Keanu Reeves is one of the few actors in Hollywood today that follows his own path. His latest film John Wick: Chapter 2 hits theaters this weekend and is the perfect example what kind of actor that Keanu truly is. From the trailers, this movie looks to double the action and insanity of 2014’s John Wick which received high critical praise. Throughout his history as an actor he has shown his range from stoner teenager to a stone cold mercenary and everything in between. Let’s take a look back at some of Keanu’s most memorable films. And before anyone asks, no, Keanu is not included in this list.
Much Ado About Nothing
In 1993, director/actor Kenneth Branagh created an adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic play Much Ado About Nothing. The film sported an all-star cast including director Kenneth Branagh, Kate Beckinsale, Emma Thompson, Denzel Washington and Keanu Reeves. This film was received well mainly because of Branagh’s ability to create a Shakespearean performance that everyone can relate to and enjoy. I especially enjoyed Reeves’s performance in this mainly because it was so different than his normal “Sad Keanu” persona that we’ve all come to know. The actors chosen for this film seemed almost cherry picked for their parts and complimented the vibe of the story perfectly both cosmetically and theatrically.
The Lake House
As far as romantic movies go, 2006’s The Lake House is one of the more intriguing ones. The film stars Sandra Bullock as a woman who recently moved into a big beautiful house next to a lake (The Lake House, get it?) who begins receiving letters from the previous owner of the house played by ReevesKeanu. The story seems pretty normal until the audience begins to realize that Reeves’s character is writing to Bullock’s character from the past when he was the owner of the house. The two fall in love through a mailbox/time machine! How’s that for a crazy twist.
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Something’s Gotta Give
Seeing Keanu Reeves in a romantic drama like The Lake House is appropriate and works well with his persona. In a romantic comedy like 2003’s Something’s Gotta Give it is strange seeing Reeves’s in a comedic and lighthearted role. The film stars Jack Nicholson, Diane Keaton, Amanda Peet and Reeves’s as the strangest love square ever. The dynamic between Reeves’s and Jack Nicholson is very fun and awkward like the story is in general. Overall audiences seemed to enjoy seeing Reeves’s smile and be funny instead of sad and beating up people.
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Bram Stoker’s Dracula
Reeves starring in a Dracula remake, was this perfect casting or what? Reeves did not play Dracula in 1992’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula, but he got the even better role of being tortured by him instead! Gary Oldman gets the honor of playing the legendary horror character along with Anthony Hopkins as Van Helsing, Winona Ryder and Carey Elwes. This adaptation of Dracula is the most accurate to Stoker’s original story and follows Reeves’s character coming to London only to be abducted by Dracula and have his wife be targeted by the monster himself. I’m hoping that the ageless Reeves becomes Dracula eventually because I’d be afraid of him with a cape and fangs for sure!
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The Devil’s Advocate
In 1995’s The Devil’s Advocate, Keanu Reeves gets the chance to shine as an actor on screen with the almighty Al Pacino starring alongside him. The film deals with an average lawyer from Florida being offered the opportunity of his career to work in a prestigious law firm in New York City for a very powerful lawyer. This movie is different than the usual legal court dramas we’re used to on television and in films. We get to see Reeves’s character fight his own conscience and morals when dealing with situations and legal cases that he knows he shouldn’t agree with or even think about. Is this amazing job that could set him up for a perfect successful life worth breaking all the moral codes he had developed though his upbringing? The addition of internal conflict adds a new dimension to a legal drama that can sometimes get a bit stale.
Speed
There are some movies out there with plots that sound so incredibly stupid and silly that they almost sound fun. The 1994 film Speed starring Reeves is just that and then some. The plot is simple: Reeves’s is a cop who is put in a sticky situation involving a city bus and a bomb that will go off if he drives the bus below 50 mph. Yes, the whole plot of this movie is driving fast on a city bus to prevent a bomb going off makes Reeves look like a badass. Strangely, the movie isn’t as terrible as it sounds. In the realm of action movies, this simple plot actually works and is a fun ride for audience members with a solid performance from Reeves’s. But, it is an action movie that you might want to turn off your brain for and just enjoy the ride.
John Wick
When John Wick came out in 2014 it almost felt like a rebirth for Reeves as an action star. He’s been in many films recently, but for some reason both critics and audiences seemed to love this movie and love him in this movie. The film’s plot is relatively simple and straightforward. John Wick is a man who just lost his wife to cancer and who received a puppy from her as a final gift to remember her by. One night, masked men break into his home and beat him up and kill his puppy leaving John shattered and furious. What follows is the story of a man who is evidently a trained killer and badass going on the hunt for the men who took his dog from him. I personally just saw this movie for the first time recently after being told to see it by numerous people and I was happy with it and I’m hoping the sequel is as fun as it looks.
Point Break
Extreme sports, bank robbing, FBI agents undercover. No, this isn’t the plot of another Vin Diesel movie; this is the general idea of 1991’s Point Break. Reeves plays a young FBI agent names Johnny Utah who is tasked with infiltrating a group of surfers who have been suspected of committing a series of bank robberies. The leader of the surfer gang, the late Patrick Swayze, befriends Johnny Utah and makes his mission considerably harder. There was recently a reboot of this film last year that did not do all that well at the box office. The magic of the original film came from the classic 1990’s feel of films at the time and the pure genius of Patrick Swayze and a very youthful looking Reeves’s.
Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure
Speaking of youthful Reeves, one of his most talked about films in his repertoire has to be 1989’s Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure. This film has become a cult classic over the years for its hilarious premise and strangely funny performance by Reeves and Alex Winter as stoner high school students who gain access to a time machine that looks like a phone booth for an unforgettable history project. Along the way the duo stumble across such historical figures as Napoleon, Billy the Kid, Socrates, Sigmund Freud, Genghis Khan, Joan of Arc, Abraham Lincoln and Beethoven. This movie is just pure comedic brilliance and is considered on of the best comedies of the time. An honorable mention to this cast is the great comedian George Carlin as Rufus. The film also led to a sequel and a television show with the possibility of a reboot in the future.
Now we have reached the number one film that Reeves will forever be known for, 1999’s The Matrix. This film broke new ground in the 1990’s and even holds up today as a unique masterpiece of the science fiction and action genres of film. Reeves plays Neo, a ordinary man who is thrust into a new world when he is told that his reality is not what it seems. The film also stars Laurence Fishburne and Hugo Weaving whose performances stand tall with Reeves. There is no one else who could have played the role of Neo so beautifully. The sequels that followed, The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, created a trilogy of films that stand out today as classics in film history from filmmaking and story standpoints.
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