The Bitter Herb

Speed is a 1994 American action thriller film directed by Jan de Bont in his feature directorial debut, and written by Graham Yost. Keanu Reeves, Dennis Hopper, and Sandra Bullock star in the film, with Joe Morton and Jeff Daniels in supporting roles. The plot centers on a city bus rigged by Howard Payne (Hopper), an ex-cop turned vengeful extortionist, to explode if its speed drops below 50 miles per hour (80 km/h). Reeves plays LAPD officer Jack Traven, who is tasked with preventing the disaster, with Bullock portraying a passenger who becomes unexpectedly involved in the mission. Inspired largely by Runaway Train (1985) and the Japanese language action thriller film The Bullet Train (1975), Speed premiered on June 7, 1994, and was released on June 10, 1994, by 20th Century Fox. The film received positive reviews from critics and grossed roughly $350 million worldwide against a $30–37 million budget, becoming the fifth-highest-grossing film of 1994. At the 67th Academy Awards, Speed won Best Sound. The film also won Best Sound and Best Editing at the 48th British Academy Film Awards. A sequel, Speed 2: Cruise Control, was released on June 13, 1997, but achieved the opposite of its predecessor, performing poorly and being widely lambasted by critics for Reeves's absence and the film's change in setting.