Two young Americans with special abilities must race to find a girl in Hong Kong before a shadowy government organization called Division does.Two young Americans with special abilities must race to find a girl in Hong Kong before a shadowy government organization called Division does.Two young Americans with special abilities must race to find a girl in Hong Kong before a shadowy government organization called Division does.
- Awards
- 1 win & 2 nominations
- Dice Man's Heavy
- (as Sun Nan Hung)
- Pop Father
- (as Haruihko Yamanouchi)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIn order to deal with the constant bustle of Hong Kong, director Paul McGuigan and the crew decided to shoot the film "guerilla-style", with the cameras hidden in vans, filming through small holes, and the actors doing their scenes in one take on the streets.
- GoofsDuring the final scene when the mover Victor breaks open the locker to retrieve the case, when the camera pans out to a wider view the locker is clearly no longer broken but is closed and in perfect condition.
- Quotes
Cassie Holmes: There are special people in this world. We don't ask to be special. We're just born this way. We pass you on the streets every day, unnoticed by most. It started in 1945. The Nazis were conducting experiments in psychic warfare, trying to turn those with psychic abilities into soldiers. Lots of us died. The war ended, but the experiments never stopped. Other governments around the world set up what they called "divisions", trying to do what the Nazis couldn't, to turn us into weapons. The divisions agents are trained to track and hunt us down like animals. Take us away from our families and friends. They test us and categorize us. I'm what they call a Watcher. We can see the future, even if that's not always as simple as it sounds. Others are called Movers; just an easy way of saying telekinetic. Pushers put thoughts in your head, and make whatever lie they come up with the truth. Sniffs, Shifters, Shadows, Bleeders... it goes on and on. In divisions' eyes, we're all just lab rats. Only one problem - we keep dying. No one has ever survived the drug meant to boost our powers. My name is Cassie Holmes. Division took my mom from me. Right now, the future I see doesn't look so great. The good news is, the future is always changing, in the largest of ways, by the smallest of things. They've been winning a lot of battles. Now it's our turn to win the war.
- Crazy creditsAs the opening credits appear onscreen, the names and their attributes are wholly or partially redacted (crossed out so as to be illegible).
- SoundtracksRocket
Written by Working for a Nuclear Free City (as Working For A Nuclear Free City)
Performed by Working for a Nuclear Free City (as Working For A Nuclear Free City)
Courtesy of Deaf+Dumb+Blind Records
By arrangement with Zync Music Inc.
The movie makes an interesting attempt at being half action thriller, reminiscent of a Bourne movie, and half super-hero blockbuster, in the tradition of the X-Men. But director Paul McGuigan is never able to make us fully feel for the characters and their ordeal and the action sequences, while pleasant to watch, never instill emotional response. We're not scared for anyone, our blood does not pump during chases either.
The two stars of Push are an unlikely duo of actor which surprised me somewhat. Chris Evans has often been derided as being just another bland pretty face. Here, he is paired with young Dakota Fanning, who has been revered by many as a child prodigy actress. What's interesting to me is that, had I not seen previous films from these two, I wouldn't notice much difference in quality between the two. They both give a suitable performance. Neither Oscar-worthy nor garbage.
Unfortunately, the support cast is very weak. Camilla Belle is pretty but bland as usual. Cliff Curtis and Djimon Hounsou are both amazing actors but here they have very little to work with. I blame McGuigan and writer David Bourla for not providing them with opportunities to shine.
What makes this movie a 5 rather than a 6 is its confusing and botched conclusion. As if somehow the production ran out of time and needed to wrap things up on the spot. Perhaps hoping for a sequel? Push has an intriguing premise and more than enough basic material to be stretched into a trilogy or even a short TV series but as is the rule of thumb with those sort of things, it is doubtful things will get better should sequels be produced.
I wish the premise had been used to tell a better story, in a better way.
- Siamois
- Jul 23, 2009
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $38,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $31,811,527
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $10,079,109
- Feb 8, 2009
- Gross worldwide
- $48,858,618
- Runtime1 hour 51 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1