Speed - Film4

(Image credit: Sportsphoto/Allstar/Cinetext Col)

Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock are stuck on a bus rigged to blow up if it dips below 50mph in this perfectly plotted and breathlessly paced adventure

Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock are stuck on a bus rigged to blow up if it dips below 50mph in this perfectly plotted and breathlessly paced adventure.

Dennis Hopper's the mad bomber with a grudge behind it all, Reeves is the maverick cop trying to work out how to bypass the gridlocked city and defuse the bomb, in her star-making role, Bullock is a luckless passenger who has to take the wheel and Jeff Daniels is back at police HQ.

Jan de Bont's first film as director is a masterclass in action movie-making and it stays in the fast lane for its entire running time, piling on the nail-biting set pieces and breathtaking stunts, while also finding time for a winning line in humour and a spot of romance.