Speed (1994)

This fast pace, intense, and action packed, thrill ride, was the first of the modern day action thrillers. More recent films such as Eagle eye, Inception and the Bourne films, have all been influenced by films like Speed, because they all combine technology, with action and adventure. They make technology the motor of the story, and Speed is no exception. Howard Payne (Dennis Hopper) is a terrorist, who has put a bomb on an L.A. bus. If the bus reaches 50 mph, then the bomb is armed and if it drops below 50 mph then it will go off. It’s all down to the cool, confident, city cop Jack Traven (Keanu Reeves) to stop him and save the day. The majority of the film is set on the bus, with the passengers hanging on for dear life, Traven being in charge and a fellow passenger Annie Porter (Sandra Bullock) being at the wheel (after the bus driver is injured). Bullock’s character (unlike most female Hollywood characters) is not a damsel in distress. She is the one driving the bus, and all the passengers lives are in her hands. Bullock therefore gets a few brownie points, for pulling of some pretty impressive stunts on the bus. One of which takes place when for some reason the highway ends, and this 9,000 kg bus jumps from one end of the road to the other. Reeves, also has his fair share of moments as well, in a scene at the beginning where he attempts to rescue a group of people in an elevator, and at the end where he is crawling on top of a moving train. Despite the film being a thriller, it is also a disaster film as well, because most of the time it is set on the bus, and just like in disaster films we get to know some of the characters, and we witness some tension unfold. Hoppers character works well in the film. He’s almost a Wizard of Oz type, because he is an unidentified man, who is sitting alone in the basement of his home, able to control everything around him. He is surrounded by CCTV footage so he can see the bus and an array of buttons and switches. He can push these at any point to destroy the bus on his own terms, if Traven doesn't play the game right. So, you've got an audacious action hero, a smart female lead, a perilous terrorist and a bomb on a moving bus. All of this definitely makes Speed worth the ride! By Harry Demuth