During the brief 81-minute runtime, the characters barely grow or change - or even find much definition - while the audience is left wondering about the origins of the cleanse program.

| Original Score: 1.5/4 | Mar 14, 2022

... a drama/comedy that brings elements of fantasy and horror to great results.

| Original Score: 4.5/5 | Apr 19, 2020

The filmmaker takes his characters and their anxieties seriously, and has something much more interesting in mind than a straightforward genre piece.

| Jul 17, 2019

Ultimately lifeless and uninvolving, distinguished only by its faintly gnarly premise and its ugly-cute creature designs.

| Original Score: C- | Dec 7, 2018

[It's] a film which is somehow endearing and calming, as well as dark and dangerous. A light-hearted and whimsical charm that has a surprisingly amount and tension and wariness hidden beneath.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 17, 2018

Making a film about juice cleansing doesn't seem like the deepest mine of material, but Miller shows that an unconventional topic presents plenty of cinematic potential.

| Aug 29, 2018

Not a film for everyone, but it is an interesting, quirky, funny film with solid creature effects and winning performances by Galecki and Friel.

| Aug 29, 2018

In 80 minutes, the film introduces a compelling, and very strange, scenario, explores it to its satisfying conclusion, and then just ends. There are no superfluous scenes, and it's a pleasure from beginning to end.

| Aug 15, 2018

I was really impressed with this movie with the way that it navigates a bunch of different kinds of genres in a tricky way, 'cause it is a low-key comedy for a while, but then it becomes a sci-fi film and a legit horror film.

| Aug 15, 2018

... certainly rocky in terms of pacing and unsure how to handle all of its characters, it blends horror, comedy, romance, and emotion into an original film ...

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | May 4, 2018

"The Cleanse" embarks on an allegorical journey with only the vaguest notion of a destination. As a result, the movie feels frustratingly repetitive - a single joke repeated ad nauseam.

| May 3, 2018

Miller's hyper realistic style and skewed POV shots are paired with low tech animatronic beasties, the cleanse's adorable expectorations which grow up to be...something quite different, and the overall effect is gently amusing and offbeat.

| Original Score: C+ | May 3, 2018

It is more clever than poignant and plods a bit during its short (81 minute) run time.

| Original Score: C+ | May 2, 2018

Although it may evoke such films as "Gremlins" and "The Lobster," as well as David Cronenberg's earlier work, writer-director Bobby Miller's oozy, eerie, yet weirdly soulful yarn feels like an original.

| May 2, 2018

There are creatures in the film that obviously represent the past, disappointments, sadness, and everything that is weighing down people in their lives. The idea of giving that a face and having to confront it is a great idea.

| Original Score: 6/10 | Apr 5, 2018

While details grow shaky - the logic and repercussions of certain actions don't seem to hold up - the effect is still an oddly original effort that marks Miller as a filmmaker to watch.

| Oct 24, 2016

The film could have easily fallen flat, straying into B movie or comedy territory, but it's a masterful blend of horror, drama and comedy.

| Original Score: 7/10 | Oct 24, 2016

When events briefly take a dark turn at the end, we're left with more questions that should have been better answered in the movie proper.

| Oct 21, 2016

[Takes] a fresh, surprisingly low-key and affecting approach to its lunatic premise.

| Aug 27, 2016

As lost, lonely self-helpers struggle to work out whether their negative feelings should be killed off once and for all, or embraced and even shared, Miller's screenplay births plenty of emotionally intelligent tragicomedy.

| Aug 18, 2016