Sunshine Cleaning

A thirtysomething single mother whose boundless potential was squandered through a series of failed relationships and a misguided effort to help her younger sister succeed in life finds the fruits of her labors finally coming together in director Christine Jeffs' dark family comedy. Back in high ...more

It's a pleasure seeing that nice Amy Adams play a more believably-rounded character than a cartoon princess come to life (Enchanted) or a meekly skittish nun (Doubt). This time she's a struggling Albuquerque single mom named Rose, a former head cheerleader reduced to cleaning houses for a living. "Cheering is good," she explains at one point, "but it's not as marketable as you'd think." Her former high-school boyfriend (Steve Zahn) is now a married cop, but that doesn't keep him from hooking ...more

The sweet little dramedy Sunshine Cleaning is probably doomed to endless Little Miss Sunshine comparisons, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Both movies have roughly the same amount of indie quirk, both aim for the same modest level of human drama, and both feature Alan Arkin as the loving, crass grandfather to a weird but awesome kid. That's largely where the similarities end, however, because this movie isn't about beauty pageants, it's about cleaning up blood. But let's not get ahead ...more