Clean Up ~ Why Can’t I Clean Up My Conscience?

“Clean Up” is a 2019 Korean movie, categorized as Crime, and Psychological Thriller; and streaming on KOCOWA+.

SUMMARY: A woman is not only grieving the loss of her son but is burdened with guilt because she committed a crime against another child about the same age as her son who died.

♦ I Can’t Stop Feeling Guilty

In “Clean Up,” Jung Ju works as a cleanup lady. When she gets off work, she gets drunk. She goes to church, repents of her sins, and asks for forgiveness. Maybe she has been forgiven by the Divine, but she just can’t seem to forgive herself. WHY? What did she do?

One day, a co-worker got fired and they immediately hired a replacement. The new co-worker is an ex-convict. Of course, the other workers feel uneasy. What did he go to jail for? Is he dangerous? Why did their boss hire an ex-con? Then they meet him in person. His name is Lee Min Gu. Everyone is surprised. They didn’t expect a young guy. He looks like he’s in his 20s (twenties). Maybe he’s not dangerous.

Jung Ju is surprised, but not because he’s a young ex-convict. It’s because she recognizes him. He’s the little boy she and her husband kidnapped 12 years ago. Lee Min Gu does not recognize her but that’s because he was a little boy and also because his kidnappers kept him blindfolded. The ransom was paid and the boy was returned to his parents unharmed. Physically, he was unharmed. Mentally? Well! He’s an ex-con. Perhaps the experience scarred him internally.

The experience of participating in a crime certainly affected Jung Ju’s mental health. She contacted her ex-husband to let him know that she had seen the little boy they kidnapped. Her husband said he wasn’t worried because the statute of limitations had expired, so they wouldn’t go to jail. Also, they didn’t hurt the little boy. So the kid’s all grown up now. So what! They didn’t hurt him! He doesn’t even recognize her. Why is she so upset? Her ex-husband told her to stop calling him and not to come by his place of business because it upsets his new wife.

Jung Ju and her husband kidnapped a child because they needed money. Later, their own child died. The grief and guilt were too much for Jung Ju, and that’s why she started drinking heavily. Her husband, on the other hand, divorced her, found another woman, remarried and had a child with that woman, and is running a business.

Jung Ju can see that Lee Min Gu has lived a difficult life and wonders if she and her husband are responsible for how he grew up and the hardships he experienced. Why did she agree with her husband to kidnap him in the first place? Her ex-husband is not even bothered by what he did to the little boy. Her conscience won’t let her ignore the young man. To ease her conscience and do some sort of penance, she offers to try to help him, without revealing what she had done to him when he was little.

• But what if he finds out?
• Will he forgive her or try to take revenge?
• If he gets revenge wouldn’t it be her just punishment?
• Doesn’t she deserve to be punished for ruining his life?

Main Characters:

• Jung Ju (played by Yoon Ji Hye, “Move To Heaven”, “Queenmaker”, “The Tale of Lady Ok”)
• Lee Min Gu (played by Kim Dae Geon, “Watcher”, “Doctor Lawyer”, “Daily Dose of Sunshine”)

Where to Watch

(Watch free on Plex and Tubi.)

NOTE: Not to be confused with another Kdrama titled “Cleaning Up”.

Viewership and Rating:

• IMDb: 6.8 out of 10 stars
• My Drama List: 7.3 out of 10 stars

My personal rating is 8 out of 10 stars.

The movie “Clean Up” is slow-moving. You must be patient and watch until the end. The entire time you’re watching, you’ll probably be thinking:

• What if I were that boy?
• What if I were that woman?
• What would I do?

Per Rotten Tomatoes: “Clean Up” potently examines feelings of grief, guilt, and redemption.

Per The Reel Bits: “A moving and austere debut, it treads a delicate line in exploring guilt, redemption, and culpability.”

LINKS OF INTEREST:

Busan Film Review: ‘Clean Up’ | Variety

Review: Clean Up | Filmed in Ether

Clean Up (2018) directed by Kwon Man-ki • Reviews, film + cast | Letterboxd

Movie Review – Clean Up | MIB’s Instant Headache

‘Clean Up’: Busan Review | Reviews | Screen Daily

TRAILER/TEASER:

Flix Premiere. “Clean Up.” YouTube, 23 Mar. 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3JLV3Zl-lc.

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