Inimitable bomb-on-a-bus thriller packs in the excitement

Rating: 9/10 (29 December 2016)

This high-octane thriller is a pretty good example of 'does what it says on the tin' film-making. There's a bus that'll explode if it slows down. End of story. The concept in itself is workable, but the film, directed by Jan De Bont's sure hand, is excellent, a real action classic with super-fast pacing and a storyline that never lets up. Things kick off with a tense rescue-trapped-passengers-in-an-elevator bid and are enlivened by an exploding bus shock scene.
We're then into the heart of the story, on board of a primed-to-explode bus, and all the genre clichés are in place, albeit in a slick and well-oiled form. Keanu Reeves plays the young hero (not as good as in THE MATRIX but pretty good) and Dennis Hopper is his overacting nemesis, chewing the scenery with relish. There's a heady combination of stunt work, sudden death, explosions, and tense shoot-outs and the film truly lives up to its "Die Hard on a bus" tagline. The only weak links are a hang-dog Jeff Daniels, miscast in a non-comedic role, and Sandra Bullock, whose ditzy, screamy heroine quickly becomes grating. An intelligent script is the real highlight of this slightly workmanlike, but nonetheless excellent, thriller.