Push Review

To any action movie lover, gun fights, corrupt organizations, and flashy visuals would definitely catch the eye.

Push is a sci-fi action flick about people with telekinetic abilities (specifically nine different groups, each with a different name and power) being hunted by a government agency known simply as “Division.” Division attempts to capture these people in order to turn them into weapons for the government. Upon their capture, they are administered a drug that is meant to enhance their powers, yet also put them under Division’s control. This drug has some massive side effects, however: everyone it has been administered to has died.

The only person to ever survive the drug is a pusher named Kira, played by Camilla Belle (10,000 BC, When a Stranger Calls). Upon escaping Division, its borderline tyrannical leader Carver, a fellow pusher, played by Djimon Hounsou (Blood Diamond, Never Back Down), sends out multiple search teams to recover her.

Enter Chris Evans’ (Fantastic Four, Not Another Teen Movie) character Nick Gant, a mover living in Hong Kong in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to hide from Division. His father, having been killed by them a decade or so prior to the start of the film, has him living in a constant state of fear. After he encounters Division, he meets Cassie, a watcher, played by Dakota Fanning (I Am Sam, War of the Worlds). Due to similar motives, they join forces in an attempt to find and rescue Kira, and take Division down once and for all.

The movie’s acting was better than expected. All of the actors were well in character, and made the viewer believe that they really were who they pretended to be. Some of the banter between the characters was a bit cliché at points, though not unbearably so.

While the plot of Push is fairly overused in modern-day Hollywood, the movie stays alive with an engaging and original story. One of the main highlights of the movie is the powers themselves, with the many different types keeping the action alive and the story going.

Despite these high points, Push was received rather negatively with critics. RottenTomatoes.com only gave the movie a 23 out of 100%, saying “The sci-fi thriller Push is visually flashy but hyperkinetic and convoluted,” but Jeffrey M. Anderson of Cinematical.com said “…I was endlessly impressed by how thoroughly the filmmakers incorporated its Hong Kong location. …It felt great, like someone was alive behind the camera, actually thinking about ways to make the movie.”

Push shows us that being cheesy isn’t always a bad thing. Good action, an intriguing plot, and an excellent cast will keep you thinking about it long after you leave the theater.