Nearly thirty years after their experience with Death (William Sadler), Bill (Alex Winter) and Ted (Keanu Reeves) are faced with their biggest test yet in Bill & Ted Face the Music. With their marriages falling apart and their daughters, Thea (Samara Weaving) and Billie (Brigette Lundy-Paine), threatening to throw their lives away, something even bigger is at stake: reality is about to come to an end. That is unless Wyld Stallyns can create the greatest song in the history of the universe and unite all of mankind. With a new motley crew of individuals, the best of friends must do everything they can to save themselves and the world before time and space collapse.
Ridiculous is possibly the best way to describe previous installments of the Bill & Ted franchise, but that ridiculousness is what has attracted viewers for the past thirty years. With as beautifully stupid as the other films have been, and with a thirty-year gap between Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey and Bill & Ted Face the Music, expectations for the film were incredibly high. So, how does director Dean Parisot, who is new to the franchise, meet those expectations and give viewers what they’ve been longing for? His approach was a lot more of the same, but with a modern twist of femininity and racial diversity. These themes and plot points can become overwhelming when they are shoved down the throats of viewers, but he tackles these aspects of the film tastefully and without making his attempts feel gaudy or unwelcome. The transition that Parisot is able to make between the former films and Bill & Ted Face the Music is smooth, allowing long-time fans to appreciate nearly everything that occurs throughout the film.
No one has ever expected Reeves or Winters to shock or awe them with their acting ability, and their performance in Bill & Ted Face the Music is exactly what said viewers expected. They do, however, manage to fall right back into the groove of the ditsy and moronic titular characters, bringing back to life the rock and roll excitement that graced the silver screen so many years ago. While it’s impressive that they are able to pick up right where they left, both Weaving and Lundy-Paine had their work cut out for them. The two young actresses were tasked with bringing to life the most honorable offspring of the two most important individuals in the universe. Every movement, facial expression, and decision made regarding the wardrobe mirrors their respective father and helps to reimagine the beloved characters in a new, but familiar, capacity.
From the opening moments of Bill & Ted Face the Music viewers are pulled back into a world of rock and roll, unruly hysterics, and unbelievably funny scenarios full of grave importance. Again, expectations going into the film were incredibly high, and it seems nearly impossible that Bill & Ted Face the Music could fully live up to its expectations. The wonderful cast and delightfully creative crew, however, surpass those expectations. Music can very literally bring people together, and, as that is a major plot point of this installment of the Bill & Ted franchise, the film is able to appeal emotionally to viewers. There are moments as the film concludes where the camaraderie is nostalgic, emotionally jarring, and tear jerking. Bill & Ted Face the Music falls on the scale somewhere near perfection. Sure, it plays on the nostalgia of those in love with the idea of Wyld Stallyns, Bill and Ted, and rock and roll saving the world, but honestly, what else does anyone need?
Directed by Dean Parisot. Written by Chris Matheson & Ed Solomon. Starring Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, Kristen Schaal, Samara Weaving, Brigette Lundy-Paine, etc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/10
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