#jan reeves

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Gun Girls (1957) Robert C. Dertano

August 4th 2024

[haveyouseenthismovie-poll]

[filmbook21]

[death-by-mercury]

Hot or not? Stars of the 80s! (Singers, actors, musicians…)

[of-fear-and-love]

Sandra Bullock in Speed (1994)

[cinesludge]

Movie #60 of 2024: Speed

Howard Payne: "Pop quiz, hotshot. There's a bomb on a bus. Once the bus goes over 50 miles per hour, the bomb is armed. If it drops below 50, it blows up. What do you do? What do you do???"

[fertileground]

speed, 1994 (dir. jan de bont)

[90smovies]

[schlock-luster-video]

On June 18, 2014, Speed was released on the Internet in India.

[vertigoartgore]

Jan de Bont's Speed turns 30 today. Feel old yet ?

[adamwatchesmovies]

Speed (1994)

Speed is one of the greatest action films ever made. It’s packed wall-to-wall with memorable action scenes - so many this could be three great action movies instead of one. The premise is beautifully simple and explored to the fullest by writer Graham Yost. The actors have terrific chemistry. The stunts and pyrotechnics are sublime. You won’t believe this is director Jan de Bont’s directorial debut.

After saving an elevator full of hostages, LAPD SWAT officer Jack Traven (Keanu Reeves) receives a phone call from the madman responsible. He’s planted a bomb onto a city bus. The bomb will become armed once the bus reaches 50 miles per hour. Once armed, the bomb will explode if the bus’ speed dips below 50 miles per hour. If anyone attempts to get off the bus, the bomb will explode. While Jack attempts to catch up to the vehicle before disaster strikes, his partner, Detective Harry Temple (Jeff Daniels) searches for the bomber’s identity and whereabouts.

The first part of Speed has Jack and Harry in the same building as the bomber (Dennis Hopper). Who knew you could wring so much tension out of an elevator full of people by adding some explosives? Well, alright. Maybe that’s sort of a stupid question. The point is, that the bad guy is deliciously evil. No hammy agendas or big speeches. All he wants is to get money. If a few people have to die in the process, so be it. Elevators are always a little bit scary to ride, with the claustrophobia and knowledge that in case of an emergency, it's the last place you want to be (take the stairs instead). This? It'll have your hands all sweaty. Thank goodness for Jack and Harry. You like them as a team and get a good feel for who they are as individuals as well. That’s critical because they're separated the second the bus comes into play.

Now the movie REALLY gets going. You place yourself in Jack’s shoes and feel overwhelmed. First, he has to find the bus, then he has to stop it from going 50 miles per hour… unless it’s already reached that speed. If it has, he’ll have to tell the driver without slowing the vehicle down - at which point everyone will die. The only way to get a hold of this situation is to get onboard, which of course is easier said than done. That’s just the beginning. Once aboard, there’s so much that can - and does - go wrong you’re never given a minute to relax. The closest thing to a breather are the scenes with Harry as he begins closing in on the mad bomber, which isn't exactly a pleasant stroll through a meadow.

As Speed plays, your mind races with ideas. What will Jack have to keep an eye on? How will he deal with the problems that will arise as the bus keeps driving? What would you do in this scenario? I ask because it isn’t just Jack on the bus. You get to know several passengers more than you’d expect; just enough for you to care about the safety of everyone onboard. There’s the tourist who at first seems like a bit of a sleaze but turns out to be just an ordinary guy, the paranoid lady who just wants to get off no matter what (who can blame her?), the big guy Jack can count on when something goes wrong, the criminal who knows he’s wanted and thinks Jack is after him and Sandra Bullock as Annie Porter. Bullock’s a treasure in pretty much any role, and that is certainly the case here. She helps immerse you into the action even further because she winds up taking the wheel on the bus for a long time. Remember, she’s no cop; she’s not even a bus driver!

Bullock and Reeves have terrific chemistry, which is key to the last third of the film. Just when you think this moving is winding down, it picks up again. Even when it’s over - for sure this time - you’re not sure if it’s ok to relax. What a ride that was!

I hadn’t seen Speed in at least a decade and was surprised by how vivid my memory of the film was. One of the reasons? It contains little downtime. It’s action, action, action all the way and each perilous situation is a contender for the movie’s best. It’s fast-paced with loads of energy, fun twists, a smartly written story, memorable characters, and a premise you can’t wait to tell your friends about. Speed stands the test of time. (On Blu-ray, January 14, 2022)

[love1979]

„Speed“ (1994)

[movieassholes]

Hey, your taxes are payin' their salary. If we die, they gotta take a pay cut.

Stephens - Speed (1994)

[this-is-the-ticket]

029 - Put the Reps In

Courtney Barnett & Kurt Vile's Tiny Desk Concert

I'm Not There - the already good Bob Dylan movie

How to pronounce Barry Keoghan

The supposed casting of The Beatles biopic

Miles Ahead - Don Cheadle's cool as hell Miles Davis biopic

Wiki excerpt on George Melford's Mexican Dracula film

Ari was wrong - it's the Stairs of Cirith Ungol not Bara Dur lol

Ari was wrong again! They shot Sean Astin's coverage first and then Elijah Wood's coverage a year later.

Ari's new YouTube Channel, Morons <3

Dumb & Dumber and Speed came out the same year. Wow.

Pygmalion (1938) on Criterion

Fiona Benson on Poetry Foundation

[alltrekvarnews]

Keanu Reeves abierto a una posible secuela de 'Speed'

[thethirdromana]

Ages of Dracula casts

This ask made me wonder how close past Dracula casts were to the ages of the characters as established in the novel. Looking at these adaptations:

Dracula (1931)

Horror of Dracula (1958)

Dracula (1974)

Count Dracula (1977)

Dracula (1979)

Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)

Dracula (2020)

In some cases characters are merged or changed; I've associated each character with the person who comes closest to having the same name.

Jonathan Harker (early 20s)

Dracula (1931) - David Manners, 31

Horror of Dracula (1958) - John Van Eyssen, 36

Dracula (1974) - Murray Brown, 37

Count Dracula (1977) - Bosco Hogan, 28

Dracula (1979) - Trevor Eve, 28

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Keanu Reeves, 28

Dracula (2020) - John Heffernan, 39

On average, Jonathan Harker is cast as 32.

Mina Murray (early 20s)

Dracula (1931) - Helen Chandler, 25

Horror of Dracula (1958) - Melissa Stribling, 32

Dracula (1974) - Penelope Horner, 35

Count Dracula (1977) - Judi Bowker, 23

Dracula (1979) - Jan Francis, 32

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Winona Ryder, 21

Dracula (2020) - Morfydd Clark, 31

On average, Mina Murray is cast as 28.

Lucy Westenra (19)

Dracula (1931) - Frances Dade, 24

Horror of Dracula (1958) - Carol Marsh, 32

Dracula (1974) - Fiona Lewis, 28

Count Dracula (1977) - Susan Penhaligon, 28

Dracula (1979) - Kate Nelligan, 29

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Sadie Frost, 27

Dracula (2020) - Lydia West, 27

On average, Lucy Westenra is cast as 28.

Jack Seward (29)

Dracula (1931) - Herbert Bunston, 57 (aged up to be Mina's dad)

Horror of Dracula (1958) - Charles Lloyd-Pack, 56

Dracula (1974) - none

Count Dracula (1977) - Mark Burns, 41

Dracula (1979) - Donald Pleasence, 60 (Lucy's dad in this one)

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Richard E Grant, 35

Dracula (2020) - Matthew Beard, 31

On average, Jack Seward is cast as 47, and also assigned Dad.

Quincey Morris (mid to late 20s)

Dracula (1931) - none

Horror of Dracula (1958) - none

Dracula (1974) - none

Count Dracula (1977) - Richard Barnes, 33

Dracula (1979) - none

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Billy Campbell, 33

Dracula (2020) - Phil Dunster, 28

On average, Quincey Morris doesn't exist. But when he does, he's 31.

Arthur Holmwood (mid to late 20s)

Dracula (1931) - none

Horror of Dracula (1958) - Michael Gough, 42

Dracula (1974) - Simon Ward, 33

Count Dracula (1977) - none

Dracula (1979) - none

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Cary Elwes, 30

Dracula (2020) - none

On average, Arthur Holmwood doesn't exist either. But when he does, he's 35.

Van Helsing (a generation older)

Dracula (1931) - Edward Van Sloan, 49

Horror of Dracula (1958) - Peter Cushing, 45

Dracula (1974) - Nigel Davenport, 46

Count Dracula (1977) - Frank Finlay, 51

Dracula (1979) - Laurence Olivier, 72

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Anthony Hopkins, 55

Dracula (2020) - Dolly Wells, 49

On average, Van Helsing is cast as 52.