DVD REVIEW: PUSH

Out now on DVD and Blu-ray
Icon Home Entertainment

One could describe Push as a poor man's X-Men and that's certainly true in terms of budget. But the film's storyline, where certain people in the not-too-distant future have developed powers – telekinesis, clairvoyance, mind control – and are hunted down by a secret government agency, the Division, plays more like TV's Heroes but again, without the bucks to make it soar.

Nick Grant (Chris Evans), who has the power to move things with his mind, is hiding out in Hong Kong; his fear of the Division no doubt a result of his father's murder. But Nick is tracked down by young clairvoyant Cassie (Dakota Fanning), who needs his help in locating a briefcase containing $6 milllion. Standing in their way, Division's Agent Carver (Djimon Hounsou, who finally gets to breakout of the saintly black man typecasting and go bad).

I can't remember exactly why Nick and Cassie need the loot, other than the obvious, but then a lot of Push doesn't make sense. When I attended the media screening prior to its cinema release last year, the projectionist accidentally put the third and final reel on before the second, and you know what? It really didn't matter.

I'd suggest the lack of budget kept director Paul McGuigan from mounting a more impressive “superhero” action film but it's the screenplay by David Bourla that's the film's real kryptonite. A film like Push needs to have it's own internal logic in order to succeed and that's one power it sorely lacks.

2009: THE FILM YEAR IN REVIEW

2009 was my biggest year at the movies yet: 125 films viewed. That said, it wasn't a great year for movies, so much so that I felt I would not be satisfied by trying to single out 10 remarkable films. Instead, I have compiled a list of 20 films that, for one reason or another, stood out for me this year*.

And for those who think that's a cheat or a cop out, be thankful I'm not following Roger Ebert's lead and doing Top 10's for Mainstream, Independent, Animation, Foreign Language and Documentary.

The list is also in alphabetical and not numerical order. I have not chosen a number one film but if pressed I would offer Milk, The Reader, An Education and Balibo as my clear favourites and well worth seeking out (all but An Education are available now on DVD).

Feel free to offer your opinion on my list, as well as letting me know what movies left their mark on you in 2009.

(*Note: Only those films released in Australian cinemas between January 01 and December 31 2009 were eligible for my list. Films seen but releasing 2010 were not.)

A SERIOUS MAN The Coen brothers continue their purple patch with this somewhat autobiographical tale of a put upon Jewish man in 1960s midwest America. It's a comedy but not Burn After Reading funny.

AN EDUCATION Lone Sherfig's film announced the arrival of Carey Mulligan who, at the very least, will receive an Oscar nomination for her star making performance in this '60s set coming-of-age tale.

BALIBO Not just the best Australian film of the year but one of the best from anywhere. A political thriller about the murder of five journalists by the Indonesian military in East Timor, it will anger and sadden you in equal measure. Anthony Lapaglia has never been better.

(500) DAYS OF SUMMER Applying a defibrillator to romantic comedy, this inventive non-rom-com injected new life into the genre by having the smarts to know that love hurts.

DISTRICT 9 This South African film was a breath of sci-fi fresh air, seamlessly mixing action with political parable and all in a mockumentary style that aided in its immediacy and authenticity.

DUPLICITY A sexy and smart caper film with Julia Roberts and Clive Owen reuniting and reigniting their chemistry from 2004's Closer.

THE HANGOVER These boy's own films are usually not for me but by focussing on the morning after a drunken night in Las Vegas, this one managed to be surprisingly inventive and very funny.

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS Alternate history, Dirty Dozen homage or Jewish revenge fantasy? Either way, Tarantino made an unforgettable film and introduced us to Christoph Waltz, who may well be introduced to Oscar come March.

LET THE RIGHT ONE IN Forget Twilight, this Swedish thriller was the best vampire movie of the year. Seek it out on DVD and avoid the forthcoming US remake.

MILK Sean Penn's performance is at the centre of this powerful, political film by Gus Van Sant. Penn plays Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man elected to US office, and assassinated soon after.

RACHEL GETTING MARRIED There was no better sister act this year than Anne Hathaway and Rosemarie DeWitt, the latter as the bride-to-be and the former as the family black sheep poised to wreak havoc in Jonothan Demme's Dogma-like take on the wedding movie.

THE READER Stephen Daldry's adaptation of Bernhard Schlink's novel is a powerful meditation on the nature of guilt but will perhaps be best be remembered for delivering Kate Winslet her first Oscar – and deservedly so.

REVOLUTIONARY ROAD And had Winslet not won for The Reader she probably would have for her performance here. Sam Mendes's wrenching examination of youthful idealism cum suburban nightmare reunited Titanic's Kate and Leo in another doomed relationship.

STAR TREK No one is more surprised than me by how much I enjoyed JJ Abrams's re-boot of the tired sci-fi franchise. Going back to the beginning, Abrams has introduced a whole new generation to the sexy intergalactic crew of the Starship Enterprise.

STATE OF PLAY It didn't matter that it was a remake of a quality British miniseries, Russell Crowe headlined a top cast in a smart political thriller and a paean to the death of print journalism.

SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK Charlie Kaufmann's directorial debut – about life imitating art, imitating life, imitating art - was as trippy as you'd expect from the writer of Being John Malkovich and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Ebert has named it his 'best film of the decade'.

TAKING WOODSTOCK Ang Lee's wonderfully enjoyable look at how Woodstock came about was strangely ignored by audiences but I'd recommend catching it on DVD. Nostalgic but not cloying, it leaves you on a mellow high.

TWO LOVERS If Joaquin Phoenix really has retired from acting then his performance in this intimate drama is a beautiful swan song. Gwyneth Paltrow is also very good as one object of his affections.

UP Pixar really have no equal in the animation stakes. The opening few minutes of Up, where we witness an almost silent montage of a life together, are alone worthy of an Oscar. This year, they could very well be in the running for Best Picture.

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE Fans of the children's book may have been perturbed by Spike Jonze's take on the classic but not me. I could eat it up, I loved it so.


THE WORST
Sadly, it is much easier to name the worst films of the year. And these five are in numerical order.

5. WINGED CREATURES Aussie director Rowan Woods' American debut was, in spite of its talented cast – Guy Pearce, Forest Whitaker, Dakota Fanning, Kate Beckinsale – a ponderous, much too earnest look at post traumatic stress.

4. COUPLES RETREAT It was a year full of misfiring comedies but this one takes the cake. I'll admit I'm not a fan of Vince Vaughan and this only further convinced me – the guy's not funny.

3. HE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU Why does Hollywood continue to make films that deliberately insult its audience? Why do actresses who should know better (Jennifer Connolly, Drew Barrymore) continue to appear in them? And why do women continue to watch them?

2. G.I. JOE While equally as dumb as my #1 least favourite film, G.I. Joe doesn't quite take the top spot. I'm not sure what fans of the cartoon series or toys made of this big screen version but for me, I'd rather have done two hours in boot camp.

1. TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN A worldwide gross of almost a billion dollars is further proof that people will watch anything, just not small, intelligent films, or Aussie ones for that matter. This film is everything that is wrong with Hollywood filmmaking: no substance and not even any style; just an overlong sensory bombardment. I saw it in IMAX which made it even worse. There should be a special place reserved in Hell for director Michael Bay and his crimes against cinema.

FILM REVIEW: FANTASTIC MR. FOX

Now Showing
20th Century Fox Films

When Time magazine named The Princess and the Frog the best film of 2009 (see below), they also named Fantastic Mr Fox at #3. Separating the two? Pixar's Up. It is testament to the continuing improvement in the excellence of animated films. So, too, is the realisation that the two (Princess and Mr. Fox) opening today are both superior to any of the live action films which opened last week or will do over the next month.

Fantastic Mr. Fox is perhaps the least polished of the two but is no less enjoyable for that. The stop motion animation employed by director Wes Anderson, his first foray into animation features, adds a level of old school charm. And while it's not as charming as the initial trailer had me believe (damn those trailers!), it's a highly enjoyable film definitely worth catching.

Based on Roald Dahl's book of the same name, the Mr Fox of the title (voiced by George Clooney) is a former chicken thief who turned to the straight life when his wife (Meryl Streep) announced she was with cub. That cub, Ash (Jason Schwartzman), is now an angsty teen (in fox years) and Fox's straight job as a newspaper columnist is no longer that fulfilling, so he decides to pull one last heist (cue Ocean's 11 reference). Make that a three-pronged heist, on local farmers Boggis, Bunce and Bean.

As in all heist films, nothing goes to plan and the farmers respond by firstly trying to blow-up and then dig out Fox and his family. They then decide to starve out the entire animal population. Fox's response? An even more audacious plan.

Wes Anderson keeps all of this action moving at a brisk pace, thanks in part to a fun and eclectic soundtrack. There are minor detours about father-son relations and familial rivalry (Ash is not happy that his seemingly golden child cousin Kristofferson has come to stay) but it never gets heavy. That said, adults are likely to enjoy this film more than the kids.

Unlike the recent Where The Wild Things Are, I had read Roald Dahl's Fantastic Mr. Fox as a child and loved it. And unlike those people who found Spike Jonze's version of WTWTA too different for their liking, I found Wes Anderson's take on this story both faithful and inventive, and very much his own; that same first trailer revealed Anderson's very distinct style, from dialogue to dapper dress code – you pretty much knew what you were in for. And I, for one, was not disappointed.

FILM REVIEW: THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG

Now Showing
Walt Disney Films

A year after the US elected its first black president, Disney has decided it is time they gave us their first black heroine. Admittedly, Disney have come a little late to the ball, and some curmudgeons have pointed out that said heroine, Tiana, spends most of the film as a frog. It's not the first time Disney has been accused of racial insensitivity, but politics aside, this is a charming film that should be embraced by littlies of all colours (and ages).

Indeed, Time magazine film critic Richard Corliss named The Princess and the Frog the best film of 2009. I wouldn't go that far but I would say that Disney have rediscovered their magic. That may have something to do with their returning to traditional 2D animation; this is the studio's first film in this format since 2002's Lilo and Stitch, and their best since 1994's The Lion King (though it's nowhere near as accomplished as that - in my opinion - masterpiece).

Tiana (Anika Noni Rose), inspired by her late father's culinary gift, is an aspiring restaurateur in 1920s New Orleans. She works as a waitress, hoping to save enough money for a deposit on a property where she'll open her own eatery. A loan from her friend, spoilt Southern princess Charlotte (comically voiced by Jennifer Cody), who has her own dream of marrying a prince, seems out of the question. Then Prince Naveen (an Indian sounding name but voiced by Spanish-accented Bruno Campos) arrives in town. He's out to have some fun and is ripe for the picking by local voodoo man, Dr Vacilier (David Keith), who turns him into the titular frog.

A case of mistaken identity has Naveen request a kiss from Tiana whom he believes to be a princess, resulting in her also transforming into an amphibian. Escaping Vacilier into the bayou, they meet an alligator, Louis, who just wants to play jazz, and Ray, an elderly firefly, who help them find Mama Odie who may or may not be able to reverse the spell.

Recalling Disney's female-centric films of the '90s – Pocahontas and Mulan – The Princess and the Frog is lighter and much more easily engaged than those two and that's thanks in no small part to the music. The tunes here are not of the Broadway musical variety that came to define Disney's animated features post-The Lion King but are more in keeping with the New Orleans setting: jazz, blues, gospel and Dixieland are all influential.

So, too, is the colour of its heroine's skin. But it is not the intention of directors Ron Clements and John Musker (who were also responsible for The Little Mermaid and Aladdin) to bludgeon the audience over the head about race: the objective here is enchantment.

It's been a great 12 months for animation in film, and The Princess and the Frog is one of the shining lights; expect it to be nominated for the Best Animated Film Oscar, as well as to feature in the music categories. Irrespective of that, go along for an enjoyable and enchanting 100 minutes of animation – borrow someone's five year old if you have to.