the word sunshine is in the title. However, the biggest
similarity between the movies is the theme of self-realization. Both films
feature characters basically trying to sort shit out. Who are they? What do
they want? Why are they hurting themselves or the people who love them?
The key difference between the films is that “Sunshine
Cleaning” is more focused on women. Amy Adams and Emily Blunt play sisters,
Rose and Norah, who are both stuck in their own lives. Rose (Adams) is still thriving on the
memory of her High School glory and Norah (Blunt) has no idea what she wants,
and can’t move past the death of her mother. The film shows the way we
sometimes need to see ourselves through other people in order to move forward.
And more importantly, that failure is an important part of success.
The sisters begin a business cleaning up crime scenes in
order to send Rose’s son to private school. The film focuses on Rose’s struggle
to be a good mother, sister and daughter, and Norah’s struggle to begin her
life. When everyone around you is falling apart, how do you keep yourself
together?
The film was directed by Christine Jeffs and written by
Megan Holley. The style of humor is similar to “Little Miss Sunshine” only with
some romantic elements. But really it’s just a film about people finding
themselves. There’s a relatable warmth and pain to the story, it’s smart, and
it came out over four years ago and if I watched it today it would still feel
new. If you’re looking for something to watch this weekend, I recommend it. It used to be on Netflix Instant and On Demand, so keep a look out for it, hopefully they bring it back.
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