Speed Movie Review 1994

Excellent dude Reeves has grown up (and bulked up) as Los Angeles SWAT cop Jack Traven, up against bomb expert Howard Payne (Hopper, more maniacal than usual), who's after major ransom money. First it's a rigged elevator in a very tall building. Then it's a rigged bus--if it slows, it will blow, bad enough any day, but a nightmare in LA traffic. And that's still not the end. Terrific directorial debut for cinematographer De Bont, who certainly knows how to keep the adrenaline pumping. Fine support work by Daniels, Bullock, and Morton and enough wit in Yost's script to keep you chuckling. Great nonstop actioner from the "Die Hard" school.

Distribution

Fox Home Entertainment, PO Box 900, Beverly Hills, CA 90213, Phone: (310)369-3900, Toll-free: 888-223-4FOX, Fax: (310)369-5811, URL: http://www.foxmovies.com/index1.html, Remarks: Also known as Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 115 minutes.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Adventure Drama, Psychotics/Sociopaths, L.A., Buddy Cops, Loner Cops, Terror in Tall Buildings, Buses, Subways, Top Grossing Films of 1994, Boom!, Elevators

Screenplay

Graham Yost

Cast

Keanu Reeves, Dennis Hopper, Sandra Bullock, Joe Morton, Jeff Daniels, Alan Ruck, Glenn Plummer, Richard Lineback, Beth Grant, Hawthorne James, David Kriegel, Carlos Carrasco, Natsuko Ohama, Daniel Villarreal

Cinematography

Andrzej Bartkowiak

Director

Jan De Bont

Music

Mark Mancina

Producer

Mark Gordon Company, Ian Bryce, 20th Century-Fox

Awards

Oscars 1994: Sound; MTV Movie Awards 1995: Female Perf. (Bullock), Most Desirable Female (Bullock), On-Screen Duo (Keanu Reeves/Sandra Bullock), Villain (Hopper), Action Seq.; Blockbuster 1995: Movie, V., Action Actress, V. (Bullock), Action Actress, T. (Bullock).