Fast paced (see what I did there?).

Rating: 9/10 (27 January 2004)

Sheer adrenalin from beginning to end, Speed is one hell of an action film, but it is one that is both simple, yet deviously complex. First of all, the plot is well done. It really is. It sound good on paper and writer Graham Yost (with a little help from Joss Whedon) takes full advantage of what might happen when stuck on a bus that has to stay above fifty miles per hour in order to stop from blowing up due to a mad bomber. Every obstacle that Keanu and Sandra could possibly face arises; children crossing the road, a woman with a baby carriage, a traffic jam, a hard right turn and of course, a big huge gap on the road. Logic is not only stretched, but it is thrown out of a very high window, but when a film is this much fun why complain.
The script is very well set up, not only in terms of plot but in terms of structure. Each act has it's own set piece. Act one features the elevator sequence. Act two, the biggest act of the film takes place on the bus while the third and final act takes place on the train (a controversial contribution from Whedon and one that Yost was very unhappy with). Of course none of this would work without a great director at the helm and Jan de Bont rises to the challenge. While his career after this has been hit and miss (critics have slated his work but audiences have been forthcoming), here he shows that he has learned from being a director of photography for Paul Verhoeven and John McTiernan with a visual prowess and a handling of action sequences that is superb. In fact a lot of the film recalls Die Hard with the suspense arising from a plot that is quite simple yet deviously more complex in its execution. The biggest surprise at the time was that Keanu Reeves does wonderfully well in the role of the hero, Jack Tavern. He is charming, yet tough and while he doesn't really have to 'act' here, his performance is well done and he should be proud. Likewise Sandra Bullock in what is really her breakthrough role, even though it is her second major film after having been the female lead in Demolition Man. Her performance has all the hallmarks of her lovely girl next door act and her chemistry with Reeves works well. It is especially funny when he keeps calling her 'mam'.
However the film is stolen from everyone's favorite psychopath Dennis Hopper. Brilliantly evil as Howard Payne, Hopper clearly enjoys playing a bad guy who enjoy being a terrorist ("the whim of a mad man, I like it"). While the role is not of the disturbing variety that Frank Booth is (this is a mainstream film after all), the role is great one and is instantly memorable, as is his death scene.
If you have still to watch this film do. It is brilliant and is one of the best Hollywood action films of the nineties. Just don't watch the abysmal sequel.