Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)
"Strange things are afoot at the Circle-K"
As mentioned above, it had been quite a while since I'd seen this film, and while I remembered some key moments in it, there was a great deal that I forgot. That being said, from a story perspective, this movie is...well...it's pretty stupid. That's not necessarily bad, for in that stupidity lies the film's charm, which was vital in its success. The film is a bit of a trail-blazer in that most time-travel movies of the era were quite serious affairs, and there weren't many comedies. Sure, I guess Time Bandits could be considered a comedy, but it was British and, therefore, not the goofy type of comedy that Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure specializes in.
While most sci-fi movies would focus on time travel to address the common plot holes and fallacies inherent to that type of story, this film ignores all that boring stuff and throws caution to the wind. For example, Bill and Ted have no qualms about taking (kidnapping?) historical figures back to the 20th century to help with their report. At no point does Rufus warn them that actions like this may be a bad idea. In fact, he doesn't even give them any advice apart from how the device functions. He basically gives a couple of pinheads a powerful piece of technological equipment and says, "have fun!" The film also shamelessly uses time travel to circumvent issues with the script and various plot holes. For example, how do Bill and Ted get the keys to unlock a jail cell holding their historical friends? Well, they travel back in time, steal the keys and leave them in a convenient hiding place. I think it was the filmmakers' way of poking fun at other time travel films.
Aside from all the time travel stuff, the overall plot of the movie is also ridiculous. It centers on the premise that sometime in the far future, the music of Bill and Ted's band, Wyld Stallyns, somehow unites the world and eliminates war and poverty. But, again, this is part of the movie's charm because while no one would believe those two idiots could bring about world peace, they are extremely likable characters that are fun to watch.
As far as the comedy of the film, most of it comes from fish out of water scenarios, such as Bill and Ted trying to communicate with Socrates or Napolean discovering the wonders of ice cream and bowling, or the entire group of historical figures running amok at the San Dimas mall. I found I didn't launch as much as I did on initial viewing, but I think it's just because I knew what was coming.
Acting/Characters
I'll be the first person to admit, I'm not the biggest Keanu Reeves fan. He is a fantastic human being from all accounts, but I've never really considered him a particularly gifted actor. Sure, in the right role, he does fine, but I just don't think he has a ton of range, and I think that this film is a big reason for that opinion. Don't get me wrong, I think Reeves does a fine job of portraying the dimwitted Ted. In fact, I think it's one of his best performances because he just lets himself go and lets the character take over. Still, right or wrong, every time I see Keanu on screen, all I can think of is Ted "Theodore" Logan.
Likewise, co-star Alex Winter does a fine job as Ted's partner in crime Bill because, again, it seems as though he really cut loose with his portrayal. I think neither one of these guys thought the film was going to go anywhere, so they just left it all out there, and it really helped make two potentially annoying characters become one of the most iconic duos in movie history.
Finally, let's touch on the late George Carlin as Rufus. This was a bit of a surprise casting at the time because Carlin was mostly known for his edgy stand-up comedy, and it was a big shock to see him cast in a film that skewed more towards family viewing (though not entirely a "family" film). Also, I was a bit surprised because I remembered Carlin's role being bigger, but he really only appears in a few scenes. He's really just there to spout some exposition and set everything up at the beginning and returns near the end of the film to help wrap everything up. Still, for a certain generation of movie-goers, this is what George Carlin will be remembered the most for.
Visuals:
For a low-budget 19080s comedy, the special effects are not as bad as I remembered them being. That's not to say they're good; they're just not horrible. That's to be expected, and, again, shitty SFX is part of the movie's charm. The same goes for the costumes. While everything in the 80s looks fine, the costumes of the historic personalities look like they were swiped from a TV movie. Still, the overall crumminess of the visuals didn't detract from my enjoyment of the film but rather added to it, I think.
Score/Music:
David Newman composed the score for the film, which I found fairly unimpressive. Although to be fair, most of the music used in the film was contemporary songs. I had never really heard of most of the songs used in the soundtrack, with the possible exception of The Boys and the Girls Are Doing It performed by Vital Signs, and that may only be because of this film. Anyways, while not stocked with 80s hits, the soundtrack fits the film's personality well and works overall.
Action:
There is a fair amount of action in this film, most of which is silly and borders slapstick. However, there are some interesting set pieces, such as the guys trying to escape a bar fight in an Old West saloon with Billy the Kid and an escape from a Medieval castle. Overall, though, there isn't much to talk about here. It's just not that kind of film.
Final Verdict:
I still like this movie. Perhaps not as much as I did when I was 12, but I still had fun watching it. Check it out if you're a fan of Keanu, 80s comedies or just want to shut your brain off for 90 minutes.
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