Nerdly » ‘Cleaner’ Review

20th Feb2025

‘Cleaner’ Review

by Jim Morazzini

Stars: Daisy Ridley, Matthew Tuck, Clive Owen, Lee Boardman, Rufus Jones, Taz Skylar, Ruth Gemmell | Written by Matthew Orton, Simon Uttley, Paul Andrew Williams | Directed by Martin Campbell

Since the original Die Hard took the world by storm in 1988, it has inspired countless sequels and knock-offs. Often built around the same basic premise, these films have become a sub-genre in their own right. From Die Hard 2: Die Harder set in an airport, to Under Siege on a naval vessel, Passenger 57 on a plane, and even Olympus Has Fallen and White House Down in the White House, the formula has been repeated in various locations, with a lone hero taking on the bad guys and saving the hostages.

Now, Cleaner, directed by Martin Campbell (Casino Royale, Dirty Angels) and written by Matthew Orton (Devil’s Peak, Moon Knight), Simon Uttley (James Hyde – The Very Thought of You), and Paul Andrew Williams (Bull, The Children), brings the formula back to where it all started, an office building overrun by criminals led by a psychopath, and a lone hero who must save the day.

That hero, or in this case heroine, is Joey Locke (Daisy Ridley; Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens, Scrawl), a former soldier who has turned her love of high places into a career as a window cleaner for skyscrapers.

Already running late, she’s called to a facility where her severely autistic brother, Michael (Matthew Tuck), has been living. It turns out that Michael has hacked into the system and released information showing the facility’s management has been embezzling funds, taking advantage of the residents, including him. With no other options, Joey takes Michael with her to the building where she works, leaving him in the care of the doorman while she works.

Forced to work late, and alone, to make up for coming in late, she’s hanging outside the building when a group of activists led by Marcus Blake (Clive Owen; Inside Man, Children of Men) take the guest at a lavish party for Agnian Energy, a supposed clean energy company run by Gerald Milton (Lee Boardman; Monochrome, Jack the Giant Slayer) and his brother Geoffrey (Rufus Jones; Thomas & Friends: The Great Race, The People We Hate at the Wedding) a pair of Elon Musk type grifters who claims to care about the environment while allying themselves with polluters and with climate change denialists. exposing the company’s corruption,

Blake’s crew captures the party guests and holds them hostage, creating a volatile situation. Further complicating matters is an even more extreme faction within Blake’s group led by one of Joey’s co-workers Noah (Taz Skylar; Boiling Point, Gassed Up), who doesn’t just want to expose the company and its shareholders, but wants to kill them off.

While not a complete Die Hard clone, the DNA it shares with Cleaner is obvious, and by opening the playing field up to include the outside of the building allows for even more work by stunt coordinator Matthew Stirling (Life, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw) and his team.

And that’s where Cleaner delivers, the plot might not hold up to scrutiny, but with Joey a target of both the police and the terrorists, the film gives the viewers what they want from a film like this, action and suspense. Yes, like most similar films it takes a while to get rolling but once bullets start flying and things start blowing up it becomes a fun popcorn action film with a charismatic heroine and easily hateable villain.

Ridley and Skylar are both excellent, and their fight provides the film with a great climax. Clive Owen is also on top of his game for the few minutes he’s in the film. They’re given solid support from Tuck whose neurodivergent, MCU-obsessed character isn’t as cringy as I expected and Ruth Gemmell (Storage 24, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story) is great as Detective Hume, who is in charge of the police response.

While it might not be in the same league as the film that inspired it, Cleaner holds its own and is a welcome dose of mindless fun and just the thing I needed after a run of overly serious films. The film’s mix of intense action sequences, a strong heroine, and a palpable sense of danger will keep viewers entertained, especially those who enjoy action films that don’t take themselves too seriously.