Here is my definitive list of the the five Best Keanu Reeves films. Why, you ask. Well, because I’m a little under the weather, and this is what I felt like doing.
Mr. Reeves has done a lot of films, so doing a top five is fun. I would have done a Paul Hogan top five, but that have looked something like this. 1. Crocodile Dundee. 2. Crocodile Dundee part II. 3. Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles. 4. Subaru Outback commercial. Etc. etc. No disrespect to my hero Mick Dundee, but Keanu has a lot to choose from, and he was Johnny Utah, who was also a hero of mine.
5. Speed. You know that you love it too. If it’s on tv some lazy Sunday afternoon, you’ll sit there and watch the entire thing while you eat Doritos and fall in and out of sleep. Clean the cheese of your hands before you touch the couch. Originally the roles of Jack and Annie were written for Jeff Bridges and Ellen Degeneres. I can’t even picture that. Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Serenity, The Avengers) rewrote the script, but was uncredited.
4. The Matrix. Just the first one, ok, not the last two, which got kind of convoluted. That first one, though, that one is a classic. I think I saw it twice in the theater. That’s a lot for me considering that I make it to the movies about five times a year. Even less now that I have kids. At the time The Matrix came out there was nothing else like it. Will Smith was approached for the role of Neo, but turned it down to do Wild Wild West. Things seem to have turned out okay for him though. Keanu and some of the other actors went through four months of martial arts training before filming the fight scenes.
3. A Walk In The Clouds. I am a sucker for a good romance. There are a lot of things to appreciate about this movie. It’s formulaic, but beautifully shot. It also has the whole time period thing going for it. They needed a third act for the movie, so one of the writers, who happened to own a vineyard, thought, what is the worst thing that could happen to my vineyard. Fire. His home and about a third of his vines burned shortly after the movie was released.
2. Bill And Ted’s Excellent Adventure. I am going to watch this with my kids this summer. What better way to teach them about history, and the effects of messing with the space/time continuum. Pauly Shore originally auditioned for the role of Ted. My childhood thanks whoever made the decision not to cast him. Keanu said in the past that he had nightmares that “He played Ted” would be the inscription on his tombstone.
1. Point Break. Let’s run down some of the things that make this movie great. Patrick Swayze. Bank robbing surfers who wear president masks. That foot chase through backyards and houses in L.A. Anthony Kiedis from the Red Hot Chili Peppers playing a punk surfer. The fact that the villain is so likable. Keanu played the the Johnny Utah role. Matthew Broderick, Willem Defoe, and Val Kilmer were offered the role, and Johnny Depp auditioned. Bullet dodged there. I can’t picture Ferris Bueller surfing and sky diving.
Honorable Mention. He also starred in the music video for Paula Abdul’s Rush Rush. How bout that for range.
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