Speed (1994) is available to stream on Disney +.
On a recent re-watch of Jan de Bont’s Speed (1994) to mark its 30th anniversary, I found myself thinking about the state of action movies today and the desperate need for movies like Speed to bring audiences back to the cinema. Jan de Bont’s action extravaganza set the box office alight in 1994 as it re-energised a genre that was beginning to feel tired, injecting a new youthful energy while taking cinema audiences back to the full-on action set pieces, memorable villains, witty one-liners and sheer audacity of Die Hard, seven years before, where de Bont had served as cinematographer.
1993 had seen Arnie become a parody of himself in the box-office bomb, Last Action Hero, while Stallone hung off the side of a cliff in a lacklustre rock-climbing action flick that did little to inspire. Many questioned whether the action film was dead, replaced by family movies and tongue-in-cheek comedies. But in 1994, Speed brought the action flick back from the precipice with a bang by combining elements of a classic disaster movie (look at how each bus passenger fits the classic disaster movie motifs), all-action set pieces and an explosive villain (the late, great Dennis Hopper) who, pound for pound, matches the brilliance of Alan Rickman’s legendary Hans Gruber in Die Hard.
But the true genius of Speed came from two of its casting choices. Keanu Reeves stepped up to the plate as the all-action hero, a role he had already proved himself capable of in Point Break (1991). But far from being a gung-ho cop who used his brawn over his brains, Reeves Jack Traven was a new style of 90s action hero. Jack was thoughtful, confident, emotional, and intelligent; he was a man who used his mind before his weapon and always sought to resolve a situation through a clear plan. Here, Speed drew a line in the sand for the action hero, a line that divided the 1980s from the 1990s in the way our heroes behaved on screen, especially concerning women.
That brings me to Sandra Bullock’s Annie, the unsuspecting commuter who has just been banned from driving only to become a public bus stunt driver. Like Jack, Annie is also a line in the sand between the 80s and 90s action flick. In Bullock’s hands, Annie is as much the story’s hero as Jack. The defeat of Hooper’s maniacal Howard Payne is a joint venture that bristles with sexual tension that never spills over until the final legendary kiss that she jointly leads with Jack. Speed may be a love letter to movies such as Die Hard, but it is a transformative picture that gave birth to a new style of 90s action film that honoured the past but equally offered something new.
Jan de Bont’s breathtaking action set pieces remind us that once upon a time, action movies felt real, not digital, as they left us wanting more as the credits rolled. As we stepped from the darkness of the cinema into the light of day, movies like Speed left a mark, not through any deep meaning, convoluted story, or even plausibility, but through sheer entertainment that kept us glued to our seats. Speed gave us precisely what it promised: an A-list cast who believed in the screenplay, alongside heart-pounding action, wit, a sprinkling of romance and a dastardly villain. It was fun, electrifying and transformational. So when looking at the current crop of action flicks, I am left with only one thought: we feel the need, the need for more movies like Speed. Films that draw a line in the sand while putting their foot down on the accelerator as they speed us toward heart-pumping, entertaining and enthralling action.
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