Review of Pusher (1996) by Ross A — 05 Feb 2013

We almost turned it off at first because of the ridiculous & juvenile (I don't know: realistic, maybe?) dialogue that begins the film. Things improved & were fairly engaging, but ultimately, we have seen a million drug dealer films & are aware of the usual pitfalls -- this is treading familiar ground, with all the usual problems: stuff goes wrong; money is owed to the wrong people; scary violent thugs set out to extract punishment from the ne-er-do-well drug dealer underling.

Not sure it adds too much to the genre. It's gritty & violent but the stupid decisions of the main character are frustrating. Also, the movie ends mid-action -- tension is high and several events are left unresolved.

I suppose you need to watch the second film to get any kind of closure? also kind of frustrating. In any case, worth watching but don't expect anything too new here. Be prepared for the ending which is like a cliffhanger at the end of a tv series -- all the balls are in the air & you don't know how they will fall.

I might give part II a try, but my husband pronounced this movie "terrible" & refused to watch any more of the series.