‘The Speed of Time’ Review
Stars: John Hennigan, Sean Marquette, Nic Nemeth, Alex Jennings | Written by William J. Stribling, Russ Nickel | Directed by William J. Stribling
Directed by William J. Stribling (Bear With Us), who also wrote alongside Russ Nickel (Zombielust), The Speed of Time is an action-comedy starring WWE Superstar John (Morrison) Hennigan. Meet Johnny Killfire (great name), who’s gotta go back in time to team with his younger self in order to stop TimeBorgs from getting hold of a pizza delivery app that will break the space-time continuum. Yes… that’s the synopsis here, that’s the nutshell explanation of The Speed of Time. I’m in.
Hennigan has been growing as an actor over the years, with films like Boone the Bounty Hunter, The Most Dangerous Game, Strange Nature and small parts in movies like Birds of Prey under his belt. He’s a veteran in the wrestling ring, but he’s a veteran behind the movie-camera now, too. This short 12 minute actioner is a great deal of fun, made with its tongue firmly stuck in its cheek, and it does what it sets out to do very well.
The mix of parkour and wrestling from Hennigan stands out. It looks great in an action setting, and the neon laser beams shooting around the screen from the opening sequence set the bar. This is a bright, energetic film that is supposed to be an entertaining quarter-hour, and is indeed just that. The dialogue is funny with some lines genuinely garnering laugh out loud moments. Morrison’s straight-faced silliness works really well, and it would be easy to see Johnny Killfire, and The Speed of Time, being a feature length flick.
“Attaching nukes to pizzas, and delivering them into the past” is a line I haven’t actually heard before in a movie. That’s a big deal, right? I mean, as silly, wacky and daft as this is, it’s original and well done, from the opening gun fight to the closing moments. This is 12 minutes of humorous stunt-filled action, as we follow Killfire and his younger-self, Young John, played by Sean Marquette (The Goldbergs), as they try to save the world. Also, Hennigan’s friend and WWE coworker Dolph Ziggler (aka Nic Nemeth) appears looking an awful lot like… well… Dolph Ziggler.
Yes, you could say it’s overly silly, yes it’s corny and ridiculous, but it’s a whole lot of fun, and sometimes it’s way easier to sit back and enjoy something, and that’s what I did with The Speed of Time. It’s available on YouTube now to watch for free, and I recommend you give it a shot. I mean… it’s only a one for a little speed of… time. I’m sorry.
**** 4/5
Watch The Speed of Time on the DUST YouTube channel, right here.