First Take: Bill and Ted Face The Music- station?

SYNOPSIS: Once told they’d save the universe during a time-traveling adventure, 2 would-be rockers from San Dimas, California find themselves as middle-aged dads still trying to crank out a hit song and fulfill their destiny.

And now, the new film. Delayed a few times for obvious reasons, it had a PVOD release stateside, but us lucky Brits got to see it on the big screen… and I am very glad to report that it was worth the long wait. Face the Music is everything you wanted from a new Bill and Ted film, and so much more.

Dean Parisot, best known for Galaxy Quest and RED 2, is the man in charge of this third film, and based on how ‘king of the nerds’ Kevin Smith reacted to the film, he is able to make this 3rd Bill and Ted film feel contemporary enough for modern audiences, yet appease the expectations of the fans who have waited a long time to see these two together again. Clocking in at 91 minutes it feels relatively well paced, and again, having the original screenwriters Ed Solomon and Chris Matheson come back helped with the fan service- you really need to have seen the first two to truly enjoy this film. Shelly Johnson does a fine job behind the camera, and Mark Isham’s score comes in subtly at the right points.

On to the performances, and as usual, Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter are naturally able to return to those two roles so seamlessly, that it feels right that i’s been 29 years since Bogus Journey- the way this film has been done means that it doesn’t rely as much on the nostalgia factor. Returning once more is Bill Sadler, Hal Landon Jr and Amy Stoch, but for this new film we have brief bit-parts from Kid Cudi, Dave Grohl, Kristen Schaal and Jillian Bell, plus, we now have teenage girl equivalents of the original dudes with the casting of Samara Weaving and Brigette Lundy-Paine. At Comic-Con these two admitted that they’d never seen a Bill and Ted film until production began, but both of them really feel like the kids of the Wyld Stallyns.

THE VERDICT

Face the Music feels like the natural way to bring the curtain down on a genuinely excellent franchise- it isn’t bogus, it reeks of awesomeness, and it provides a good escape for those of you who haven’t seen Tenet. Be excellent to each other, and party on dudes.

RATING: 4/5