After almost 30 years, the Wyld Stallyns have finally returned for “Bill & Ted Face the Music,” released to audiences on Aug. 28. Despite the long hiatus, the film manages to succeed in upholding the goofy and good-spirited fun of its past features.
Set nearly 30 years after the events of the previous film, Bill (Alex Winter, “The Lost Boys”) and Ted (Keanu Reeves, “John Wick”) are still in the music game, but are long past their days of fame. Nearly everyone they know wants them to give up music and find real jobs, and having their career struggles put a strain on both of their marriages.
Their two strongest supporters are their now-adult daughters, Thea Preston (Samara Weaving, “Guns Akimbo”) and Billie Logan (Bridgette Lundy-Pain, “Bombshell”), both of whom take after their underachieving fathers.
Despite their support, Bill and Ted are still about ready to give it up.
As a result of the two failing to write the song that would unite mankind, all of time and space is beginning to collapse. Brought to the future to explain why they haven’t written the song yet, the two are told they have a little over an hour to come up with the song, or else all is doomed.
Realizing they don’t have time to come up with the song, the two have an excellent idea. They need to go into their own futures and get the song from their older counterparts.
Overall, the story of the film feels like a well-meaning salute to the previous films. The duo’s interactions with their future selves somewhat recall the evil Bill and Ted robots from the second movie, while their daughters’ plan of picking up musicians in the past to help their fathers reflects their own adventures from the first.
Mind you, it does this without overly relying on nostalgia from the previous films. The “Excellent” vernacular the series is known for is still present, but not overused. The film gives a nod to past characters, notably the late George Carlin, but is used sparingly enough not to take up too much space.
The humor of the film is on point, supplying a nice balance between being focused on the main characters’ idiocy and the bizarre situations they find themselves in. Everything is in good humor, and while it may not make you laugh till you die, it will certainly have you giggling more often than not.
Reeves and Winter do a good job stepping back into their classic roles, managing to believably portray what the two dim-witted teenagers of the previous films would be like as middle-aged adults. The two have great chemistry, and the scenes of them interacting with their future selves were generally entertaining.
Lundy-Pain and Weaving do an alright job as the pair’s daughters, but the portions of the movie focusing on them do feel a bit weaker. Their actual chemistry is good, but a lot of their performance feels too much like they are just playing a female Bill and Ted, as opposed to their own characters.
The supporting cast of the film does a decent job as well, making great foils for the main cast to bounce gags off of. Particular praise goes to Anthony Carrigan (“The Undying”) whose time on screen brought some of the best laughs.
The time between the films has allowed for a significant jump in special effects for the movie, though these are thankfully used in moderation. While it may be a little jarring for people going directly from the second film to this one, the use of the effects is paced out well, with the craziest stuff not happening till the last parts of the movie.
Appropriately enough for a “Bill & Ted” movie, the film’s soundtrack is solid, having both licensed and original tracks throughout. There is also a large variety in the types of music, complementing some of the various gags throughout it.
Overall, “Bill & Ted Face the Music” manages to be a more than worthy sequel to the beloved series of movies, managing to translate the humor of the originals to a modern setting. It’s a solid pick for not just fans of the series, but for anyone looking for an entertaining film.