Keanu Pre-Classic (85-90)

Keanu doesn’t actually start his career in 1985. There’s rumored evidence of him in front of a camera much earlier, but let’s just use 1985 as a nice launch point. It’s when his true movie career begins.

In 1985, Keanu Reeves turned 21. He was already a full-fledged adult, but his face led you to believe he was younger, and he would often play younger for years to come.

This period saw the emergence of Bill & Ted and his first on-screen collaboration with River Phoenix.

But he still wasn’t quite yet Keanu. That doesn’t really happen until 1991 or so, I suspect, when the 80s were finally washing away into oblivion and Keanu played a terrible FBI agent.

My recollections of the 80s are like bile in my mouth. I’m not sure if my opinion of these films is tainted by my memories of that time, or whether my opinions are based on what these films accurately depict about that time.

In any event, there’s a lot of interesting stuff to see and say here, even if Keanu was still largely in the background.

September 2023