Clean and Sober (1988)

(In French, On Cable TV, April 2022) Michael Keaton spent most of the 1980s working as a comic actor, so it was really clever for him to use Clean and Sober as his breakout dramatic role. The genius of it was picking a dramatic role that relied a lot on the instincts he developed as a comedian: his easily likable demeanour, fast-talking patter, and comic timing all come into play in the role of a real estate agent with an addiction issue who thinks he can trick the judicial system by faking his way through a recovery program. The protagonist has no intention of committing to the process – he just wants people to think he does, and he’ll use his charm to fool others. It’s a good plan, even one with good comic potential – but Clean and Sober is written from the trenches of addiction recovery, and both the script and its characters are there to remind us that it’s not an easy process and that it’s designed to take into account those who don’t really want to get sober. There are many interesting names in the case, from Morgan Freeman (already old in his earliest roles!) as a tough addiction counsellor, M. Emmet Walsh as an impossibly wise ex-addict mentor, and Claudia Christian in a small but striking role as a fellow addict. The film, like many of the 1980s best dramas, feels lived in with credible performances yet packed with compelling narrative hooks. Directed transparently by Ron Howard, Clean and Sober implausibly crams a year’s worth of events into a mere month, and does reach for a sombre finale on the way to the protagonist’s recovery –capping a superfluous romantic subplot that is increasingly at odds with the main theme of the film. Still, it marks an enjoyable turning point in Keaton’s career. (Word on the street was that this is the film that led to him getting the lead in Batman, with the rest of his career being subsequent history.)  It’s surprisingly compelling even in dealing with such downbeat themes, and it makes for an engrossing viewing even if you think you’re familiar with what the film has to say about addiction and recovery.