The Cleaner: The First Season

Robert Munic and Jonathan Prince reportedly based their hard-hitting A&E dramatic series on the real-life story of one of their co-executive producers, Warren Boyd. The Cleaner focuses on William Banks (Benjamin Bratt), a recovering addict who struggles to maintain his own sobriety and stability while helping others to achieve theirs—often using extreme measures. He works with a team of interventionists (played by Esteban Powell, Grace Park, and Kevin Michael Richardson) to locate seriously out-of-control substance abusers and help them get clean by any means necessary. The show explores Banks' relationship with God and details how his encounters with other addicts influence his own commitment to recovery. Although Bratt, an intense and forceful performer, is well cast as Banks and firmly anchors the show, none of his supporting cast is capable of holding the screen when he's not in the shot. It took The Cleaner some time to find an authentic voice, so the later episodes of the 13 compiled here from the 2008 debut season show improvement. In “Back to One,” for example, the career of a promising young actress is derailed by her cocaine habit and her worried brother asks Banks to help. Even better is the season finale, “Life for Me,” in which Banks devises an extreme intervention when a couple's alcoholism endangers their daughter. The main problem with this series is inherent in its premise: an overreliance on melodrama, which can tip it dangerously close to self-parody. DVD extras include cast and crew commentaries and interviews, a gag reel, deleted scenes, an on-the-set feature with Powell, and the character featurette “The Mystery of William Banks.” A strong optional purchase. (E. Hulse)