When I first saw Greg Davies’ new sitcom advertised on BBC One, I honestly had extremely low expectations. I thought to myself “what could be funny about a crime scene cleaner?” and then expressed that thought to my dad, who wholeheartedly agreed. Truly, there were only two reasons I watched The Cleaner: one, I’m a big fan of Greg Davies and two, I had recently begun writing this blog and thought maybe this would be the first thing I review that I don’t think is brilliant. I was blindsided when I watched the first episode and was doubled over laughing. So unfortunately nobody will be able to hear my cutting, sarcastic side today, as I think The Cleaner is Davies’ best work.
I knew I was onto a winner in the first episode when I saw Helena Bonham Carter was a guest star. An absolute icon, it appeared she was in her element in a comedic role (though I know her best for more serious work). Happily, she is not the only incredible talent to grace us with their presence in the sitcom: David Mitchell, Ruth Madeley, Stephanie Cole and Layton Williams all appear as characters whose homes are cleaned by Davies’ character Wicky over the course of the first series. This revolving door of characters is much of what keeps The Cleaner interesting as the comedy comes from people’s varying views of the world. We as the audience get a little glimpse into how strange people are, especially in proximity to death and tragedy.
Of course, the series benefits greatly from the writing talents of Greg Davies himself. In my opinion, one of the funniest people in British comedy, Davies brings his signature brand of slightly absurd, dark humour that beautifully toes the line between the believable and the completely wild. He is an absolute genius of comic timing, writing and performing and very rarely am I unimpressed by his work. There also appeared to be something rather sentimental about the whole show, as this series was bookended by what I would consider to be the episodes with the most bittersweet endings imaginable. Maybe the tone is carried over from the original German series The Cleaner is based on (Der Tatortreiniger), or maybe Davies is just getting soft in his old age, either way I know it worked for me. It is also nice seeing Greg Davies expanding his acting range from “teacher” to “teacher and crime scene cleaner”.
Present throughout this first series of The Cleaner is some incredibly high quality directing. Almost all episodes were directed by Tom Marshall, bar one which was courtesy of Alex Winckler. Both capture a feeling that would almost seem more at home in a drama as opposed to a BBC One comedy, as they regularly juxtapose cool lighting and slow, sweeping camera angles with the reasonably joke heavy dialogue. Although there are certainly moments of pure comedy (the entire musical sequence in “The Widow” leaps to mind) there is a sensation of calm, of action that once was. The drama of the death has already happened, we are here to see the aftermath.
On the whole, The Cleaner is certainly a comedy that should not work, but does and with great success. It’s funny, it’s heartfelt and the first episode contains a baffling musical number with Greg Davies and Helena Bonham Carter. Truly, I don’t know how much more I can sell this programme. A beautiful bit of well-constructed comedy, I desperately hope that The Cleaner gets renewed for a second series as it would be exciting to see exactly where it could go.
~Caelum
Next Up: Shetland Series 6 Started and I’ve Already Set Up My Crime Board
Caelum Reviews 