Two years on from the original and we are into the nineties. Grunge has taken over from hair metal, and some intelligence has been injected back into rock music. Therefore the antics of slackers Bill and Ted do not have the same impact as they had in their first movie. However, this is still a worthy sequel, and a funny movie.
In the future, the music of Bill and Ted has led to world peace, but a maniacal villain decides that if he can go back to before Bill and Ted were famous and kill them, he can change the future thus preventing their music from being heard. He creates two robot versions of Bill and Ted who quickly kill the humans and take over their lives. If the robots mess up the Battle of the Bands contest, the future will be sealed. Meanwhile Bill and Ted find themselves in Hell, their eternities going to be spent living a constant ironic punishment. This can be seen as a metaphor for the decisions youth must make- should we be forced to choose one path and follow it for the rest of our lives? Like the first film, the theme of choices, and what to do with your life is prominent here. Bill and Ted however realise the alternative- Defeat Deat at Chess, and return to the land of the living once more. This they do, and return to earth, via Heaven, to take back their lives, and save the world. Death comes along too.
The film has many moments of humour, lots of one liners and keeps the charm of the first outing. Yes it is all still very simple, with the message that music can heal the world being a little child-like and dated. However, if you read the message as being-music is escapism, freedom, then it works better than most other films. Reeves and Winter again are perfect for their roles, Death is excellent, and Rufus is as cool as always. As with the first film, it is not as stupid as it sounds, with many references to past works of art and literature mirrored beside modern works of music. An entertaining film whichever way you choose to look at it.
The DVD only has a trailer, but as with many others which cost a fiver, you can’t ask for more
As always, feel free to leave your comments- did you think this was better than the original?
The Spac Hole 