We live in an age of seemingly never-ending revivals/ sequels to films of the 80’s and 90’s. The current market is overflowing with them, most failing to recapture what made the original movies so great in the first place. It would only be a matter of time before studio executives would look at the cult success of the vastly entertaining Bill & Ted movies. Both films managed to capture the two decades they released in with a surprising amount of perfection. And as it’s the popular thing to encapsulate these days, why not bring it back. My history with this franchise is, disappointingly, small. I only watched the original two movies last year, so I lacked any real nostalgic sentiment towards them. I enjoyed the first one a lot but felt the second film was far too unfunny. Both films certainly entertained me, but there was no immediate desire for a third entry after I had finished them. Come the announcement of this revival film, I was less than excited, feeling worn out by these retro reboots and feeling like this wouldn’t be able to capture what made the first two work for people. Nevertheless, I was curious to see if this would impress or whether it would fall flat on it’s face. This is Bill & Ted Face the Music.
The story picks up 25 years after “Bogus Journey”, Bill (Alex Winter) and Ted (Keanu Reeves) achieved a temporary fame after their band, The Wyld Stallyns, became a rock sensation. After the band split, and Bill and Ted are unable to fulfill their destiny of uniting the world through music, the two leads lived day to day trying to get cheap gigs. The two are also living through struggling marriages with their princess wives who are teetering on the edge of leaving the pair. As things seem dour, the two are visited by the daughter of the time travelling Rufus, Kelly (Kristen Schaal), who brings them to the future to show them what will happen if they don’t live up to their destinies. The two have only an hour to find a solution and travel into their near futures so they can find the song that will unite the world. Meanwhile, their daughters, Thea (Samara Weaving) and Billie (Bridgette Lundy-Paine) are sent on a mission to find legendary musicians to help their fathers put on the show.
The thing that made the original two movies so treasured to everyone was their indulgence in absurdity. These aren’t movies that you need to pick apart and deconstruct, their simply entertaining romps. This third entry continues with that tone both very well and, at other times, misses it’s marks. It does start off rather drab, the titular pair are on the verge of divorce and their lives haven’t gone anywhere, Ted is even close to giving up on playing music. This is so drastically different in tone from the other films, but it does eventually shift as soon as the time travel shenanigans begin. This initial set up left me feeling, oddly, depressed over how they were treating these characters. The charming slacker vibe of the originals was played off as sad and pathetic. The tonal shift into fun and exciting time trotting adventures would mainly come from Billie and Thea’s story, it invokes the feeling of the first movie, almost like a take on a female reboot of the film. Bill and Ted’s story is more focused on them meeting future versions of themselves that act like pessimistic villains but did provide some funny scenarios.
As fun as the overall journey was, it does feel far too derivative of the original. I feel that the reason that I enjoyed Billie and Thea’s stories more was because it reminded me of the original. The film is very dependent on you having watched the previous two, with the opening dialogue feeling like a shoehorned way to give newcomers some background. The dialogue could have been treated in a satirical way that could fit with the tone but reeks of studio mandated writing. Turning this into something befitting of the ‘Jump Street’ movies’ sense of humor would have worked perfectly, possibly making self-satirizing jokes about it being a shameless cash grab. This isn’t an insult, I just feel it’s better to lean on the skepticism of audiences. These complaints can feel pointless to some when I say that I think this film does line up well with the other two. This almost feels like it was made right after the second film, mainly due to using the same people, and there’s clearly a lot of love for the legacy. There are plenty of great moments for long time fans, but may alienate new viewers.
A nagging feeling that plagued my mind while watching this film was towards the quality of the acting. The original movies had very exaggerated expressions and over-the-top acting, but this film kicks that up several notches. Reeves has evolved into a much more prolific actor in his prestigious career, so seeing him delivering his lines with a ‘surferbro’ voice felt painful to watch. Winter, on the other hand, felt like he slipped back into his role quite naturally (ironic considering he stepped away from acting) and genuinely impressed me. I laughed at Keanu’s performance, though I don’t feel it was with intentional laughs. The acting to come from the two daughters felt very indicative of the original portrayals of the two leads but I’m not sure they do a very good job, again feeling constrained by playing it up. I’m not sure if this is simply due to myself seeing the originals one time each but I seriously don’t remember the performances being this overly hammy, this could have worked better if it was more satirical.
I struggle to wrap my head around whether I truly enjoyed this movie or not. I did get a good kick out of seeing Reeves and Winter slip back into their roles and found the story to be the same level of entertainment that the originals gave me. I keep bringing up the original two because it’s unavoidable, these films are so dependent on prior nostalgic connections that it lacked the punch I wanted. As much as this may work for a longtime fan, it can’t make up for the lack of accountability for first-time watchers. Aside from the elements I mentioned in the review, the other things that worked came from the jokes that sneak up on you, the special effects, while not spectacular, do create an exciting world, and the final moment felt genuinely spine-tingling. It’s hard to explain what other things work for me without spoiling major moments in the film. I am torn between a fine line of liking and disliking this movie, it’s very split down the middle. If you have a personal love for these films, definitely check it out, I could feel the moments that fans could enjoy. If you don’t have any care for watching the previous two but are considering this to be your first entry, skip it and watch the others first. It’s nowhere near as good as the first, but I like it way more than the second.
Written review by C. Johnson.