Smoothly directed by Olivier Assayas (Irma Vep), Clean is an arresting star vehicle for Maggie Cheung. Her Emily Wang starts as a meddling, heroin-addled millstone around her husband's neck, obviously jealous of his fame as she needles him over his lack of self-confidence. After her stint in prison Emily is left way out on a limb. Judged a no-talent responsible for the ruin of a great performer, she's rejected by her immediate business associates and shunned by the present Paris elite. Emily's former television boss, also her former lover, seems to derive pleasure from seeing her suffer.

Cheung holds our attention at all times. Determined to recover Jay from his domineering grandmother -- who has told the boy that his mother killed his father -- Emily takes a restaurant job with relatives, only to be let go when they mistake her Methadone doses as evidence of continued addiction. She's working in a clothing store when a pair of offers comes in. Her father-in-law Albrecht is willing to take a chance and bring Jay to Paris, even though the boy doesn't want to meet his mother. And a cellmate from Canada has invited Emily to San Francisco to try her hand at a solo recording effort. Accustomed to taking the wild road, Emily could easily spirit Jay away on a jet, betraying Albrecht's trust.

Clean captures a number of specific locales in intriguing detail. Emily slaves in the Chinese restaurant by night and cools her heels in swank offices, waiting for lunch appointments that former friends (and lovers) won't keep. Street friends transport Emily on motorcycles through the streets of Paris in a vain attempt to connect with old rock stars she once helped make famous. Emily's old TV boss, an egotistical lesbian, locks a desired employee in her bathroom for several hours just to show Emily what a really powerful person can get away with. The 'pretty young thing' locked in the bathroom confesses that she thought Emily was the greatest TV personality of all time -- back when she was a kid watching music videos on the tube.

This is Maggie Cheung's movie, and her performance lacks only a breakout scene to make a permanent dent in the memory. Emily soldiers through her predicament but never reaches the defining moment that might put Clean up with the top-rank dramas. Nick Nolte plays the sober and wise grandfather, and is more than slightly amusing when he professes to know little or nothing about drugs and Emily's wild life. Although both of these characters are expertly drawn, they don't form a memorable bond; director Assayas prefers to concentrate on Emily's interior problems. His handling of atmosphere and locations -- the chaos of Lee Hauser's Canadian tour, Emily's modest boarding-house room -- are just as indelible.

Palm Pictures' DVD of Clean presents this handsome production in enhanced widescreen and 5.1 Dolby, with a selection of EPK-style actor and director interviews. Few great insights are offered but Nolte expresses his hearty approval of relaxed French filming schedules. A trailer finishes the package, which begins with an opening anti-poverty PSA starring about 50 top stars. The film is also full-length; we're informed that versions exist that are almost twenty minutes shorter.

On a scale of Excellent, Good, Fair, and Poor, Clean rates:
Movie: Very Good
Video: Excellent
Sound: Excellent
Supplements: Interviews with stars and director, trailer
Packaging: Keep case
Reviewed: August 4, 2006