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Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)

PG  |   |  Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi  |  17 February 1989 (USA)
6.9
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Ratings: 6.9/10 from 82,236 users   Metascore: 44/100
Reviews: 178 user | 79 critic | 7 from Metacritic.com

Two seemingly dumb teens struggle to prepare a historical presentation with the help of a time machine.

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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Tony Steedman ...
Rod Loomis ...
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Robert V. Barron ...
Abraham Lincoln (as Robert Barron)
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Missy / Mom (as Amy Stock-Poynton)
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Storyline

In the small town of San Dimas, a few miles away from Los Angeles, there are two nearly brain dead teenage boys going by the names of Bill S, Preston ESQ. and Ted Theodore Logan, they have a dream together of starting their own rock and roll band called the "Wyld Stallyns". Unfortunately, they are still in high school and on the verge of failing out of their school as well, and if they do not pass their upcoming history report, they will be separated as a result of Ted's father sending him to military school. But, what Bill and Ted do not know is that they must stay together to save the future. So, a man from the future named Rufus came to help them pass their report. So, both Bill and Ted decided to gather up historical figures which they need for their report. They are hoping that this will help them pass their report so they can stay together. Written by John Wiggins

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

Time flies when you're having fun. See more »


Certificate:

PG | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

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Details

Country:

Release Date:

17 February 1989 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Dudes  »

Filming Locations:

 »

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$40,485,039 (USA)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Color:

(Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1
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Did You Know?

Trivia

The historical figures Bill & Ted pick up for their presentation are: Napoleon, Billy the Kid, Socrates, Sigmund Freud, Genghis Kahn, Joan of Arc, Abraham Lincoln, and Beethoven. See more »

Goofs

When Rufus leaves in the phone booth (at Ted's house) and the empty booth drops down, Bill and Ted are right next to each other in close shots, but are 3 or 4 feet apart in the medium/long shots. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Rufus: Hi, welcome to the future. San Dimas, California, 2688. And I'm telling you it's great here. The air is clean, the water's clean, even the dirt, it's clean. Bowling averages are way up, mini-golf scores are way down. And we have more excellent water slides than any other planet we communicate with. I'm telling you this place is great! But it almost wasn't. You see, 700 years ago, the two great ones, ran into a few problems. So now I have to travel back in time to help them out. If ...
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Connections

Spin-off Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventures (1990) See more »

Soundtracks

Party Up
Written by Michael Wells and Rori
Published by Mykee Wells Music and Full Out Music
Performed by Rori
Produced by Rori and Michael Wells
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

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User Reviews

A 10/10 on the fun scale
28 January 2002 | by (Kimberling City, MO.) – See all my reviews

WOW. Talk about a childhood classic! Bill and Ted first surfaced when I was nine years old. Those were the days...I don't know how many times my best friend and I watched this one, but it must have been every day during our third grade year. I've watched it countless times after that and it has yet to lose its charm. When Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey came out a couple of years later, the process repeated itself. These are two movies about a couple of (seemingly) burn-out teens who don't take drugs, which leads one to the conclusion that they were just born idiots. Thing is, just by being stupid, everything seems to happen right for them wherever they go, thanks to good ole Rufus (George "the king" Carlan).

Excellent Adventure starts with our idiot duo, doing what they do; jamming out in the garage (on guitars they can't play) and talking nonstop about how someday, somehow, their band "Wyld Stalyns" will open for Iron Maiden. When their dream is threatened by the reality that they are flunking out in history, things take a turn. What it all boils down to is that they need to have a badass history report or they're both going to flunk out and Ted will be sent to military school by his mean, police officer dad.

This is where Rufus comes in. He shows up in a time machine (in the form of a phone booth) and claims to have all the answers to their problems. The time machine is just what they need for their history report so it's "back in time we go", to capture historically significant figures (Socrates, Napolean, Billy the Kid, Joan of Arc, Abe Lincoln, etc.). The fun never stops.

I'm really not sure why this movie works as well as it does. It takes an idea that would sound completely stupid on paper, and somehow, makes it all come together. The characters are completely likeable and the script is sharply written. Best of all, this movie is just good fun. The music is awesome too. If you have never seen this movie or its sequel, you are seriously depraved. Go put on your old Megadeth t-shirt, ragged out jeans, and a few beers, plop down on the couch and enjoy.


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