Movie Review

Clean (2006)

Reviewed by Lisa Schwarzbaum | Apr 19, 2006

Lisa Schwarzbaum

Lisa Schwarzbaum is a film critic for EW

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EW's GRADE

Details Limited Release: Apr 28, 2006; Rated: R; Length: 110 Minutes; Genre: Drama; With: Maggie Cheung and Beatrice Dalle

$OUT OF THE CANNES Cheung\'s portrayal of a once-jailed druggie seeking custody of her son earned a festival Best Actress...$

OUT OF THE CANNES Cheung's portrayal of a once-jailed druggie seeking custody of her son earned a festival Best Actress prize

Not your average divorce gift: Clean's writer-director Olivier Assayas created the role of recovering rock-world druggie Emily Wang for his ex-wife, art-house/action-pic royalty Maggie Cheung (In the Mood for Love). The story itself is an oddly flat tale of recovery amid lifestyle excesses: Just out of jail, after supplying the heroin on which her rock-star husband OD'd, Emily must qualify to reclaim custody of her young son. (Nick Nolte makes an unlikely father-in-law and guardian.) But the role is a plum — and Cheung was rewarded with the prize for best actress at Cannes in 2004.

Originally posted Apr 19, 2006 Published in issue #874-875 Apr 28, 2006 Order article reprints

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