Jake Speed

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Jake Speed
US theatrical one-sheet for Jake Speed.
Directed by	Andrew Lane
Produced by	Wayne Crawford Andrew Lane William Fay
Written by	Wayne Crawford & Andrew Lane
Starring	Wayne Crawford Dennis Christopher Karen Kopins John Hurt Leon Ames Roy London Donna Pescow Barry Primus
Music by	Mark Snow
Cinematography	Bryan Loftus
Editing by	Michael Ripps Fred Stafford
Distributed by	New World Pictures
Release date(s)	May 30, 1986 (USA)
Running time	100 min.
Language	English
Budget	Unknown
Gross revenue	$1,943,751 (USA)
IMDb profile

Jake Speed is a 1986 action/comedy film directed by Andrew Lane, produced by Lane, Wayne Crawford (Lane's producing partner and friend), and William Fay, written by Lane and Crawford, and starring Crawford in the title role. Because of this, many viewers felt that this was a vanity project for Crawford, even though the film has found a cult following on video despite its initial box-office failure (despite it being marketed as New World's big summer action film).

[edit] Plot

In Paris, a girl by the name of Maureen Winston (Becca C. Ashley) is abducted by two evil-looking men. While her family prays for her safe return, Maureen's father heaps guilt on her sister Margaret (Karen Kopins), since she convinced her to go see the world. However, Margaret's grandfather (Leon Ames) has an idea: call for Jake Speed (Wayne Crawford) to go and rescue her. However, there's one problem: Jake Speed is a character in a series of 40's-style pulp fiction novels similar to those recounting the exploits of Doc Savage and Remo Williams, and doesn't exist.

However, Jake Speed does exist, as Margaret finds out when he leaves a note for her to meet him and his sidekick, Desmond Floyd (Dennis Christopher), in a tough Paris bar. The novels, as Margaret finds out, are based on Jake and Des's real life adventures, and they work for nothing, seeing action and excitement (and another novel) as their reward.

Jake reveals that Maureen was kidnapped by white slavers, and is being held in Africa. Jake, Des, and Margaret fly to Africa, which is in the middle of a revolution, in order to rescue her. Many twists and turns later, we find out that Jake's archenemy, the evil, perverted, murderous Englishman Sid (John Hurt), is behind the ring, and soon, Margaret becomes a part of it. Jake and Des must now rescue both Maureen and Margaret, stop Sid, and help the girls get out in one piece, while dealing with warring factions, pits of lions, and machine gun-firing helicopters.

[edit] Merchandise

A soundtrack of composer Mark Snow's music was released on LP record only by Varese Sarabande in 1986.

A novelization, written under the pseudonym Reno Melon, Jake and Des' writing nom de plume, was published on June 1, 1986 by Gold Eagle/Harlequin (ISBN 0-373-62102-7).