Speed

A lean, mean action machine ("it's Jaws on a bus!"), Jan de Bont's 1994 Speed redefined the Hollywood thriller with its oh-so-simple but oh-so-effective pedal to the metal central storyline, which finds L.A.P.D. SWAT team officer Jack Traven (Keanu Reeves) and fellow (and not coincidentally babelicious) passenger Annie Porter (Sandra Bullock) at the helm of a city bus rigged by homicidal nutcase Howard Payne (Dennis Hopper) to explode if Ye Olde Speedometer drops below 50 mph. Originally released in November 1998 in a bare-bones edition, this double-disc entry in Fox's "Five Star Collection" will have fans lining up to get back on the bus. Sporting a rich, mostly sharp, colorful anamorphic widescreen DVD transfer, and booming Dolby Digital 5.1 sound, Speed's first disc also includes a pair of fine commentary tracks: a more technical take from director Jan de Bont, and a more freewheeling cut-up by screenwriter Graham Yost and producer Mark Gordon (who both delight in pointing out that they had nothing to do with the turkey sequel, Speed 2: Cruise Control). The second disc's extras include featurettes on several action sequences (including the bus jump and the metrorail crash), three storyboard-to-film comparisons (and one unfilmed sequence), four multi-angle stunt shot breakdowns, a seven-minute "on location" featurette, the original screenplay (267 screens!), roughly 25 minutes worth of interview footage (with de Bont, Reeves, Bullock, Hopper, and Jeff Daniels), five extended scenes, the 24-minute HBO "First Look" behind-the-scenes documentary, photo galleries, a Billy Idol music video, and more (including a rather humorous easter egg featuring the airline's in-flight movie version of a key scene). Highly recommended. (R. Pitman)