NOTE: Some details may be considered spoilers, though there aren't any important plot points revealed.
I remember sitting in the audience at the now-defunct Tri-State Mall movie theater in Wilmington, Delaware, waiting for Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure to start. I was an impatient 10-year-old who listened to heavy metal rock, a la Metallica and Mötley Crüe, and enjoyed flicks like The Goonies, The NeverEnding Story and The Karate Kid.
At last, the lights went down and the curtain opened, revealing the screen. I sat back, stuffed some popcorn in my mouth and readied to watch Bill and Ted go on a most excellent adventure.
A couple minutes into the opening credits, the film projector screeched to a halt. The theater lights came on and the theater manager walked down the aisle, letting the agitated audience know that there was a problem with the film and we would be getting refunds.
Bogus!
I had to wait another week to see the movie, but it was worth it. The plot: Best buds, Bill S. Preston and Ted “Theodore” Logan are slacker rock fanatics who spend more time dreaming of becoming rock stars with their band Wyld Stallyns—neither knows how to play a musical instrument—than focusing on school work. They learn they are on the verge of flunking history if they don't pass their final, which would result in Ted going to military school and no more Wyld Stallyns.
A time traveler from the future intervenes, alerting Bill and Ted that Wyld Stallyns' disbandment would mean the potential demise of the world—their music would eventually unite the world and bring peace. With the help of a telephone booth time machine, they are given the resources to create a stellar history project needed to pass their history final.
Two years later, came Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey in 1991. It wasn't nearly as excellent as its mama, but it's still a fun trip through time and space, laced in rock and roll and our favorite pair of lovable doofuses, Bill and Ted. We are also introduced to a memorable, new character, Death, played hilariously by William Sadler.
My love for Bill and Ted has extended into adulthood.
Fast forward to August 28, 2020, 31 years following the release of Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure: In the midst of a worldwide pandemic, causing most traditional movie theaters to shut their doors indefinitely, Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves reunite to play Bill and Ted, respectively, for the Video-on-Demand release of Bill & Ted Face the Music (click to watch now).
Luckily, this time, there wasn't a film projector that could break. I'm not going to give a synopsis or a review of the third installment of Bill and Ted, but I will give you 10 favorite reasons to see the movie if you're a fan.
Late-great comedian George Carlin, who played Rufus, Bill and Ted's time traveler guide in the previous films, gets a hologram tribute.
Rocker Dave Grohl discovers Bill and Ted broke into his home and his sole line is: "Who are you guys?"
Weird Al makes a cameo appearance.
There's a reference made to Jimi Hendrix's Monterey Pop Festival performance.
The soundtrack includes new music from Weezer, Mastodon, Fidlar and other notables.
Ted's little brother Deacon marries Missy (Amy Stoch, the same actress from both previous films), who was once married to Bill's dad, then Ted's dad. Bill teases Ted in the first film for asking her to prom, back when he was a freshman and she was a senior.
Bill and Ted's hardcore music geek daughters, Billie (Brigette Lundy-Paine) and Thea (Samara Weaving), are thoughtfully developed characters.
Death (William Sadler) and Ted's dad, Captain Jonathan Logan (Hal Landon Jr.), are both hilarious.
Dennis Caleb McCoy, an emotional, time-traveling robot, played by Anthony Carrigan of HBO's "Barry" nails the role.
Ed Solomon and Chris Matheson, who initially came up with the characters and co-wrote both of the previous films, also wrote Face the Music. This is key: Bill and Ted may have aged a bit, but they are still the same as they were, in every way, as they were in 1989.
I would have liked to have seen some kind of homage paid to the late-great E-Street Band sax man Clarence Clemons, who appeared in the first film, but I guess there's only so many holograms that can be used in one film.
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