"Push" Move, Watch, Shift, Sniff, Shadow, and Bleed

Genres: Science Fiction/Fantasy and Thriller
Running Time: 2 hrs. 1 min.
Release Date: February 6th, 2009 (wide)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, brief strong language, smoking a scene of teen drinking.
Distributors: Summit Entertainment, LLC

Directed by: Paul McGuigan

JJ Rating: B+

There are a group of people that have powers that are on their own. There is a government agency called the Division that is out to use and take. There is a gang that beats up and gets what it wants. They are all after the same person and/or thing. Push.

Whenever there are powers people make the comparison to X-Men or "Heroes" and that's alright if they want to be boring and do so, but not every film that has people with abilities is a knock off. I have a thing for superhero like movies and I liked Push. It had a different take that was a bit edgier and unbalanced. There are a lot of things that could have been ironed out to give it more of a polished look, but for what it was I was very entertained.

One of the unique aspects of Push is that it gave different titles for the same known abilities. Push, for instance, were people who forced a suggestion into someone's head and they, if weak minded (I assume) or unprepared, end up doing it. Then there are Watchers who can see the future, Movers who are telekinetic, Bleeders who scream and burst eardrums and shatter glass, Sniffers who can sniff something and tell who held it last and what had gone on around it, Shadowers who block Watchers, Pushers and Sniffers from seeing someone's location, and Shifters who change things from one to another like a suitcases color from red to black; but it only lasts for a while. There are ones that erase memories but I cannot remember what they are called. Erasers? I don't remember.

Chris Evans plays Nick who is a Mover and Dakota Fanning plays Cassie who is a Watcher. They, as well as everyone else, are in search for Camilla Belle who plays Kira who is a Pusher. Evans is a decent actor. Compared to how he started (Not Another Teen Movie) I believe he's progressed a lot. He has not fallen into the same type of movies and characters over and over again. He gets to be matched up again with Cliff Curtis who was in Sunshine with him. Fanning is a bit more of an actor in a way. She alters who she is from character to character; movie to movie. Cassie is a bit edger for her. But Push was not a movie that was about the acting as much as it was about the story and the way the powers looked with the special effects.

The story for Push was good but slightly confusing at times, over all it was understandable. It had some unique aspects that I really liked. Like how Kira gets out of the hospital. That was pretty clever. I also enjoy the drawings that Cassie did even though she sucked at drawing. The fights were pretty cool as well as the use of powers. The different titles for the people who hold the powers were the most creative thing I really liked. It was simple and to the point as well as focused on the one thing that person could totally accomplish with their ability.

What was even a bit shoddy were the special effects. I did not expect a whole lot from this movie, not even in that respect, but it was just so amateurish. I see better work on DeviantArt or Youtube. Evens has a fight with another Mover in a restaurant (something they showed a bit of in the trailer) and they hold guns and they just look wobbly via strings. Now I understand before the battle starts that Evens is scared and so the guns shake, but still it just seemed a bit amateurish like my twelve year old cousin was in charge of the special effects. I'm sure if he was he would have done a much better job.

Paul McGuigan is the director and he also directed Lucky Number Slevin. I liked that movie because it had its own quirky aspects to it that made it stand out as well as it was enjoyable even though it had Josh Hartnett. Push has its own quirky aspects that make it stand out via direction. They are not as pronounced as in Lucky Number Slevin but there are some. This would be where I would sit here and get more specific, but I'm not into directing as much as story and therefore cannot do that. I just know that there are some things but it's weaker than Lucky Number Slevin.

Push is an entertaining film. It has some slow moments, but that is in comparison to the quickness to the rest of the film. It does move faster than the two hour film time suggests. If you like Chris Evens and enjoy people with powers in movies then this one will be good. It won't be great, but it'll be good. The ending sets up for a second one to be made. Is that going to be the case? I suppose that's up to the box office to decide.