Bill & Ted Face The Music (2020) **1/2 [B&T Excellent Triple Feature Pt. 3]

As I wrote in my reviews of Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989) (here) and Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (1991) (here), my enjoyment of the Bill & Ted films is highly steeped in nostalgia. Watching the first two films now is partially like returning to my tween self, but it's also a reminder that the first two films were highly flawed to begin with.

I wish I could say the same for the long (re: forever) in development sequel, Bill & Ted Face The Music (2020). Oh, it's flawed all right and the goofy charm is still there, but I didn't find myself taken back to my younger years. No, I was distracted by poor CGI, unfunniness (everyone seems to love Anthony Carrigan here but I felt all of his scenes were obvious and fell completely flat), and mediocre filmmaking. 

It really just feels like Bill & Ted were dropped into a below average comedy with obvious markers to signify the moods (look everyone—this is the funny part; this is the heartfelt part!) that could have been churned out by any director for hire. There's no classic lines here at all. Additionally, everything has been given the "Apple makeover" (to quote from this review), which I'm not a fan of in the slightest. I will say that the casting of B&T's daughters was inspired—Samara Weaving and Brigette Lundy-Paine both do a great job. It's also refreshing to have a B&T film without "F" bombs in it (you know what I mean). But for a similar but better handled long-gestated sequel that I got more mileage out of see Pee-wee's Big Holiday (2015).

I love that the B&T films, about two lifelong friends, were all written by the same writing team (Chris Matheson and Ed Solomon) and star the same leads (Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter)—two pairs of lifelong friends themselves (I'm sure George Carlin would have returned as well, if he were still with us). This is definitely no cash-in sequel; there was clearly love behind the project. While I do wish that FTM was a better film and sequel, I can't deny the positive message. I certainly enjoyed parts of it but, unfortunately, I don't see this being a film that I will revisit often or one that will age well.