Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure: A Slapstick Masterpiece

Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989) Starring: Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, George Carlin, and some talented character actors. I actually never saw this whole film, only parts. I distinctly remember Napoleon fighting with a little girl for the last bit of ice cream in the giant bowl. The rest, I remember because it is an iconic comedy. I really only know it from the cultural references. I thought that this was the less controversial version of Wayne”s World. It is less controversial, and more slapstick, yes -but- I was actually mistaken because Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure came before Wayne’s World. However, Wayne’s World might have been a sketch on SNL around the same time so the producers of this film might have borrowed from it. This film is iconic for a few reasons, like giving us funny yet now slightly dated references, like “Be excellent to each other” and “ Party on” (which might have been borrowed from WW of SNL). Other reasons might be having an electrified phone booth that is now in lots of other film and TV references, including a Tardis. I don’t know what came first, I just know that Bill & Ted was popular first. Another feature of this film that left a cultural mark on American pop culture is the California-based exaggerated way of talking, with a less-than intelligent inflection. However, again, it might have borrowed from SNL for this too. The main difference is this was much more PG than Wayne's World and probably more palatable for mainstream audiences. Parents of the 80s could take their 12 yr olds to this and not worry too much about their kids picking up anything offensive or overtly sexual for the most part. (except for reading “SHIT SHIT SHIT” for Napoleon’s translation of “MERDE MERDE MERDE”) This was not so for Wayne's World of 1992. So, the story goes that Bill (Alex Winter) and Ted (Keanu Reeves) want to be famous in their band Wyld Stallyns --but these plans get messed up because they need to pass a history report in order to pass the high school history class. They are both failing and know nothing about history. Ted’s father threatens multiple times to send Ted off to Military school. Bill has his own problems, being attracted to his own stepmom who used to be a high school classmate, but now is with his father. This bit is very self-aware, to the point when Bill meets Freud, he admits to having an Oedipal complex. It’s funny in context. Anyway, a guy from the future, and possibly another planet, Rufus (George Carlin), tells them that he can take the guys anywhere they want to go in history, but that they have to pass their history report. The entire future depends on it. Ted and Bill are understandably slightly reluctant, but saw a telephone booth come from the sky and land in front of a convenience store, so obviously things are out of the ordinary. Then another phone booth arrives in the same manner, and the guys talk to a future version of themselves. This is a fun set up because while I was watching the early set of Bill and Ted talk to the future Bill and Ted, I thought, they are going to bring us back to this spot, with future Bill and Ted. They did, and it was fun, silly and satisfying storywise. Anyway, the guys' not-so-genius plan is to capture historical figures and bring them back to their high school present day to basically do their report for them. A time in film where kidnapping is not questioned. Lol. Anyway, they lose Napoleon in modern times, because Ted’s little brother was supposed to watch him. The guy playing Napoleon was very funny. He sneaks into a water park, and somehow has an old timey bathing suit and cuts the line in front of kids to ride the water rides. The actor plays an nasty grump that you love to hate. It's pretty fun. Then they lose multiple historical figures in the modern-day mall. Joan of Arc ends up running an exercise class. Freud and Billy the Kid and Socrates try their hand at flirting with girls in the food court, and Beethoven is inspired by electric keyboards. Ghengis Khan discovers the power of a titanium baseball bat. The guys make their report, in the nic-of time and they also discover that they end up being idols of the future society that Rufus comes from. Bill and Ted also get to be involved with some medieval princesses. It is very silly, very slapstick, and just an easy watch. I liked it because it is something to turn on when you do not want to think about much and escape to a less-than intelligent reality. It’s a major cultural part of the 80s-90s. I’m glad I finally saw the whole thing in its entirety.