Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		1.5

Speed Kills Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 14, 2019

This is is said only partly in jest, but it’s getting to the point where I can pretty much count on at least one straight to video (or straight to video-ish) release a month in my review queue featuring either an airbrushed Bruce Willis or an airbrushed John Travolta on the cover. That may sound downright churlish, and even an erstwhile matinee idol probably still has bills to pay, but some choices on the part of either and/or both of these actors may cause consternation even among their longtime (and maybe even, er, diehard) fans. Kind of strangely, given that the last straight to video-esque release featuring Travolta that I personally reviewed was Gotti, Speed Kills is another biographical outing based on a real life historical character, again with at least a tangential connection to organized crime.

What’s kind of odd about Speed Kills is that is purports to be a “ripped from the headlines” story about the murder of a famous (some might say infamous) speed boat entrepreneur, but the film is evidently so “dramatized” that the real life main character’s name has been changed from Don Aronow to Ben Aronoff (John Travolta), just one of what seems to be several additions/subtractions/revisions (based on some cursory reading I've done in the wake of watching the film). Aronoff provides interstitial narration and/or voiceover in what seems to be an attempt to knit together a film that looks like it was pretty heavily rejiggered at some point in the production process. What’s especially odd about all of this is that in doing a bit of research on the real life Aronow after I watched the film, it turns out his story is significantly more interesting than the film makes it out to be, and the circumstances of his death are at least partially shrouded in mystery, something the film kind of elides. Speed Kills also doesn’t seem to know whether it wants to be the character study of a flawed impresario, or a more touching document of a family man who encounters various trials and tribulations. The most ironic thing about the film, at least considering its title, is how slow it all seems.

Speed Kills Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Speed Kills is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Kind of amazingly considering its rather low rent proclivities, the film was shot by Andrzej Sekula, who also filmed a somewhat better Travolta offering called Pulp Fiction or something. There's little of the stylistic flourishes that were at play in the Tarantino film, but this is certainly a competent looking if never mind blowingly brilliant transfer, aside from occasionally rough looking stock footage of speed boats. Detail levels are fine across the presentation, and the palette can understandably tend at times to emphasize some of the pastel hues that were a part of another Florida based enterprise, Miami Vice. Some of the boat footage is a bit on the soft side, due perhaps to the exigencies of filming in such an environment.

Speed Kills Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Speed Kills offers a nice sounding DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix that attains much of its surround activity from source cues and the roar of racing boats out on various bodies of water. The film's dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly and the bulk of the outdoor scenes offer good placement of ambient environmental effects. Like the video component, everything is perfectly acceptable without ever really offering a total "wow" factor.

Speed Kills Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The advertised "Special Features" on the Main Menu turn out to be trailers for other Lionsgate releases and a Bookmarks function, neither of which I personally consider worthy of a score.

Speed Kills Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Fans of ESPN's 30 for 30 may recall that there was a short (like, 15 minutes) feature on the real life Aronow (enterprising Googlers can probably find it online), and that brief piece actually provides more of an overview and a viscerally compelling storyline than this feature film. Even Travolta fans may find this one lackluster, but for those who are considering a purchase, technical merits are fine.