Released: May 9, 2008 Estimated Budget: $120 million Domestic Opening Weekend: $18,561,337 Domestic Gross:$43,929,341
Known for high-concept, futuristic movies like the Matrix trilogy and V for Vendetta, brothers Larry and Andy Wachowski hoped for big things upon the release of Speed Racer, based on a 1960s TV cartoon series and starring Emile Hirsch as the lead-footed title character in pursuit of victory. TIME’s Richard Corliss put the film on his list of the 10 best movies of 2008, calling the film “the future of movies” for its relentless action and lavish graphics. Audiences didn’t quite see things the same way: the $120 million movie grossed less than $19 million in its first weekend.
There’s a tender moment at the end of the 1994 blockbuster Speed, in which Sandra Bullock (as Annie, a loyal patron of the Los Angeles public transit system) and Keanu Reeves (as square-jawed Officer Jack Traven) discuss their brush with death and their mutual attraction:
Jack: I have to warn you, I’ve heard relationships based on intense experiences never work. Annie: O.K. We’ll have to base it on sex then. Jack: Whatever you say, ma’am.
Folks, this is why you should always listen to Keanu Reeves. By 1997, when Speed 2: Cruise Control hit theaters, Annie was already with another man: Jason Patric (as square-jawed L.A.P.D. officer Alex Shaw). But Shaw is deep undercover, and doesn’t tell Annie about his job. Once she finds out he has lied, Shaw tries to make it up to her with a trip to the Bahamas. En route, inevitably, a psycho passenger takes control of their ship’s computer system. Audiences, no doubt wondering what the heck happened to Keanu Reeves, let alone the bus, stayed away in droves. The movie ended up grossing just $16 million in its first weekend.
Richard Dawson, the wisecracking British entertainer who was among the schemers in the 1960s sitcom “Hogan’s Heroes” and a decade later began kissing thousands of female contestants as host of the game show “Family Feud” has died. He was 79.
As we prepare for the Game of Thrones finale, we recognize Joffrey and nine other baddies who showed us that terrible, horrible things can come in small packages
