A better concept than it is a movie Sunshine Cleaning is aided immensely by two wonderful, charming and likeable stars and strong supporting players.
Amy Adams and Emily Blunt are still in career ascent (especially Blunt) and so much of what is to like here is the chance to watch these two. A great fit together as chalk-and-cheese sisters Blunt (who has consistently impressed since the brilliant My Summer Of Love) and Adams (likewise since Junebug) dominate the film - rightly. But the concept could have been mined better. Here we have two loving but conbative sisters thrown together in work as clean-up crew at crime scenes. It is a high concept that could have been milked but we are too often stuck in the fairly hum-drum life of Adams (affairs with married men, a problem child, an obsession with how old friends might judge her). Elements of this are fine, and necessary. But it becomes the core of the film and wastes a lot of dramatic and comedic potential in the key set-up.
It also often sidelines Blunt as a result and the film would have benefitted greatly from putting the sisters relationship truly front and center instead of pretending too while really only being interested in Adams. Of course Blunt is as reliable as ever, as is Alan Arkin in his, type-cast, wacky, bad influence, ascerbic father role, but both are a little wasted. This is Adams show and she is also good as usual but the film needed to make the sisters equal not have one as just one part of the other's bigger story.
Clifton Collins Jr shines though in the best written supporting role in the film.
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