by Jake Bourgeois, Contributing Writer
As someone who lives far from any large metropolitan areas, I understand that it may take some time for smaller indie fare to make its way to my general vicinity. What I don’t understand is when it applies to a new Die Hard-style action movie directed by the guy who gave us Casino Royale and GoldenEye, andled by the star of the latest Star Wars trilogy.
Cleaner, a film that was supposed to get a “wide release,” opened with a paltry 378 theaters on February 21, which only declined over the next couple of weeks. To put that in perspective, when it opened for its first weekend, it was on fewer screens than Moana 2, which debuted the day before Thanksgiving.
From director Martin Campbell, Cleaner follows window washer and ex-army dropout Joey (Daisy Ridley), who is forced into action when ecoterrorists, led by Clive Owen, hijack the building she’s currently suspended outside in order save the hostages and her autistic brother (Matthew Tuck) inside.
Now, upon reading that synopsis, if you’ve seen any action movie post-Die Hard, I don’t have to tell you what happens, you can pretty well figure it out (though it does throw in the occasional zag). But you know what? That’s fine sometimes. You know why? Die Hard is great. The formula it spawned is great. I enjoy those types of movies. It’s why I wanted to see this one. Is it basic? Sure, but I like Ridley. I want to root for her in her fight against the odds versus the terrorists. The movie gives you just enough backstory that I can invest the requisite amount into our heroine for the 97-minute runtime that doesn’t overstay its welcome.
Besides Die Hard, you know another movie I love? Inside Man. Smart, snarky villain Clive Owen is my favorite Clive Owen, and its fun to watch him do his thing again here.
Aside from that, having a competent director of action scenes behind the camera gives the film a base level of competence and watchability. Do the visuals have their moments that take you out momentarily? Sure, but the film always knows how to pull me right back in.
Look, this movie’s not going to win any awards or be anywhere close to my favorites of the year, but that’s not the point. I was promised that Cleaner was going to be a fun enough romp in a long line of Die Hard ripoffs, and it delivers on that relatively low bar. Is it possible that my expectations of the film were lowered by the fact I had its middling reputation staring me in the face every time I rechecked when I was even going to have the opportunity to see it? There’s a good possibility of that.
But that doesn’t change the fact that I should have had the opportunity to come to that conclusion myself. In a theater.
Rating: Liked It
Cleaner is currently available on PVOD
You can read more from Jake Bourgeois, and follow him on Bluesky and Letterboxd