Clean

The maxim 'nothing exists outside of the home' perfectly captures the often strained and complex relationship dynamic that exists within the real of family drama as evidenced by the Melbourne Independent feature film Clean.

On the brink of adulthood, Kane, played by AFI award winning actor Zbych Trofimiuk, searches for independence and identity. Kristof Kaczmarek, star of the Rolf De Heer, The Sound of One Hand Clapping, plays Kane's father, a prominent prosecutor and a man of power and presence.

The climate of deception and sexual intrigue, yearning and adolescence enables Clean to relate its almost fable-like qualities; a son trying to save his ailing mother by destroying his fathers fragile self-importance, a father trying to distance himself from his own mortality through his son, a mistress relishing in her own power and sexual satisfaction.

Such classic film archetypes of confrontation and the realisation of self play perfectly within the easily identifiable an often fated context of 'home' and 'family'.

With Nancy Finn as Kane's mother, Clean also explores a woman's journey through marriage, motherhood, sacrifice, lost dreams, neglect, compromise and eventually madness.

With its compelling symbolism, Clean is a powerful drama that explores power relations between father and son, husband and wife.

(review by Bjørnar Kjensli)