Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (1991)

A tyrant from the future creates evil android doubles of Bill and Ted and sends them back to eliminate the originals.

Director:

Peter Hewitt (as Pete Hewitt)

Writers:

Chris Matheson (characters), Ed Solomon (characters)

Stars:

Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, William Sadler

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Keanu Reeves	...	Ted
Alex Winter	...	Bill / Granny Preston
William Sadler	...	Grim Reaper
Joss Ackland	...	De Nomolos
Pam Grier	...	Ms. Wardroe
George Carlin	...	Rufus
Amy Stoch	...	Missy (as Amy Stock-Poynton)
Jim Martin	...	Sir James Martin
Hal Landon Jr.	...	Captain Logan
Annette Azcuy	...	Elizabeth
Sarah Trigger	...	Joanna
Chelcie Ross	...	Colonel Oats
Taj Mahal	...	Gatekeeper
Robert Noble	...	Bach
Hal Landon Sr.	...	Thomas Edison

Storyline

The world of our distant future is a veritable utopia, thanks to the lyrics of two simple-minded 20th Century rock and rollers, Bill S. Preston, Esq. and Ted "Theodore" Logan. However, a would-be conquerer threatens to throw history off-track by sending "most non-non-heinous" evil robot Bill and Teds back to kill their good counterparts. Finding themselves dead, the boys must outwit the Grim Reaper and traverse Heaven and Hell to return to the land of the living, rescue their "babes" and have a "most triumphant" concert at the all-important Battle of the Bands.

---

Plot Keywords:

bromance | buddy movie | classroom | bullying | bully | 

---

Taglines:

Bill & Ted party on!

---

Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Fantasy | Music | Sci-Fi

---

Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to the fourth draft of the script, one of the guys from the future was going to be played by Tom Petty, to whom Rufus refers to by Sir Thomas Petty.

---

Goofs

When Bill and Ted are being escorted out of their apartments by the Evil Bill and Ted robots, the face of Ted's double is briefly visible.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Chuck De Nomolos: It is time. They have reached the second crucial turning point in their destiny. Their message is about to reach millions. But, we will change all that. When our mission is successful, no longer will the world be dominated by the legacy of these two fools! No longer will we hear this.
[plays air guitar]
Chuck De Nomolos: We will stop them now! Brothers and sisters, are we ready?
[everybody cocks their guns]

---

Crazy Credits

Very near the end of the end credits we hear a song with quotes earlier said by characters in the movie going over and over again, like a dj scratch.

---

Alternate Versions

A scene in the future that was cut showed De Nomolos explaining more about his book, including who Missy was to marry in his version of history. The line in the finished movie made by Evil Bill when he knocks out Missy, "Catch ya later future wife!" is a reference to this.

---

Connections

Featured in Hagan Reviews: The Dragon Lives Again (2012)

---

Soundtracks

The Reaper Rap
Written, Performed & Produced by Steve Vai
Vocals by Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, William Sadler, Joss Ackland,
Chelcie Ross, Terry Finn & Roy Brocksmith
Published by Sy Vy Music / OPC Music Publishing, Inc.
Courtesy of Relativity Records

User Reviews

Sharper than warranted.

It was only on my second viewing, years later, that I realized two things about this movie: 1) I enjoyed it immensely, and 2) that because its execution is decidedly sharper than the premise itself warrants. I had laughed my way through the movie before it occurred to me to renew my initial protests--valleyspeak and loogies and airheadedness (even *good*-natured airheadedness) just aren't inherently funny, especially when drawn out to feature length. But though the movie's momentum does begin to sputter out towards the end, Reeves and Winter and Sadler (and Hal Landon Jr. in an unforgettable scene) display such a remarkable sense of comic timing throughout that even the more clumsily-scripted jokes (e.g. Ted failing to recognize a certain inhabitant of Hell) work as effortlessly as the witter ones (e.g. the challenge). And the teaming of Winter and Reeves clicks so well that the teaming of Bill and Ted (who spend only one scene separated in the entire movie, disaster if they're not well-matched) appears utterly unstrained.

(Side note: I found the first movie to be only sporadically entertaining--sightly different comic sensibilities there, it seems.)

I give it a 7.75. Surprisingly good fun.

Details

Official Sites:

MGM

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English Italian Russian

Release Date:

19 July 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure II

Filming Locations:

Donald C. Tillman Water Reclamation Plant - 6100 Woodley Avenue, Van Nuys, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$10,241,268, 21 July 1991

Gross USA:

$38,037,513

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$38,039,850

Company Credits

Production Co:

Nelson Entertainment, Interscope Communications

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1