Customer Reviews

Pushing Tin [VHS]

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(21)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

Nick Falzone (John Cusack) is at the top of his profession, the number one air traffic controller servicing one of the busiest airports in the U.S.A. Nicknamed "the zone" he is the epitomy of focus and control. This need to be the best is not restricted to the control tower, but permeates every aspect of his life. At first it appears that Nick is the master of his own destiny, unbeatable in everything he puts his mind to. That is until a fellow employee breaks down on the job and Russell Bell (Billy Bob Thornton) is hired to replace him.

Russell may be new to this particular airport, but he has a reputatiion amongst fellow air traffic controllers that has reached almost 'urban legend' proportions. Known as a maverick, a headcase, a lunatic, but also a brilliant air traffic controller, rumor has it that Russell was fired from his last job for laying on a runway in front of an oncoming 747. Whether truth or fable, Russell is given a second chance and his reputation as a highly skilled controller is evident from his first day on the job. Nick realizes his position at the top of the heap may be in imminent danger.

Hoping to study his new rival in a different setting, Nick invites Russell and his wife to his home for a company party. Up until now Nick's wife Connie (Cate Blanchett) had been considered the prettiest wife amongst co-workers. However when Russell's wife Mary (Angelina Jolie) arrives at the party it becomes immediately obvious that a new consensus of opinion has been reached. Now the competition really begins.

Nick's obsession for outdoing Russell escalates. Russell on the other hand plays along with the pretense of competition while remaining unattached and emotionally undivested in what the outcome may be. You see Russell has already passed through his own "dark night of the soul" and has overcome his inner demons. He has no further need or desire to prove anything to anyone. That of course is what bothers Nick most of all. For a man like Nick one of the major benefits to winning and being number one is the acknowledgement of defeat from your opponent. For Russell there is no defeat, for there was no competition.

As Nicks' life disintergrates around him Connie moves out after learning he slept with Mary. He eventually suffers a nervous breakdown and is given a leave of absence from his job. Alone and emotionally shattered, his once famous ability to focus and control every situation has been called into question. His only hope now is Russell, someone who has already been there. Russell shows him the folly of his obsession and points him towards a new perspective of reality. To fully embrace this new way of life a rite of passage is required, one that demands trust and bravery. Will Nick have the courage to see it through to the end?

Marvelous script, extraordinary cast with great chemistry (Billy Bob and Angelina married shortly after completing this film) and witty dialogue. A movie to be enjoyed over and over again.

The first time I saw "Pushing Tin", I remember smiling and laughing and commenting about what a good movie it was. A couple of years later, I found it in the bargain bin of my local video store and remembered how much I liked it, and bought it on VHS. During this second viewing, my mind wandered and I think I was doing my grocery list in my head. But..I still held onto it for some reason. Maybe my mood just wasn't right for it at that time. So here it is, another couple of years since my last view, enough time past so that it should play fresh to me. It was the big moment, do I want to upgrade this film to DVD now? Alas, I didn't even make it through the entire film. By this third time, it had definitely lost the appeal it had years ago.

A great ensemble cast, including John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton,Angelina Jolie and Cate Blanchett(no lack of talent there),and a fun story, it just lacked that "take me somewhere else for a while" quality that makes a film stand up to repeated viewings time and again.

Here's the story. The setting is a building on Long Island, New York. Air Traffic Controllers work the busiest skies in the world. Three busy airports have planes coming and going. It's a job that requires great skill and a level head. Millions of lives are dependent on the expertise of this group. And they are a tight knit group. They even hang together with their families outside of the "office". Nick Falzone(Cusack), is obviously, the leader of the pack. He's the guy with everything. The coolest head at work, brings in the flights perfectly("I got em lined up lock Rockettes"), the prettiest wife, a great house and car, can sink the most free throws, etc etc....

Enter a new Controller. One Russell Bell(Billy Bob). He's strange and quiet, but soon proves to be the best of the best..at everything!...Well, the you know what contest begins. Falzone can't take someone else being better then him. He's supposed to be the star of the show. Pretty soon, they are going head to head on everything. Including, messing in each other's personal lives and each other's wives.The obsession and tension of the games they play effects the quality of their work(putting human lives in danger), and home life as well.

A fun view the first time around with these mucho macho guys, and also a little lesson in what a great but stressful job the Air Traffic Controllers have.I was impressed with the way this cast worked together as well.I would recommend it to anyone who hasn't seen it yet, as a rental. Also Billy Bob and Angelina fans will enjoy their performance(and a little more from Angelina!) Just didn't make my upgrade to DVD or hang on to it for another viewing list.

here is a pair of great mystery films for fans of John Cusack:City Hall/Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

and for Billy Bob collectors:
Stars Fell on Henrietta(a small early role)
Primary Colors

You may even think twice, before flying again!...enjoy...Laurie

This is one of these movies where two diametrically different characters, Nick Falzone(John Cusack) and Russell Bell(Billy Bob Thornton), go head-to-head in a battle of wits and testosterone to see who is the better man. One will fall to an all-time low, while the other rediscovers himself and helps the man who has fallen.

As Air Traffic Controllers for one of the worlds busiest TRACONs, the New York-New Jersey air corridor, Nick and Russell are working in one of the most high-stress jobs around. Nick is known as "The Zone" for his ability to "push tin" faster than any other air traffic controller. Nick and his tight-knit group of work buddies are suddenly thrown a curve ball when Russell Bell transfers in from Denver. At first, they assume Russell is just another back-woods controller who wont make the cut. But, Russell has a unique talent for pushing tin that bothers Nick. Suddenly, this guy, who wears a feather in his headset and carries his own wooden chair to work is making Nick look bad. Nick has finally met his match.

Rumors and video tape about Russell soon fly all over the TRACON and upset the finite balance Nick and his buddies have. Nick is so bothered by this mysterious character that he tries to push a few of Russell's buttons, but to no avail. Everyone, including Nick's wife Connie, find Russell "interesting".

At the same time, Nick finds Russell's wife equally intriguing. It's not long before marraige vows are broken and friendships are strained, with Nick coming out the loser. Nick Falzone has to go to extraordinary lengths to undo the damage. In the end, Russell Bell is the one who saves him.

I didn't quite know what to expect when I bought this movie. I must admit, I had stereotyped Billy Bob Thornton as some hick who had made a short break in the movies, but I was completey wrong about him. And, John Cusack was not on my short list of favorite actors, either. But when these two actors were cast together for this movie, the outcome was nothing short of hilarious. Angelina Jolie played a great supporting role as Russell's inebriated wife. Just a funny and satisfying movie from start to finish. And, Im now a Billy Bob Thornton fan.

If you liked this movie, I highly recommend you see 'Bandits'.

Nick Falzone (John Cusack) turns out to be, the most Busiest and the best Air Traffic Controller on Long Island, when Nick become jealous and curious at the same time about an unusual man named Russell Bell (Oscar-Winner:Billy Bob Thornton), who is actually a very intelligent man, who has a young beautiful wife (Angelina Jolie). Nick has all, has all what he needs including a nice, pretty, caring wife (Cate Blanchett). Everything turns up side down, when Nick and Russell goes Head to Head with eacother by doing uproarious contest of Wit and Wills that can ultimately only have one winner.

Directed by Mike Newell (Donnie Brasco, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Into the West) made a winning (if long) one of a kind comedy to being Free-Spirited and Wildly funny flick (With a Snappy Repartee). Cusack, Thornton and Blanchett offers great and engaging performances. This underrated film was a missed with the Critics and at the Box Office. The movie has become a Cult Classic. DVD's has an strong non-anamorphic Widescreen (2.35:1) transfer and a terrific Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. The film only extra is a Tralier. This film is better on video and DVD. This has a fine Screenplay by Glen Charles & Les Charles (T.V.`s Cheers). Based on a Article by Darcy Frey-Something's got to Give. Super 35. Grade:A-.

Pushing Tin is a slang term used by air traffic controllers. It refers to moving all those commercial jetliners around the sky as they prepare for landing. It's well know that this is a high stress job. I would never consider it. I got stressed out just watching the controllers in Pushing Tin doing their jobs, and they were only actors. I have a hard enough time "landing" my car in our garage without taking out the trash cans.

To enjoy this movie, you have to understand that it is a comedy. Even knowing that, the humor will prove too dry or sophisticated for some viewers' tastes. John Cusack plays Nick Falzone, a decent, dedicated guy who has been working in the air traffic control profession for fifteen years. His wife, Connie [Kate Blanchett], not only adores him, she understands how much pressure his job puts on him. Despite his attempts to maintain an even keel, it is obvious by watching him and his coworkers at work and play, that the balance is precarious at best. One day a new employee arrives. Russell Bell [Billy Bob Thornton] is a quiet, eccentric guy, who has never fit in anywhere a day in his life. He also has a work style that is unnerving to the other employees, especially Nick. Russell is much faster and more aggressive in lining up those big hunks of tin in the sky. This causes fiction between Nick and Russell, and soon a great competition ensues. The battle spill out of the workplace when Nick unwittingly gets too close to Russell's beautiful wife, Mary [Angelina Jolie]. Russell will prove to be the catalyst that sends Nick over the edge.

There are scenes in Pushing Tin that are quite funny. There are others that are intense, especially the ones in which the possibility of a midair collision is real. Parts of it seem authentic. We see just how much power a controller has. A pilot has little choice but to fly his plane just as the controller instructs him to. Passengers are happily unaware that, in the landing procedure, the pilot isn't flying the craft. Someone on the ground is.

The stars are all first-rate professionals. John Cusack has lit up the screen in independent classics such as The Grifters and The Player, as well as in big budget films like Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. Billy Bob Thornton is on my short list of best actors working today. Cate Blanchett won an Oscar nomination for Elizabeth, and Angelina Jolie is an up and coming young actress. They try, but fail to overcome a script problem that is the movie's biggest weakness. Nick and Connie are finely drawn characters, but we never really get to know Russell and Mary, who are essential to the story. We know they are crazy, but, since their presence has such an impact on the other couple, it would be good to know why they behave the way they do. We are left in the dark, and this simply is not good writing. Pushing Tin fails in the character development area. Because of this, the film ends up being lightweight, rather than simply light.

Perfessor Mom Pressfour here, film critic and Jolie fan extraordinaire. *Pushing Tin* (1999) is an odd film that stars John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, Cate Blanchett, Angelina Jolie, Vickie Lewis, Jake Weber, Kurt Fuller, Matt Ross, Jerry Grayson and Michael Willis. Mike Newell (*Four Weddings and a Funeral*) directs.

I call it odd because while *Pushing Tin* is technically well-made, and features good acting, and has an interesting, different premise, and starts off well...it begins to go flat a little past the halfway point. By the end--the scene of Nick (Cusack) talking from ground control to his wife Connie (Blanchett) in the cockpit of an airliner--the movie is unwatchable. It's a 2-hour long film that plays half an hour longer than it's worth. I didn't see it in cinema, I know it only from DVD--but it's more than likely that when it played the theaters, many more people were seated for the start of *Pushing Tin* than the finish. John Cusack, the headline star, summed it up: "It wasn't very good."

But still it was a big boost for Angelina Jolie's career. Her last scene, with Cusack in the car on a rainy day, marks the peak of the movie's interest curve. After this, it's all downhill. Thus the better part of *Pushing Tin* is Ms Jolie's part.

She plays Mary Bell, wife of Russel, an air traffic controller. Like many a Jolie character, there's more to Mary than meets the eye. Naturally what meets the eye is very easy to look at. Angelina is absolutely stunning in this movie. In her fifth scene--her return to the Italian restaurant, this time with her husband--she's dressed as the real Angelina Jolie is known to often dress: in leather pants and a snug-fitting dark sleeveless top. Sexy times ten. But Mary is not only a shapely piece of eye candy. She's trained as a social worker but hasn't found work. She feels she could do more with her life. Fond of all kinds of books, Mary likes to read (as does the real Jolie). Growing plants is her hobby. Her husband keeps to himself (IDIOT!), leaves Mary alone at night a lot, and though she doesn't seem to resent him for it, she's lonely. Whether it's just due to loneliness or something else too, Mary drinks. A lot.

I mentioned a couple of Ms Jolie's scenes; I should summarize all six by number. The first is at the house party hosted by one of Russel's colleagues. Mary causes a stir among the crowd of suburban-looking air traffic controllers and their wives by showing up dressed like a biker chick: in a leather coat and a short leopardskin-patterned skirt that flatters her ample chest. ("Think they're real?" asks one wife cattily of another behind Mary's back. "If they are," comes the answer, "we'll have to kill her.") In all of her scenes Mary wears the same garish set of jade jewellry on her neck, wrists and fingers. She speaks softly with a pleasant Southern accent. At the party she's cool, distant, but ever-so-slightly potty, showing little interest in anyone or anything other than her husband and the mixed drinks Nick serves at the outdoor bar. Mary's second scene is in the supermarket where Nick finds her crying. One of her plants died that day, her husband has taken off for the night, and, well, the poor girl is just overcome. More out of pity than anything else, Nick invites her to an Italian restaurant. Mary's dinner with Nick is the third scene. It's my favorite. She loosens up here--as she tells Nick, "I'm not as big a bitch as you think I am"--and shows him just how charming she can be. Mary unleashes this smile that could level a forest! Poor Nick...the sweet sap of his well-intentioned concern for his colleague's unhappy wife ferments into intoxicating lust. The fourth scene is the logical result. Nick and Mary end up in bed together at Russel's house. (Ms Jolie wears a bra throughout this scene, but during the filming it slipped, exposing her nipples. No loss...) It's as this scene closes that Jolie speaks one of her oft-quoted lines: "What's the fewest number of words you can use to get out that door?" The fifth scene is at the restaurant again. Nick feels guilty about the tryst with Mary, so he takes his wife Connie out to dinner. But in the meantime Mary must have told Russel about this nice Italian place, because Nick and Connie walk in to find them there. Nick is mortified. Connie, however, is pleased (she has no idea what happened between her husband and Mary). The two couples end up sharing one table. Russel takes over, becoming the center of attention for both women. This is the first step in an eventual affair between Russel and Connie. The sixth and last Jolie scene is when Nick meets Mary in a rainy parking lot. They talk in her car. She's called him there to let Nick know she's told Russel about their night together. "ARE YOU NUTS?" he shouts at her. Taking a swig from a pocket flask, Mary purrs, "I'm way too sober for this." He bolts from her car, giving it a kick before he runs to his own and roars away.

The other reason this movie is odd for me is that Russel, the husband of Jolie's character, is played by Billy Bob Thornton. This was the start of their much-publicized real-life romance and marriage, a phase of Ms Jolie's life that in hindsight is embarrassing. You can't watch *Pushing Tin* without remembering them kissing and feeling one another up before the press...the "Billy Bob" tats on Jolie's right shoulder and another part of her anatomy...the insistent declarations of love until death...the phials of blood...

Ah well, everybody makes mistakes no matter how well they do in life. That's the central theme of *Pushing Tin*. A quotation from an air-traffic controller starts the movie: *You land a million planes safely, then you have one little mid-air and you never hear the end of it."

I'm reading a lot of reviews dogging this movie, but I must strongly disagree. I don't know anything about the airline business, but I've gained a whole new respect for ATC's. I found this movie to be a fascinating study of primal male rivalry in its purest and most basic form. I cannot think of another actor who could have portrayed the character of Russell Bell with greater entrancing, hypnotic elegance than Billy Bob Thornton. Ladies, if you like Billy Bob even a little, you would love him in this movie. Aside from the eyeball rolling reconcilliation between the Falzones at the end, this movie was surprisingly unpredicatable, highly entertaining, brilliantly acted by all, and quite a refreshing change of pace. It's also one of those movies that's better the second time around, in some spots things happen so quickly subtle nuances can be missed. Lighten up and enjoy it for the sheer entertainment it provides.

This is a review for PUSHING TIN (1999) directed by Mike Newell.
Nick Falzone, played by John Cusak, is a hot shot air traffic controller , the king of his flight tower, until one day a new man comes to work. He's Russell Bell, played by Billy Bob Thornton, a reckless man with a spotless record who's not above challanging Nick's supremacy which upsets Nick and his closely controlled world to no end.

Finally,after quite an upsetting battle of nerves, all Nick can hope to do is to regain his professional status and patch up his failing marriage by the end of the picture.

PUSHING TIN is quite a look at a battle of nerves and the consequences to the lives of both the challenger and the challenged.

I rate PUSHING TIN Four Stars.

the first part of the movie was interesting but waiting for it to get to "uproariously contest of wit" as described on the DVD box quickly became tiresome. The plot was weak, the acting rather wooden. Even Jolie (fatuously) could not spark this one into a great movie. I wanted a pin to deflate those blubberly lips of hers. And the scene in the pilot's cabin? How ridiculous and fairy tale fantasy. I guess you have to love all the players in order to truly enjoy this one.

One of the worst movies, relative to its production values, ever made. It manages to turn an inherently interesting profession, air traffic control, into meaningless slapstick. Filled with overacting and painfully puerile writing.

It was sad to see A-list actors wasted on this dreck.