Speed

"Get ready for rush hour."

1994 1h 56m EN

👍

7.2

SOLID

★7.2TMDB · 7,101

ActionThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Tensions run high when a crazed bomber rigs a Los Angeles bus with a device that will kill everyone on board if the vehicle's speed dips below fifty miles per hour.

“Get ready for rush hour.”

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Cast

Keanu Reeves
Jack Traven
Dennis Hopper
Howard Payne
Sandra Bullock
Annie
Joe Morton
Capt. McMahon
Jeff Daniels
Harry
Alan Ruck
Stephens
Glenn Plummer
Jaguar Owner
Richard Lineback
Norwood

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Jan de Bont
Writers: Giacomo G. Ghiazza, Graham Yost, Joss Whedon
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Grossed $350M — a 11.7× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

32 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Speed Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CAST

Did you know

223+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Jan de Bont, shot by Andrzej Bartkowiak. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Mark Mancina. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor John Wright shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Keanu Reeves and Dennis Hopper and Sandra Bullock carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jan de Bont directs. Andrzej Bartkowiak behind the camera. Mark Mancina scores. John Wright cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Grossed $350M — a 11.7× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.
232 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Part of the "Speed Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4223+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.
5Directed by Jan de Bont, shot by Andrzej Bartkowiak. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Mark Mancina. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor John Wright shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Keanu Reeves and Dennis Hopper and Sandra Bullock carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "Get ready for rush hour.".
10IMDB entry: tt0111257 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 21 themes, including "s.w.a.t.", "bomber", "bus bomb", "los angeles, california".

The technical file

Cinematography: Andrzej Bartkowiak
Original score: Mark Mancina
Editing: John Wright
Production design: Jackson De Govia
Costume design: Ellen Mirojnick
Makeup / hair: Pete Altobelli
VFX supervisor: Boyd Shermis
Sound: Gregg Landaker
Stunt coordinator: Gary Hymes
Runtime: 116 min · 1h 56m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $30,000,000
Box office: $350,448,145
Return: 1168% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Speed (1994)

Awards

MTV Movie Award for Most Desirable Female
MTV Movie Award for Best Villain
Academy Award for Best Sound
Academy Award for Best Sound Editing
Saturn Awards
BAFTA Award for Best Editing
MTV Movie Award for Best Action Sequence
BAFTA Award for Best Sound
MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo
MTV Movie Award for Best Female Performance

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Part of

Speed Collection

Speed is a 1994 American action-thriller film directed by Jan de Bont. LAPD officer Jack Traven becomes the focus of a bomber and extortionist, retired Atlanta bomb squad sergeant Howard Payne. The film takes place in Los Angeles in 1993. In 1997, a sequel, Speed 2: Cruise Control, was released. Sandra Bullock agreed to star again as Annie, for financial backing for another project, but Keanu Reeves declined the offer to return as Jack. As a result, Jason Patric was written into the story as Alex Shaw, Annie's new boyfriend, with her and Jack having broken up due to her worry about Jack's dangerous lifestyle. Willem Dafoe starred as the villain John Geiger, and Glenn Plummer (who played Reeves' carjacking victim) also cameos as a boat driver. The film is considered one of the worst sequels of all time.

Also by

Jan de Bont

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Community reviews

What people are saying

JPV8522021-05-23
★ 8/10
Entertaining action-thriller that made both Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock stars. All of the scenes on the bus were great and while the finale was fine, the third act in of itself was contrived. No reason for Annie to be at the scene of the ransom drop; heck, one can argue Jack shouldn't have been there either since they know what the bomber looks like. Still, plenty of fun and seemed like Hopper was having a great time as a cackling, maniacal villain. 3.75/5
Wuchak2021-08-26
★ 6/10
Get off the bus! A SWAT officer in Los Angeles (Keanu Reeves) tries to save the lives of people on a bus from a mad bomber (Dennis Hopper) who has the vehicle rigged to blow up if it goes under 50 MPH. Sandra Bullock plays a passenger on the bus while Jeff Daniels is on hand as another SWAT officer. "Speed" (1994) is a disaster/action movie that delivers the goods as a thrilling popcorn flick. While it’s not great like “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” (1991) it’s arguably on par with “Under Siege 2: Dark Territory” (1995). Although a top-of-the-line production, it lacks the human interest of “Terminator 2” and “Runaway Train” (1985) and the story is unbelievably contrived. But, if you can roll with it, it’s a dynamic blockbuster, just kinda forgettable in the grand scheme of things. The film runs 1 hour, 55 minutes, and was shot in the greater Los Angeles area, including Mojave Airport. GRADE: B-
CinemaSerf2023-08-26
★ 7/10
For my money, this is Keanu Reeves' best (and hottest) performance. He is "Jack", an LAPD officer who finds himself embroiled in a bus-hostage situation. Not any ordinary kind of scenario, though - the bus is atop a bomb that will detonate if it slows below 50mph. He must track down the bus and figure out a way of ensuring, in a gridlocked and pedestrian-riddled LA, how to make sure it doesn't explode and how to evacuate the passengers. Luckily for him, Sandra Bullock ("Annie") is on board so perhaps he has a fighting chance? We know from the start that it's explosive expert Dennis Hopper pulling all the strings - boy has he got a grudge - so the rest of LAPD (and his partner Jeff Daniels) have to try and track him down. Mark Mancina's score and some really intense action photography keep this gripping drama racing along really well with loads of (ok, pretty implausible) engineering acrobatics. The dynamic between Bullock and Reeves is effective, she plays her role really entertainingly too as it turns out the bus has it's fair share of quirky passengers too, and she ends up doing all the driving (without a driving licence!). Almost 30 years on, it hasn't really dated at all - indeed, there is an authenticity to the whole production that helps keep it enthralling all the way to an ending that sustains momentum really well.