Speed (Widescreen Edition)
by Jan de Bont
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Dennis Hopper, Jeff Daniels, Joe Morton, Keanu Reeves, Sandra BullockDirector: Jan de Bont
Brand: REEVES,KEANU
Cinematographer: Andrzej Bartkowiak
Editor: John Wright
Producer: Allison Lyon Segan
Producer: Ian Bryce
Producer: Mark Gordon
Writer: Graham Yost
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 116 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-02-01
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation
Movie Reviews of Speed (Widescreen Edition)
Movie Review: A Masterpiece of the Action Genre
Summary: 5 Stars
Speed is a great action movie. It's got a cool set-up, it wastes no time jumping directly into the action, and it's got excitement that never lets up.
Keanu Reeves plays Jack Travern, an officer with the LAPD, who along with his partner Harry (Jeff Daniels) saves an elevator fill of people from a mad bomber (Dennis Hopper). By the end of it, it seems that the bomber is dead and the two are awarded medals for their bravery. Soon after, a bus blows up before Jack's eyes and the bomber calls him to give him the set-up. There is another bus with a bomb on it. The bomb will be activated once the bus reached 50 miles per house. If it drops below 50, it will explode. Furthermore, the bomber wants 3 million dollars by 11 a.m. Once on the bus, Jack meets Annie (Sandra Bullock), a loud-mouthed, charming passenger who ends up driving the death trap while the bomber watches the action play out on TV.
The idea isn't very original, but screenwriter Graham Yost kicks the thing into overdrive the minute the film begins. He also throws a few curveballs every couple of minutes to keep the audience on their feet. The excitement, tension, and suspense the film creates does not die down until the credits finally roll.
With that said, Keanu Reeves isn't very convincing at times. In the first few minutes he appears fidgety (no joke) and confused. Physically, he fits the role pretty well but the man endlessly struggles to deliver his dialogue convincingly. You'll know what I mean when he says "there's enough C4 on this thing to put a hole in the world." Luckily, Reeves doesn't need to be very good because (A) it's an action movie and (B) it is so well made that everyone else is good enough to offset the man.
If Bullock's role has been cast differently, many of the scenes on the bus (roughly 85% of the movie) wouldn't have worked as well. Her charm, even when her character gets rather is annoying, is what really counteracts some of Reeves' more annoying acting qualities. I'll take it a step further by saying I don't think Bullock has been more charming. She's cute and gritty enough to pull off her role perfectly.
Hopper could sleep walk through this role as he's accustomed to playing it at this point. He's still appropriately diabolical. Finally, Jeff Daniels turns in strong supporting work as Jack's partner.
It's funny though; despite my paragraph about Reeves, I can't really picture anyone else in this role and I'm not sure I'd want anyone else. But, moving on, the movie is one long, great action scene and it's unlikely you'll find an action film more entertaining. Some of the dialogue's not that great (or maybe it's just Reeves' delivery), but everything about this movie makes it so superior to other movies in its genre.
GRADE: A-
Summary of Speed (Widescreen Edition)
Hold on tight for a rush of pulse-pounding thrills, breathtaking stunts and unexpected romance in a film you'll want to see again and again. Keanu Reeves stars as Jack Traven, an L.A.P.D. SWAT team specialist who is sent to diffuse a bomb that a revenge-driven extortionist (Dennis Hopper) has planted on a bus. But until he does, Jack and passenger Sandra Bullock must keep the bus speeding through the streets of Los Angeles at more than 50 miles per hour - or the bomb will explode. A high-octane chase of suspense, non-stop action and surprise twists, Speed is a joyride sure to keep everyone on the edge of their seats.Everything clicked in this 1994 action hit, from the premise (a city bus has to keep moving at 50 mph or blow up) to the two leads (the usually inscrutable Keanu Reeves and the cute-as-a-button Sandra Bullock) to the villain (Dennis Hopper in psycho mode) to the director (Jan De Bont, who made this film hit the ground running with an edge-of-your-seat opening sequence on a broken elevator). This is the sort of movie that becomes a prototype for a thousand lesser films (including De Bont's lousy sequel, Speed 2: Cruise Control), but Speed really is a one-of-a-kind experience almost anyone can enjoy. --Tom Keogh
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