‹ All movies

The Rewatchables ·

Speed

year 1994decade 90sdirector Jan de Bontgenre Actiongenre Thriller
host Bill Simmonshost Chris Ryanhost Sean Fennesseyproducer Craig Horlbeck format Repeat visit
All 38 categories

The Coach Finstock Award for Best Life Lesson · 2:02:34

Luck runs out

Bill Simmons: Harry’s warning supplies the lesson

The film

Speed (1994)

Directed by Jan de Bont · Action

116 minutes

IMDb Letterboxd JustWatch Find on Rotten Tomatoes
Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Keanu Reeves LAPD Officer Jack Traven
Dennis Hopper Howard Payne
Sandra Bullock Annie Porter
Joe Morton LAPD Lieutenant Herb 'Mac' McMahon
Jeff Daniels LAPD Detective Harry Temple
Alan Ruck Doug Stephens
Glenn Plummer Maurice the Jaguar owner
Beth Grant Helen
Hawthorne James Sam Silver
Natsuko Ohama Mrs. Kamino
Margaret Medina Officer Robin
Jordan Lund Bagwell
Robert Mailhouse young executive
Susan Barnes female executive
Neisha Folkes-LeMelle Mrs. McMahon
Richard Lineback Sergeant Norwood
Beau Starr Commissioner
Sandy Martin bartender

Everything from the episode

In the order the hosts got to it. Open a row for the discussion.

27:55

Half-Assed Internet Research

Runaway Train, Die Hard, Silver Streak and production connections

Runaway Train, Die Hard, Silver Streak and production connections

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 00:27:55Read transcript
  • The cited inspirations are Runaway Train, Die Hard and Silver Streak
  • The train ending is compared with Silver Streak
  • The Goodhew ambulance is connected with Heat
  • Hopper’s dummy head reportedly required a less graphic angle
  • Reeves and Bullock’s later public accounts of mutual crushes are discussed
  • The hosts speculate beyond those accounts; that speculation is not treated as fact
  • Earlier production discussion describes the two bus-jump attempts and lost camera
  • The practical elevator models, de Bont’s additions and Whedon’s rewrites are discussed
Share this discussion More Half-Assed Internet Research answers
39:59

Roger Ebert's review
In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 00:39:59Read transcript
  • Ebert’s four-star rating is reported
  • His description of the film’s construction and physical audience tension is discussed
  • Sean recalls Siskel and Ebert both praising the film in a brief television review
  • The short review is contrasted with today’s multiple podcast discussions
Share this discussion More Roger Ebert's review answers
1:29:50

Casting What-Ifs

Jeff Speakman, Stephen Baldwin and Richard Grieco for Jack; Halle Berry for Annie

Jeff Speakman, Stephen Baldwin and Richard Grieco for Jack; Halle Berry for Annie

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 01:29:50Read transcript
  • Speakman is reported as attached during Paramount development
  • Baldwin and Grieco are discussed as other Jack possibilities
  • The Ellen DeGeneres story is explicitly treated as a denied urban legend
  • Berry’s own regret and description of the earlier static-bus script are cited
  • Other alleged Annie candidates remain uncertain
  • Craig T. Nelson reportedly could not leave Coach to play Mac
  • Ed Harris was considered when Harry was the villain
  • McTiernan, Harlin and Tarantino reportedly declined directing
  • McTiernan’s version is imagined as marginally better
  • Michael Bay reportedly sought the job before his feature debut
Share this discussion More Casting What-Ifs answers
1:34:02

Recasting Couch

Keep the cast and Los Angeles

Keep the cast and Los Angeles

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:34:02Read transcript
  • No actor changes are desired
  • New York’s FDR or West Side Highway is considered, but crossing Manhattan is difficult
  • Boston is rejected for its road layout
Share this discussion More Recasting Couch answers
1:47:21

Picking Nits

The bus physics, Harry’s raid and the final chase’s continuity

The bus physics, Harry’s raid and the final chase’s continuity

In the discussion (19)
Approx. transcript time · 01:47:21Read transcript
  • Jack answers an improbably timed payphone
  • He could have disabled the tires before the bus reached fifty
  • LA traffic and the hairpin turn cannot sustain the required speed
  • Weekday-morning college football is implausible
  • Jack’s screwdriver grip and prolonged fuel leak are questioned
  • Harry’s limp disappears before the raid
  • Jack setting down gun and badge is contrasted with period LAPD behavior
  • Helen’s explosion damages surprisingly little and uses up the door bomb
  • Airport access and the delayed choice to use its runways are questioned
  • The blown tire should affect stability immediately
  • Harry should anticipate a bomber’s booby trap
  • A 1994 wireless bus camera is questioned, though the tape-loop trick is praised
  • Paying the ransom is considered against the enormous damage
  • Airport-to-downtown travel time is implausible
  • Howard’s dead-man trigger during the gunfight and fistfight is debated, including an objection that he retains it
  • Doors and Howard’s missing dye stains create continuity problems
  • Howard choosing a fistfight over a gun is questioned
  • News of the bus explosion should reach Howard sooner
  • The panel emphasizes these flaws do not spoil the movie
Share this discussion More Picking Nits answers
1:58:42

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Would Harry as villain improve the movie, and who commands the bomb squad?

Would Harry as villain improve the movie, and who commands the bomb squad?

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:58:42Read transcript
  • The panel prefers the finished version over the reported Harry-villain script
  • Who is the most important Jan? De Bont is compared with Jan Hammer and others
  • What is the bomb squad’s hierarchy when Jack and Harry keep improvising?
  • When does Jack’s attraction to Annie become another motivation?
  • The fictional Chris Ryan obituary tangent is not treated as a fact about him
Share this discussion More Probably Unanswerable Questions answers
2:03:03

Best Double Feature

Die Hard
Speed
Die Hard

Picked by Chris Ryan

Transformers
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 02:03:03Read transcript
Share this discussion More Best Double Feature answers
2:07:13

Producer review

A closing contribution favors Bullock and the grounded practical filmmaking

A closing contribution favors Bullock and the grounded practical filmmaking

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 02:07:13Read transcript
Share this discussion More Producer review answers