1999, 2 hrs 4 minutes, Rated R for language and nudity. Dir: Mike Newell. Cast: John Cusak (Nick Falzone), Billy Bob Thornton (Russell Bell), Cate Blanchett (Connie Falzone), Angelina Jolie (Mary Bell).

Pushing Tin comes down to a two-hour pissing contest. Nick (Cusak) is the coolest cat of them all at "pushing tin," a term for an air traffic controller, the people responsible for making sure our planes don't crash in a big fiery heap. But all that ends when mysterious Russell (Thornton) joins the crew. If these are the guys responsible for such a task, I'm going to take the bus or drive from now on.

The life of a controller is full of stress, the most of any profession in the world. Nick seems to be free of that stress, living happily with his wife and two kids in the 'burbs, with good friends from work to have drinks and play pool. And he's the best, but when Russell comes to town, let the manliness ensue, as they face off in a free throw contest, a letting-the-match-burn-your-finger-til-you-relent contest (bringing back memories of college fraternity days) and eventually they even showdown over who can handle the most planes on their screen.

Russell plays it cool the entire time, as Nick constantly shows his level of sixth-grade maturity. He was a jerk, and I didn't care for him one bit. Given the choice I would rather talk with Russell, in hopes of gaining any profound wisdom he might share.

Where the film gets bogged down is when Nick and Russell's young, sexy wife, Mary (Jolie) have a one-night fling. I was enjoying the movie up to this part, fascinated by the work of the controller (if you can believe that), but Pushing Tin slows down and began to anger me more and more 'til the end. It began a series of events that didn't flow, jumping from one to another, with the best example following, but it's a spoiler so you have to swipe below:

A bomb threat is called in the controller's building and Russell and Nick are the only two in the building, responsible for routing all planes in less than 30 minutes during a snow storm before the bomb goes off. It doesn't, and Russell is given credit and made a hero because Nick left a few seconds earlier and panicked.

Another thing that irked me was the way the filmmakers handled "deals" (near mid-air collisions). It was if the controllers were playing a video game and nobody was on the planes. Cusak almost crashes four planes in less than a half-hour and I'm supposed to root for him when he's back. I don't think so. I say early retirement, or work in a Winn-Dixie if you can't handle the pressure anymore.

I love Cate Blanchett, but she was annoying as Connie, wife of Nick. She just smacked her gum and tried to give a come-hither look that wasn't acting. She's also almost unrecognizable, but does pull off an American accent very well. As for Jolie, I don't find her as sexy as everyone else apparently does. For instance, she shows a lot of cleavage and even some nipple action, but it didn't do one iota to me. Notta. Zip. Zero. Explanation: I like wholesome better.