Canadian and Lebanese actor Keanu Reeves started at a young age as a stage actor, making his feature film debut in 1986's Youngblood. His status and image exploded in the 1990s after he co-starred in 1989's Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure.
These days, Reeves tows the line between divisive cult star and competent performer. While he's known for iconic roles like Neo from The Matrix or John Wick from the franchise of the same name, Keeves's filmography proves he's dipped his toes in every genre. His 10 best films from the 1990s, described below, attest to his variegated legacy.
I Love You to Death (1990) - 6.4
Written and directed by Lawrence Kasdan, known for other features like 1983's The Big Chill, I Love You To Death is an ensemble comedy starring Kevin Kline, William Hurt, River Phoenix, Tracey Ullman, and Reeves. Kline plays an adulterer whose wife, Ullman's character, hatches a plot to murder him. The film's events are based on a true story.
Reeves and Hurt play hitmen hired by Ullman's character to take her husband out. The problem, though, is the duo knows a lot more about hitting the bong than they do about being competent assassins.
Freaked (1993) - 6.4
Reeves's co-star in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Alex Winter, co-wrote and co-directed this science fiction film whose events unfold in a South American sideshow known as Freek Land. The movie employs surrealistic and absurdist humor, and it failed to receive a wide distribution because of poor test screenings.
Winter also stars in the film as a former child star, and Reeves plays one of Freek Land's resident weirdos: Ortiz the Dog Boy.
A Walk in the Clouds (1995) - 6.7
A romantic drama set after World War II, A Walk in the Clouds is loosely based on a 1942 Italian film. Reeves plays a sergeant who returns to San Francisco after the war to the woman he impulsively married before being deployed, only to discover their bond is strained. His character travels to Sacramento, and he meets a pregnant college student along the way played by Aitana Sánchez-Gijón. Over time, the pair fall in love.
While it received mixed reviews from critics, A Walk in the Clouds turned out to be a box office success.
My Own Private Idaho (1991) - 7.1
Considered one of the most important LGBTQ+ films of the 20th century, My Own Private sees Reeves reunited with River Phoenix. Directed by Gus Van Sant, the movie follows Phoenix's character, a narcoleptic sex worker in Portland, who decides to track down his estranged mother.
Reeves plays a fellow sex worker whose father happens to be the mayor of the city. His character, Scott, accompanies Phoenix's character, Mike, on his journey. The movie is noted for its avant-garde style and subversive subject matter. Van Sant managed to incorporate themes and dialogues from Shakespeare's Henry IV and Henry V plays into the script.
Speed (1994) - 7.2
A big-budget thriller, Speed generated a ton of money in theatres. Keeves co-stars alongside Sandra Bullock as an LAPD SWAT member tasked with saving a public transit bus from a crazed serial bomber. If the bus's moving speed reaches below 50 mph, it will blow up, killing everyone inside.
Employing cutting-edge special effects and crowd-pleasing action tropes, Speed remains a popular genre film. The movie harkens back to gritty heist movies from the 1970s while updating its narrative for modern audiences.
Much Ado About Nothing (1993) - 7.3
British actor and director Kenneth Branagh is responsible for many contemporary film adaptions of William Shakespeare plays, and he tackled his comedy Much Ado About Nothing in 1993. The movie's star-studded cast includes Emma Thompson, Michael Keaton, Denzel Washington, Kate Beckinsale, and Reeves. It proved to be one of the most financially successful Shakespeare adaptations.
Reeves plays Don Jon, the evil half-brother of Don Pedro who conspires against the other main characters. He's eventually found out and imprisoned.
Point Break (1991) - 7.3
Oscar-winner Katherine Bigelow directed this crime thriller that involves surfing, bank robbery, and presidential face masks. Reeves plays an undercover FBI agent who infiltrates a gang of surfing thieves. Patrick Swayze co-stars as the leader of the criminal group.
As Reeves's character Johnny Utah gets closer to Swayze's character Bodhi, they engage in a final confrontation along Bells Beach in Australia while a major storm brews off the coast, producing monumental waves. Both Reeves and Swayze received wide praise for their performances.
Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - 7.4
Francis Ford Coppola's adaptation of Bram Stoker's horror masterpiece Dracula is bombastic and over-the-top. With its lavish set and clothing design, the film is a gothic wonderland. Gary Oldman plays the title character, with Reeves co-starring alongside Winona Rider and Anthony Hopkins.
Casting Reeves as British lawyer Jonathan Harker, the protagonist who visits Dracula's castle to finalize the Count's new real estate investments in London, generated wide criticism. Many reviewers claim Reeves pales in comparison to the rest of the cast with his range and abilities.
The Devil's Advocate (1997) - 7.5
The Devil's Advocate is a distinctly 1990s film, a product of the big Hollywood apocalyptic panic that thrived during the decade. Reeves plays a young, ambitious lawyer named Kevin Lomax who moves from Florida to New York City to accept a job in a firm managed by Al Pacino's character John Milton.
As Lomax advances in the firm, he realizes his boss is, in fact, Satan himself. Charlize Theron plays Lomax's wife in this supernatural thriller that did quite well in theatres.
The Matrix (1999) - 8.7
Reeves's most emblematic character debuted on the eve of the new millennium. Neo is the protagonist in the Wachowskis's The Matrix, a cyberpunk science fiction feature that paints a compelling portrait about humanity's ability to transform technological advancement into a tool for oppression.
As Neo, Reeves's character wages war against the intelligent machines using his species as an energy source while trapping them inside a simulated virtual reality.