Push Off! (Push (Blu-ray))

Member Name: samueltyler

Product:	Push (Blu-ray)
Date:	30/10/09 (43 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Some decent action, nice premise

Disadvantages: Wasted by a dull story and grim setting

Everyone should have a favourite superpower ready in mind just in case they happen to fall into a vat of toxic waste and are give the opportunity to choose. It would be too late if you waited until you actually fell in as you would splash around and blurt out something rubbish in the panic, "the ability to talk to cats", or 'the ability to regulate the hairiness of my eyebrows". Both are arguably valid skills, but are they really that cool? How useful would it be to fight crime with a Roger Moore like raise of a brownie? I imagine that the person that could control an army of cats would be useful, but they would all run off at the first sign of catnip. My power would be a simple one designed to help society as a whole. I would gain the ability to erase rubbish films from the face of the Earth and for this reason 'Push' may not exist much longer.

Set in an alternative present day the world is the same as ours, but there is a secret underground society of people. These people have gifts that range from the ability to see images from the future, a scream that can kill, telekinesis and many others. Nick is one such gifted individual who lives off the grid in an attempt to avoid confrontation. However, when Cassie turns up at his door and claims that she has seen the future and that he changes the world perhaps Nick has no choice but to use his telekinesis for good. With Nick's super powered ex in the mix and a deadly group of assassins Nick and Cassie must alter the future to save the world and stop themselves becoming dead!

'Push' is the type of genre film that I should like. I am a huge science fiction fan and have managed to glean more entertainment from the past 10 years worth of superhero films than most people. However, even I found this a poor film. Any movie that contains copious amounts of chases, explosions and superpowers should be able to entertain. It certainly should not be a dull film. However, director Paul McGuigan manages to pull off the almost impossible and make the film boring.

The issues are numerous, but mainly it is the story and the direction that is to blame. Storywise, the universe of 'Push' does work. The idea that there are people with hidden powers under threat from government agencies is a good one and ripe for exploitation. However, this is not what happens with 'Push' as although we catch glimpses of this world it instead chooses to concentrate on the individual story of Nick. Once again, this should not be a bad thing as chase films have entertained for decades. It is at this point that director McGuigan's errors start to ruin the film.

Science fiction can be intelligent, serious, funny, action based - it is a genre open to everything. McGuigan appears unable to understand what type of Sci Fi he is making. The film is a silly action romp with pretentions of serious drama. Rather than embrace the crash, bang, wallop of super powered humans annihilating each other McGuigan creates a depressing and dark world. There are some fun action sequences that punctuate the boredom, but the fact is that the film is mostly a dull journey with dull characters. By trying to make the film gritty McGuigan has fundamentally misunderstood the premise - a silly idea should not be told this straight faced. This is only highlighted in BluRay as the grainy nature of the film negates the HD effects. The transfer is a good one, but when you are transferring such a dull image there is little point. It was a bold step by the director to film on location, but unfortunately, it harms the film immensely.

In terms of acting the film has an adequate cast that are unable to shine with the script they are given. Chris Evan is a much maligned actor, but 'Sunshine' proved to me that he can act. However, as Nick he does little more than stumble around a bit and shout. The other major player if Dakota Fanning as Cassie. Fanning is the child actress of the 2000s, but like so many before her I feel that her career is ending in puberty. Her old before her years style no longer works when you become as old as your years.

The one or two entertaining action sequences that are the highlights of 'Push' are not enough to make a dull film watchable. The tone is completely off and trying to make such a silly film serious has to be the fault of the director. The cast do as much as they can with a flaky script, but like so much of the film some decent promise is wasted away.


Director: Paul McGuigan
Year: 2009
Cert: 15
Starring: Chris Evans and Dakota Fanning
Price: Amazon uk £9.98 (BluRay)
Play.com £10.99 (BluRay)


Extras

As mentioned the BluRay is not a bad transfer, but the on location shoot means that the film is grainy and the picture is not really enhanced by HD. Extras are a standard affair with a featurette, commentary track and some deleted scenes.

Summary: Misguided science fiction that does not know what to be