Horst in Translation ([email protected]) "Speed" is an American English-language film from 1994, so two more years only until this one has its 25th anniversary. It was directed by Jan de Bont (actually the first directorial effort of this prolific cinematographer) and written by Graham Yost and for both of them this (almost) 2-hour movie is among their most famous. One reason is that this film won 2 of its 3 Oscar nominations (lost Editing to Forrest Gump) and another is that this film is still considered one of the defining action films of the 1990s. It features the relatively young Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock and (the not so young) Dennis Hopper. This is obviously not a film about performances, but it needs to be said that Reeves was working the part nicely and Hopper was also good, but admittedly had very little to work with in terms of both screen time and material. Bullock on the other hand I don't even think the performance was a problem at all, but eventually her character was the weakest of the entire film and it is ridiculous she even got awards attention for her turn. It is the epitome of a badly-written female character in an action movie. Early on she gets hit on by a guy who is somewhat of a mini antagonist, but of course she is too good for him and then there are these banter moments with Reeves' character and we knew exactly where this was heading. She is a tough intelligent woman, but needs constant saving and nice words from the big hero. I cannot deny I would have preferred her character to be completely out of the picture, but I guess they did not want to go for a sausage fest. Oh well.Back to the positive: This film has a fairly massive runtime, but it never drags and has no lengths at all I would say. They weren't scared of sacrificing several of the good characters to show how evil the bad guy was and this is a brave movie that we do not always get. I also found it interesting how the movie, fitting the title, moves from slow to fast methods of transportation. It all starts in an elevator, then a bus (the core of the film), and eventually a metro train. Talking about the metro train, fans of the television show "The West Wing" will see (and hopefully enjoy) a familiar face in there. Back to this one here, this is not a film you want to go for if you are in need of realism. There were probably a hundred aspects that would not happen like that in reality or we can also include unrealistic plot developments here. There is a hole in the road and the rails aren't finished either? Nah. Also admittedly the screenplay is not particularly creative as all the ideas are fairly simple really, like the traffic jam, or the lack of fuel etc. But I will admit they still worked. As did the entire film. It has its weaknesses and I would not call it a classic, but it was a genuinely entertaining two hours. I give it a thumbs-up and recommend checking it out.

dudde-14399 An crazy guy *eccentric guy* has rigged a elevator full of people to explode in an attempt to pressure the L.A.P.D into giving him money. But officer Jack and his friend Harry spoils his plan.So to get revenge and get money he puts a bomb on a bus. If the bus goes under 50 mph it explodes if anyone gets off the bus it explodes. So officer Jack gets on the bus to try and prevent it from exploding as they race through L.A at fast speed keeping it from crashing into the busy L.A traffic.The characters are about as deep as an splinter. Meanwhile a good movie would have side characters as deep as an knife and main characters as deep as a sword, this movies characters are about as shallow as it gets. The acting is terrible at times and just makes me laugh when i'm supposed to feel empathy for the characters. It's cheesy too but what can you expect from a 90's action movie. Even with all these flaws it's very enjoyable and i would really recommend watching it at least once.Also i noticed that the picture does not have that much contrast and looks very dull. In fact it's so dull that i turned the contrast up in VLC media player to compensate for it. This is something i have never had to do before with any other movie.The movie never really slows down it's just action scene after action scene, it actually gets ridiculous after a while and if it ever does slow down then 20 seconds later the bus will be jumping over a ramp or maybe crashing into a unsuspecting car. There's not really any story to it, it's just plot.I feel as if Michael Bay just took all his inspiration from Speed and just cranked it up.Enough with the negatives i'll tell you what the best part of the movie is. The fact that they are playing 2001: A Space Odyssey in the Grauman's Chinese Theatre.I'll give the movie a 6,5/10 enjoyable but nothing more than that.

James Emtage The opening with the camera descending an elevator shaft is one of the longest I've ever seen, but it leads to a tense sequence involving stopping a passenger-filled elevator rigged with explosives from falling. The characters are well-cast and Keanu Reeves and Jeff Daniels do well as their characters Jack Traven and Harry Temple. Dennis Hopper certainly brings his crazed villain to life. I was relieved that all the passengers got out the elevator safely, but it got tense again when Jack and Harry attempted to corner the bomber. I actually thought he'd been killed after the explosion on the other side of the door. The celebration party is always entertaining the the dialog is well written.I wasn't expecting a bus to explode BEFORE hearing of the one that plays a major part in the storyline. I was surprised that the bomber had survived and realised his clever and crafty ways of avoiding detection. I never forgot the rule about no one getting off the bus and larger ransom demand of $3.7 million widened my eyes the first time I heard it. Jack chasing after the 2525 bus is fun to watch and Annie just catching the bus is a fairly sweet part. I've heard of bombs that are triggered by timers and remote-detonated, but one that's triggered by speed is a new one for me. It took me a while to realise this situation with the bus is a hostage situation unlike any other. It truly becomes a thrill-ride and Jan de Bont certainly brings it to maximum velocity in his directional debut. I was surprised that the passengers wouldn't believe that there was a bomb on the bus and I was shocked when a small-time criminal shot Sam the bus driver. Annie taking Sam's place behind the wheel is terrific and she drives the bus very well, especially during the tense-filled sequences involving built-up traffic and a hard right turn while keeping the bus above 50mph.I was glad for Sam when he safely gotten off the bus onto a pacing flatbed truck (I hope he made a full recovery) but I thought the bomber went too far by detonating a explosive under the bus stairs when Helen (one of the passengers) tried to get off. Then the tension built up again with an approaching 50-foot gap in the freeway. I thought "The number 50 is coming up quite a few times! The speed bus cannot go under, the total of the number of the bus 2525 and now the gap in the freeway!" I was amazed the bus made the jump.At the airport, Jack going under the bus was another tense moment and I was hoping he would deactivate the bomb. I started to understand more about the bomb at this point. But I was almost on the edge of my seat again when Jack nearly got killed under the bus and had to hold on by puncturing the bus's fuel tank, but with help from the passengers, they got him back on board so I was pleased. But the tension doesn't stop there - with the fuel gauge gradually dropping, so were chances of survival.I should've figured the bomber Howard would not be at his home as he knew they'd be coming for him, but I wasn't expecting yet another explosion and for Harry and most of his team to be killed. I really felt for Jack but I was as stunned as he was when he realises that Howard has been watching the bus the whole time with a hidden camera. The trick of recording 1 minute of footage a replaying it on a loop to fool Howard while the passengers are offloaded onto an airport bus is VERY clever! Jack and Annie escaping the bus is another terrific sequence, although I feel for the bus as it runs out of fuel, its speed drops below 50mph and the bomb detonates in a huge but effective explosion.I was wondering how the storyline would continue since the bus was major part, but Howard realising he'd been fooled and taking Annie hostage while the ransom drop was made plays its part. Howard collecting the ransom without being seen was another clever move, as is the sequence on the subway train. Howard delivers his lines well and Jack's fight with him on top of the train is another brutal sequence. I was hoping Jack would in, but I wasn't expecting Howard to lose his head to an overhead signal! Jack removes the explosive vest from Annie but they can't stop the train, so Jack setting the train at full speed instead is quite a choice. I was impressed with the effect of the train derailing and I agree that relationships based on extreme circumstances rarely work out. I suppose after surviving something so dangerous, one thing a couple can do is share a romantic moment as onlookers take pictures!

adonis98-743-186503 A young cop must prevent a bomb exploding aboard a city bus by keeping its speed above 50 mph. It's easy to see why and how Speed 2 wen't downhill with it's dumb acting and over the top action now the Original Speed is amazing from start to finish the acting is really good and the characters are likable and the action is handled very well done especially with the long chase scenes or the suspense that gets thrown in your face every 2 seconds just like The Matrix and Point Break Keanu Reeves gives a nice performance but also it's another great movie in his acting career. Speed is without a doubt a non stop action packed thriller that works perfectly fine!!