Keanu-rama Night - Speed

Tonight we pay homage to Keanu Reeves, inspired by the BFI re-release of Point Break and his starring roles in classic action-spectacle masterpieces such as The Matrix, Speed and Point Break. 

Going through the training required to pull off the stunts from his John Wick films allows Keanu to step inside his character's boots and wholly embody him during filming and Keanu Reeves is known for doing 90% of his own stunts, so is a perfect icon to feature in our Art of Action season, with our very own Keanu-rama night!

Curated by and hosted by our Young Electrics film programming students, the night will include a full-length screening of the classic high-octane thriller, Speed.

Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock and Dennis Hopper star in this pulse-pounding thriller filled with breathtaking stunts and unexpected romance. Jack Traven (Reeves) is an L.A. cop sent to defuse a bomb planted on a bus by a vengeful extortionist (Dennis Hopper). Not only that, but Jack and a passenger (Bullock) must blast the bus through city streets at more than 50 MPH or the bomb will explode!

Maybe it's impossible to pinpoint the exact special juju makes Speed hold up so well. Maybe it's the fact that it shouldn't hold up so well, much less have worked in the first place. While filming the bus jump, everyone involved pretty understandably thought there was no way a few tons of rubber and metal would fly further than 20 feet. The bus proceeded to soar way, way further than 20 feet, far longer than anyone could've imagined, and promptly smashed one of the cameras set up to capture the stunt.

25 years later, the film is still unexpectedly smashing! Not only that, Keanu is a king of the pop culture landscape and we are happy to be part of the full-on Keanu-ssance. This is the perfect opportunity to remember that not only does Keanu still have it, he never really quite lost it, quietly building one of the sturdier resumes out there over the course of several decades. Look back, remember that Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure set the bar for heart-warming stories of bro-love; remember that The Matrix basically changed action filmmaking forever; remember—and this is important for today's discussion—that the 1994 flick Speed still owns it to this day.

This event is part of Art of Action, a UK-wide film season supported by National Lottery and BFI Film Audience Network.

Fabulous Christmas parties at the cinema!
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