Pushing Tin
Dir: Mike Newell
1999
**
Pushing Tin is quirky. I usually like quirky but I didn't like it here much. I can see what they were trying to achieve but I'm not sure why it didn't work and if I'd read the script I probably would have cast exactly the same people. I didn't think anyone was on bad form, the script was okay and the story wasn't that bad and when a film is good, why not make it that little bit longer but here it just felt overlong and unconvincing. I really can't put my finger on why I didn't like it, maybe the dialogue and some of the questionable comedy just didn't work for me, I don't know. It well may be that it is dated now. Post 9/11 it does seem harder to laugh at near misses in the sky and the title scene where they quote a line about Thousands of safe landings a year but everyone makes a fuss over one near miss while flying past the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre doesn't exactly sit well these days. Much like Billy Bob Thornton and Angelina Jolie's marriage, it probably seemed like a good idea at the time. Too harsh? Id on't know, I did like the ending though when they both get blown away by the jet engines, I can think a few films whereby I'd like that to have happened.