Speed (1994)

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
Jack Travis	Keanu Reeves
Howard Payne	Dennis Hopper
Annie	Sandra Bullock
Capt. McMahon	Joe Morton	½
Harry	Jeff Daniels
Stephens	Alan Ruck	½

Review

One might claim that when making a genre film, it is difficult to fall completely flat, but even more difficult to go the extra mile. Furthermore, I would say that the action genre is where this rule applies the most, because the balance between the audacious and breathtaking on one side and the overexerted and plain stupid on the other is quite tricky to nail down. This is where Speed has perfect equilibrium. Made by first-timers Jan De Bont and Graham Yost, the film has a freshness and chutzpah to it that demands our attention from the set off and never lets go.

Yost's script is relentlessly crisp and De Bont makes his film into a non-stop suspense ride that at times have touches of Hitchcockesque flair to it. The three leads, Reeves, Bullock and Hopper are clever to leave any refinement they should possess behind, and they all deliver industrious, economic performances. That doesn't mean they and the film aren't playful; here's always another idea that is more clever and flashy than the previous one, and De Bont restrains his show with velvet gloves, making the film a delightfully hyperbolic action showcase. It was Hollywood's best year in recent times, and Speed one of the very best films in this genre ever.