Sci-Fi action flick The Speed Of Time is a smile-inducing satire of iconic 80s and 90s action films we deserve and need right now.

The premise is gleefully incoherent and zany: Johnny Killfire (portrayed by WWE star John Hennigan) is a law enforcement officer from the year 2055. He travels back in time to 2020 to stop his nerdier younger self (Sean Marquette) from accidentally ripping a hole in the space-time continuum by developing an app that delivers pizzas before they are ordered.

Just go with me here.

Opposing Johnny are “TimeBorgs” who have also traveled back in time to stop him from completing his mission and who seek to steal the app for themselves.

Written by Russ Nickel and William J. Stribling, The Speed Of Time mercilessly sends up the cinematic vehicles responsible for establishing the careers of action movie superstars such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Sylvester Stallone, and Bruce Willis.

John Hennigan turns in an impressive performance as the muscle-bound protagonist, Killfire. His screen presence and exaggerated machismo is pure comedy gold.

Sean Marquette is wonderful as Killfire’s hapless former self. Playing the “straight man” is a difficult skill often underestimated in comedies, but Marquette acquits himself very well.

He and Hennigan have terrific chemistry, hearkening back to classic buddy-cop films such as Dead Heat and 48 hours.

From the clunky one-liners Killfire utters after dispatching an enemy to the head-scratching plotholes, none of the most egregious tropes of 80s and 90s action films escape the satire of Nickel and Stribling’s irreverent script.

There is even a special cameo by actor and WWE star Nic Nemeth!

Adding to the insane fun is the catchy, hair-metal band theme song available to stream: The Speed Of Time Theme On Spotify

The Speed Of Time is an exclusive of the popular sci-fi brand DUST. Watch the short in its entirety here (Full disclosure: Currently, I am a collaborating short film curator for DUST):

Watching this short will definitely have you smiling from ear to ear - and in these current times, that’s definitely worth the price of admission.

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