Speed (1994)

A young police officer must prevent a bomb exploding aboard a city bus by keeping its speed above 50 mph.

Director:

Jan de Bont

Writer:

Graham Yost

Stars:

Keanu Reeves, Dennis Hopper, Sandra Bullock

Won 2 Oscars. Another 17 wins & 20 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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
Beth Grant	...	Helen
Hawthorne James	...	Sam
Carlos Carrasco	...	Ortiz
David Kriegel	...	Terry
Natsuko Ohama	...	Mrs. Kamino
Daniel Villarreal	...	Ray
Simone Gad	...	Bus Passenger #1

Storyline

When a young Los Angeles police department, Special Weapons and Tactics (S.W.A.T.) officer called Jack Traven angers retired Atlanta police department bomb squad member Howard Payne, by foiling his attempt at taking hostages stuck in an elevator with a bomb, Payne in retaliation arms a bus with a bomb that will explode if it drops below 50 miles per hour. With the help of spunky passenger Annie, Jack and his partner Detective Harry Temple try to save the people on the bus before the bomb goes off, while also trying to figure out how Payne is monitoring them.

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Plot Keywords:

bus | bomb | time bomb | public transport | police | 

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Taglines:

Get ready for rush hour.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

(Rated R for violence and language)

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Jack and Harry find Howard in the freight elevator, and Jack says, "Will the mystery guest please sign in", he is quoting What's My Line? (1950).

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Goofs

After Lieutenant McMahon requests to be flown to the 105 freeway interchange, a camera operator can be seen standing beside an overpass column when the bus and police escort drive by.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Workman: Hey, this area's restricted.
Howard Payne: Oh, hi. Yeah, I know. They called me down here. Some of this wiring got screwed up.
Workman: Nobody called it down to me. I'm going to have to see a work order.
Howard Payne: Yeah, just a second. There you are.
[stabs workman in the ear with a screwdriver]
Howard Payne: Nothing personal.

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Alternate Versions

For the German video version, the scene where the woman is run over by the bus was brightened using a color filter. The DVD features the normal version as seen in cinemas.

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Connections

Referenced in After Lately: Weekend at Chelsea's (2011)

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Soundtracks

Soul Deep
Written by Wayne Carson Thompson (as Wayne Carson)
Produced by Gin Blossoms
Performed by Gin Blossoms
Courtesy of A&M Records

User Reviews

One of the best action films ever!

If ever there was a film I wished I had seen at the theater,this would be the one.It's a great combination of a well written story, great direction,and a great cast.It's one of those films that you want to like so much,and it does not disappoint.The only thing that bothered me about the film is perhaps is the insertion of ill timed corny remarks ("He lost his head"),and the ending could have been done better,but overall a great action film worth owning.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 June 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Bus That Couldn't Slow Down

Filming Locations:

MTA Subway, Hollywood and Highland Terminal, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$14,456,194, 12 June 1994

Gross USA:

$121,248,145

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$350,448,145

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Mark Gordon Company, Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS (uncredited)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1