No matter what approach a film takes to showing someone struggling with their mental health, almost all have the same core message: battling your demons is never easy. This internal conflict is shown in many different ways with each portrayal impacting their audience to varying degrees, though few movies take it as literally — or as horrifically humorously — as Bobby Miller's The Cleanse. Following a hapless man desperate to change his luck, the film sees him join a suspiciously cult-like "self-help group" and begin facing the worst parts of himself in a way that no viewer could have expected. This plot is hilariously uncomfortable, with the film using humor to cope with its sadder elements in a way that many real people do today, yet is also shockingly poignant.
It leverages the horror and creature-feature aspects of its story as a metaphor for the real fears that live within anyone struggling with their mental health. It uses these aspects and the terrifying moments that accompany them to create a literal version of someone fighting for their wellbeing, making it clear that while this process isn't easy, it is essential for a person to begin living the life they want. The movie expertly uses the fear of its premise to represent the vital truths at its center, creating an important message that anyone — horror fan or not — can benefit from today.
‘The Cleanse’ Will Purify You Inside and Out
Image via Vertical Entertainment
While The Cleanse's plot goes to some legitimately devastating places, it eases viewers into these heavier topics through the disappointingly comical life of its protagonist, Paul (Johnny Galecki). He's a man truly at the end of his rope; he's lost his job, the love of his life, and spends his days idly wondering where it all went wrong while never really doing anything to address his issues. He is completely lost in his own sadness, desperate for someone to tell him how to fix his life — which is what makes him the perfect candidate for the "Let's Get Pure" seminar, a shady self-help program that assures Paul and others like him that they are so close to achieving happiness (but only if they follow the group's every command). His commitment to their teaching leads him to attend a weekend retreat filled with horror icons like Anjelica Huston and Kyle Gallner, with their group leaders coaching him through a ritual that they assure will help him face and conquer his "demons." Not realizing that they aren't being hyperbolic, Paul goes through a disgusting process that leaves him with the weirdest pet imaginable: a cute little blob...that is the incarnation of all his mental health issues.
The Cleanse masters comedy-horror in a way not many other films can, with the movie punctuating its dark comedy with shocking scenes of body horror as some of the retreat attendees discover that the hatred they feel for their creatures is mutual. Yet this balancing of genres doesn't skew the film's core message: you should tackle issues with your mental health, but only in a way that works for you. This is shown in the moments when Paul, rather than attacking his creature, cares for it, recognizing how the issues it represents are still a part of him, and that while they may be toxic, attacking them would only be attacking himself. He sees it as something that he must work to accept and overcome, a shockingly healthy approach to mental health that the group leaders despise, because he's not doing what they told him to, reflecting the way toxic "self-help" programs only want people to be better as long as they do what they're told.
Paul's recognition of the worst parts of himself is a journey that many people have been forced to go on, with The Cleanse bringing the turmoil of this self-confrontation into the world, in how it shows the struggles Paul faces with his creature. This touching message crescendos into a truly shocking ending that represents the often visceral experience people undergo when dealing with the most negative parts of themselves. Yet it reminds everyone watching that no matter how hard it may be, you will always gain more from this battle than you could ever lose by ignoring it.
‘The Cleanse’ Shows That Bad Mental Health Can Be Monstrous
While The Cleanse grants viewers an important message about mental health, the film sometimes gets bogged down in trying to understand its own metaphor. Its many plot threads often have a hard time intertwining, and while each is entertaining, focusing on some of the more blatantly funny or horrific ones detracts from the film's overall themes rather than adding to them. But despite these missteps, The Cleanse overall serves as a sardonic, shockingly accurate representation of what it means to confront the worst parts of yourself. Paul's experience brings the mental health battles that some people face into the physical world, yet just like how it reflects their struggles, it also reflects their goals. Because with Paul's arc throughout the film taking as many wild, shockingly relatable turns as it does, the film reminds us that these kinds of battles may be immensely hard, but they are always worth it in the end. It is an affirming message that many more people need to hear — luckily for everyone, the movie is now free to watch on Tubi.
The Cleanse is Available to Stream on Tubi
English (US) ·