Review: Sunshine Cleaning

Synopsis:  When single mother and maid Rose Lorkowski (Amy Adams) is forced to send her son to private school, she enlists the help of her free-spirited sister Nora (Emily Blunt) to start a bio-hazard, crime scene clean-up business.  Through their business, Sunshine Cleaning, Rose and Nora learn how to support themselves and how valuable they are to each other and the other people in their lives.

My Thoughts:  I wanted to see Sunshine Cleaning when it first came out in 2008, but unfortunately, it was not playing in my area.  Just like I thought it would be, Sunshine Cleaning is a wonderful film.  The script and the actors combine a sense of humor concerning a very morbid topic with a piece of vulnerability.  Sunshine Cleaning is a great example of how overlooked, mundane lives can be transformed through meaningful experiences – even if they are a contrary to societal norms.  When watching the film, I urge viewers to overlook the stereotypical lifestyle of these women – their values and virtues are what you should be paying attention to.

For the Single Girl:  Sunshine Cleaning is the type of film that can inspire the people who watch it.

• First, Amy Adams and Emily Blunt have a wonderful chemistry – making their sisters relatable in an unrelatable situation (I don’t know any crime scene cleaning professionals – do you?).
• The Rose character takes control of her situation and mundane life – she creates something that she is proud of.  She is incredibly enterprising and resourceful – great characteristics for an SG.
• Both Rose and Nora take responsibility for their actions, which is very rare in films these days (I think is a direct reflection on society).  Seeing two adult women stand up for themselves and when mistakes are made, they make efforts to rectify those errors, such as taking bio-hazard class for certification and working to pay $40,000 when a house burns down.

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