Speed

Reviews

JPV852
Entertaining action-thriller that made both Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock stars. All of the scenes on the bus were great and while the finale was fine, the third act in of itself was contrived. No reason for Annie to be at the scene of the ransom drop; heck, one can argue Jack shouldn't have been there either since they know what the bomber looks like. Still, plenty of fun and seemed like Hopper was having a great time as a cackling, maniacal villain. **3.75/5**

Wuchak
_**Get off the bus!**_ A SWAT officer in Los Angeles (Keanu Reeves) tries to save the lives of people on a bus from a mad bomber (Dennis Hopper) who has the vehicle rigged to blow up if it goes under 50 MPH. Sandra Bullock plays a passenger on the bus while Jeff Daniels is on hand as another SWAT officer. "Speed" (1994) is a disaster/action movie that delivers the goods as a thrilling popcorn flick. While it’s not great like “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” (1991) it’s arguably on par with “Under Siege 2: Dark Territory” (1995). Although a top-of-the-line production, it lacks the human interest of “Terminator 2” and “Runaway Train” (1985) and the story is unbelievably contrived. But, if you can roll with it, it’s a dynamic blockbuster, just kinda forgettable in the grand scheme of things. The film runs 1 hour, 55 minutes, and was shot in the greater Los Angeles area, including Mojave Airport. GRADE: B-

CinemaSerf
For my money, this is Keanu Reeves' best (and hottest) performance. He is "Jack", an LAPD officer who finds himself embroiled in a bus-hostage situation. Not any ordinary kind of scenario, though - the bus is atop a bomb that will detonate if it slows below 50mph. He must track down the bus and figure out a way of ensuring, in a gridlocked and pedestrian-riddled LA, how to make sure it doesn't explode and how to evacuate the passengers. Luckily for him, Sandra Bullock ("Annie") is on board so perhaps he has a fighting chance? We know from the start that it's explosive expert Dennis Hopper pulling all the strings - boy has he got a grudge - so the rest of LAPD (and his partner Jeff Daniels) have to try and track him down. Mark Mancina's score and some really intense action photography keep this gripping drama racing along really well with loads of (ok, pretty implausible) engineering acrobatics. The dynamic between Bullock and Reeves is effective, she plays her role really entertainingly too as it turns out the bus has it's fair share of quirky passengers too, and she ends up doing all the driving (without a driving licence!). Almost 30 years on, it hasn't really dated at all - indeed, there is an authenticity to the whole production that helps keep it enthralling all the way to an ending that sustains momentum really well.

RalphRahal
Speed is one of those movies that’s just pure adrenaline from start to finish. Directed by Jan de Bont and starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock, it’s a high-energy action film that knows exactly what it wants to be and delivers on every front. The concept is as intense as it gets, and the execution keeps you on the edge of your seat the whole way through. Keanu Reeves is solid as Jack Traven, the quick-thinking LAPD officer, and Sandra Bullock’s charm as Annie brings some heart and humor to the chaos. The chemistry between them is great, and it’s fun to watch their dynamic unfold under pressure. Dennis Hopper as the villain is wonderfully over-the-top, adding just the right amount of menace to the mix. The action sequences are incredible, especially given the tight, confined setting of a moving bus. The stunts and pacing keep the tension high, and even the more ridiculous moments just add to the fun. Sure, some parts feel exaggerated or a bit far-fetched, but that’s what makes it so enjoyable. It doesn’t take itself too seriously, and that works perfectly. What really stands out is how the film never slows down (pun intended). From start to finish, it’s a non-stop thrill ride that’s incredibly entertaining. Speed is exciting, fun, and totally worth a rewatch, even decades later. It’s a classic that still holds up!
Movie Recommendation
- Speed 2: Cruise Control1997-06-13A disgruntled former employee hijacks the Seabourn Legend cruise liner. Set on a fixed course, without any means of communication and at the mercy of the hijacker, it's up to the one cop on vacation, and his soon to be fiancé (hopefully) Annie, to regain control of it before it kills the passengers and causes an environmental disaster. Insurmountable and daunting tasks awaits them on their perilous journey throughout the ship trying to fend off the hijacker and save the passengers.More...
- Team America: World Police2004-10-10When North Korean ruler Kim Jong-il orchestrates a global terrorist plot, it's up to the heavily armed, highly specialized Team America unit to stop his dastardly scheme. The group, which has recruited troubled Broadway actor Gary Johnston, not only has to face off against Jong-il, but they must also contend with the Film Actors Guild, a cadre of Hollywood liberals at odds with Team America's 'policing the world' tactics.More...
- Point Break1991-07-12In Los Angeles, a gang of bank robbers who call themselves The Ex-Presidents commit their crimes while wearing masks of Reagan, Carter, Nixon and Johnson. Believing that the members of the gang could be surfers, the F.B.I. sends young agent Johnny Utah to the beach undercover to mix with the surfers and gather information.More...
- True Lies1994-07-15A fearless, globe-trotting, terrorist-battling secret agent has his life turned upside down when he discovers his wife might be having an affair with a used car salesman while terrorists smuggle nuclear war heads into the United States.More...
- Speed1927-10-09A suspense thriller with Lightning the Dog hunting down crooks.More...
- Miss Congeniality2000-12-22When the local FBI office receives a letter from a terrorist known only as 'The Citizen', it's quickly determined that he's planning his next act at the Miss America beauty pageant. Because tough-as-nails Gracie Hart is the only female Agent at the office, she's chosen to go undercover as the contestant from New Jersey.More...
- Demolition Man1993-10-08In 1996, brash L.A. detective John Spartan and maniac killer Simon Phoenix are both sentenced to decades in a cryogenic prison as punishment for a rescue mission gone wrong. When Phoenix escapes 36 years later to wreak havoc on the future, Spartan is awakened to capture his nemesis the old-fashioned way.More...
- Lord of War2005-09-16Yuri Orlov is a globetrotting arms dealer and, through some of the deadliest war zones, he struggles to stay one step ahead of a relentless Interpol agent, his business rivals and even some of his customers who include many of the world's most notorious dictators. Finally, he must also face his own conscience.More...
- Dazed and Confused1993-09-24The adventures of a group of Texas teens on their last day of school in 1976, centering on student Randall Floyd, who moves easily among stoners, jocks and geeks. Floyd is a star athlete, but he also likes smoking weed, which presents a conundrum when his football coach demands he sign a "no drugs" pledge.More...
- Love Potion No. 91992-11-13Unlucky in love, chemist Paul Matthews visits gypsy Madame Rosa for help. Quickly realizing he is a hopeless nerd, she gifts him with Love Potion No. 8, which makes anyone who wears it irresistible to the opposite sex for four hours. Paul and animal psychologist coworker Diane Farrow decide to test it on themselves. The awkward pair suddenly find themselves alluring to anyone they approach, but soon realize they are most attracted to each other.More...
- The Specialist1994-10-07May Munro is a woman obsessed with getting revenge on the people who murdered her parents when she was still a girl. She hires Ray Quick, a retired explosives expert to kill her parent's killers. When Ned Trent, embittered ex-partner of Quick's is assigned to protect one of Quick's potential victims, a deadly game of cat and mouse ensues.More...
- Carrie1976-11-03Withdrawn and sensitive teen Carrie White faces taunting from classmates at school and abuse from her fanatically pious mother. When strange occurrences start happening around Carrie, she begins to suspect that she has supernatural powers.More...
- Total Recall1990-06-01Construction worker Douglas Quaid's obsession with the planet Mars leads him to visit Recall, a company that manufactures memories. When his memory implant goes wrong, Doug can no longer be sure what is and isn't reality.More...
- The Lake House2006-06-16A lonely doctor who once occupied an unusual lakeside home begins exchanging love letters with its former resident, a frustrated architect. They must try to unravel the mystery behind their extraordinary romance before it's too late.More...
- The Fugitive1993-08-06Wrongfully convicted of murdering his wife and sentenced to death, Richard Kimble escapes from the law in an attempt to find the real killer and clear his name.More...
- The Crow1994-05-11Exactly one year after young rock guitarist Eric Draven and his fiancée are brutally killed by a ruthless gang of criminals, Draven, watched over by a hypnotic crow, returns from the grave to exact revenge.More...
- Chain Reaction1996-08-02At the University of Chicago, a research team that includes brilliant student machinist Eddie Kasalivich experiences a breakthrough: a stable form of fusion that may lead to a waste-free energy source. However, a private company wants to exploit the technology, so Kasalivich and physicist Dr. Lily Sinclair are framed for murder, and the fusion device is stolen. On the run from the FBI, they must recover the technology and exonerate themselves.More...
- Jaws1975-06-20When the seaside community of Amity finds itself under attack by a dangerous great white shark, the town's chief of police, a young marine biologist, and a grizzled hunter embark on a desperate quest to destroy the beast before it strikes again.More...
- Midnight Run1988-07-20A bounty hunter pursues a former Mafia accountant who embezzled $15 million of mob money. He is also being chased by a rival bounty hunter, the F.B.I., and his old mob boss after jumping bail.More...
- Con Air1997-06-05Newly-paroled former US Army ranger Cameron Poe is headed back to his wife, but must fly home aboard a prison transport flight dubbed "Jailbird" taking the “worst of the worst” prisoners, a group described as “pure predators”, to a new super-prison. Poe faces impossible odds when the transport plane is skyjacked mid-flight by the most vicious criminals in the country led by the mastermind — genius serial killer Cyrus "The Virus" Grissom, and backed by black militant Diamond Dog and psychopath Billy Bedlam.More...
Similar Movies
Die Hard
1988-07-15NYPD cop John McClane's plan to reconcile with his estranged wife is thrown for a serious loop when, minutes after he arrives at her offices Christmas Party, the entire building is overtaken by a group of terrorists. With little help from the LAPD, wisecracking McClane sets out to single-handedly rescue the hostages and bring the bad guys down.2 Fast 2 Furious
2003-06-05It's a major double-cross when former police officer Brian O'Conner teams up with his ex-con buddy Roman Pearce to transport a shipment of "dirty" money for shady Miami-based import-export dealer Carter Verone. But the guys are actually working with undercover agent Monica Fuentes to bring Verone down.The Bodyguard
1992-11-25A former Secret Service agent grudgingly takes an assignment to protect a pop idol who's threatened by a crazed fan. At first, the safety-obsessed bodyguard and the self-indulgent diva totally clash. But before long, all that tension sparks fireworks of another sort, and the love-averse tough guy is torn between duty and romance.The Usual Suspects
1995-07-19Held in an L.A. interrogation room, Verbal Kint attempts to convince the feds that a mythic crime lord, Keyser Soze, not only exists, but was also responsible for drawing him and his four partners into a multi-million dollar heist that ended with an explosion in San Pedro harbor – leaving few survivors. Verbal lures his interrogators with an incredible story of the crime lord's almost supernatural prowess.Lost Highway
1997-01-15A tormented jazz musician finds himself lost in an enigmatic story involving murder, surveillance, gangsters, doppelgängers, and an impossible transformation inside a prison cell.Gleaming the Cube
1989-01-13An Orange County teenager's carefree life of ditching class and skateboarding abandoned pools comes to a screeching halt when someone close to him dies. The cops rule the death a suicide, but the bereaved skater believes he was murdered. It's up to him to solve the case, with a skateboard.Collateral
2004-08-04Cab driver Max picks up a man who offers him $600 to drive him around. But the promise of easy money sours when Max realizes his fare is an assassin.Inland Empire
2006-12-06An actress’s perception of reality becomes increasingly distorted as she finds herself falling for her co-star in a remake of an unfinished Polish production that was supposedly cursed.Angel
1984-04-19Molly Stewart, a teen at the top of her class who survives by working nights as a prostitute on Hollywood Blvd, finds her world beginning to fall apart when a depraved, necrophiliac serial killer begins targeting LA’s streetwalkers.Farewell, My Lovely
1975-08-08Private eye Philip Marlowe is hired by ex-con Moose Malloy to find his girlfriend, a former lounge dancer. While also investigating the murder of a client and the theft of a jade necklace, Marlowe becomes entangled with seductress Helen Grayle and discovers a web of dark secrets that are better left hidden.8MM
1999-02-26A small, seemingly innocuous plastic reel of film leads surveillance specialist Tom Welles down an increasingly dark and frightening path. With the help of the streetwise Max, he relentlessly follows a bizarre trail of evidence to determine the fate of a complete stranger. As his work turns into obsession, he drifts farther and farther away from his wife, family and simple life as a small-town PI.Devil in a Blue Dress...
1995-09-29In late 1940s Los Angeles, Easy Rawlins is an unemployed black World War II veteran with few job prospects. At a bar, Easy meets DeWitt Albright, a mysterious white man looking for someone to investigate the disappearance of a missing white woman named Daphne Monet, who he suspects is hiding out in one of the city's black jazz clubs. Strapped for money and facing house payments, Easy takes the job, but soon finds himself in over his head.Steel
1997-08-15When a renegade military reject puts new superweapons in dangerous hands, John Henry Irons becomes Steel. Wearing body armor, wielding a fearsome electrohammer and riding a gadget-packed motorcycle, he's ready to wage war... if he can fix the untimely glitches in his untested gear.They Live
1988-11-04A lone drifter stumbles upon a unique pair of sunglasses that reveal aliens are systematically gaining control of the Earth by masquerading as humans and lulling the public into submission.S.W.A.T.
2003-08-08Hondo Harrelson recruits Jim Street to join an elite unit of the Los Angeles Police Department. Together they seek out more members, including tough Deke Kay and single mom Chris Sanchez. The team's first big assignment is to escort crime boss Alex Montel to prison. It seems routine, but when Montel offers a huge reward to anyone who can break him free, criminals of various stripes step up for the prize.Virtuosity
1995-08-04The Law Enforcement Technology Advancement Centre (LETAC) has developed SID version 6.7: a Sadistic, Intelligent, and Dangerous virtual reality entity which is synthesized from the personalities of more than 150 serial killers, and only one man can stop him.Se7en
1995-09-22Two homicide detectives are on a desperate hunt for a serial killer whose crimes are based on the "seven deadly sins" in this dark and haunting film that takes viewers from the tortured remains of one victim to the next. The seasoned Det. Somerset researches each sin in an effort to get inside the killer's mind, while his novice partner, Mills, scoffs at his efforts to unravel the case.Chinatown
1974-06-20Private eye Jake Gittes lives off of the murky moral climate of sunbaked, pre-World War II Southern California. Hired by a beautiful socialite to investigate her husband's extra-marital affair, Gittes is swept into a maelstrom of double dealings and deadly deceits, uncovering a web of personal and political scandals that come crashing together.Fail Safe
1964-10-07Because of a technical defect an American bomber team mistakenly orders the destruction of Moscow. The President of the United States has but little time to prevent an atomic catastrophe from occurring.Double Dragon
1994-11-04Two brothers have half of a powerful ancient Chinese talisman. An evil gang leader has the other half, and determines to get the brothers' half and have a complete medallion so he can gain absolute power.