'Bill & Ted' and the best time travel movies of all time

Recently, I revisited a movie I really loved as a child -- Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, and I was charmed by how indelibly silly and simplistic it was.

Back in the 80s there were a slew of movies where adults were either invisible or ignorant and fantasy films were earnest instead of self-consciously clever.

It's just a fun movie -- and although it probably could have more fun with the time travel concept than it does, it's a worthy concept nevertheless.

Still, it got me thinking about the best time travel movies.

There haven't been enough in my estimation to call it a full blown genre, and yet there have been some really terrific ones.

As tempting as time travel is as a plot device I think filmmakers generally avoid it because it always ends up defying logic and directors don't want an audience spending more time trying to debunk their movie instead of enjoying it.

That said, here are a few movies that I think get the complicated elements just right (in chronological order).

The Terminator (1984) - The best of the Schwarzenegger as killer robot films remains the first one, which eschews sentimentality for relentless action and a straightforward premise. In the future humans are fighting a war against their machine overlords. The machines send a killer back in time to execute the leader of the resistance's mother before he is born. The latter sequels would completely upend the timeline and alienate fans. But the first one does a perfect job of establishing the stakes and letting the mayhem play out.

Groundhog Day

Back to the Future (1985) - An incredibly novel concept -- a character accidentally goes back in time, disrupts the first meeting of his future parents, and must get them together or he will cease to exist. Director Robert Zemeckis has a lot of fun with the complications that ensue -- the lead character's mother takes a romantic shine to him -- but he also keeps the pace moving. One of the great blockbusters of its era is hilarious and original.

Back to the Future Part II (1989) - A very daring sequel that not only ups the ante on the time travel, but adds a layer of darkness. The bad guy -- Biff -- gets hold of an Almanac featuring sports scores and makes himself a fortune over several decades. This chain of events leads to some really bad developments from Marty McFly and his family. Oh, and there are hoverboards.

Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991) - An action classic to be sure, somewhat hamstrung by some unfortunate bits where director James Cameron tries to make Schwarzenegger's machine all cute and cuddly. Still, the film's premise holds up. Two terminators are sent back from the future to seek out future rebel John Connor, one to protect him, the other to kill him. Some of the best sustained chases and fights of all time, but the time travel element gives the movie a real charge.

Groundhog Day (1992) - Although this beloved comedy isn't a traditional time travel movie, I couldn't not include it. It does deal with the space-time continuum. Bill Murray's weatherman Phil Connors keeps waking up on the same day in the same place. I love that the film never explains why and that Murray's character simply grows to embrace his plight and only then does he get freed from his existential prison. A movie that only seems to grow in stature with each passing year.

Bruce Willis in Twelve Monkeys

12 Monkeys (1995) - Terry Gilliam puts his unique visual stamp on this somber but suspenseful mystery film starring an against type Bruce Willis. Very little is explained upfront, we're simply plunged into a chaotic story where a seemingly innocuous animal rights group may be behind a conspiracy that will eventually doom the planet. There's enough ideas in the film for four movies (which is perhaps why the film has inspired a TV show) and a Brad Pitt performance that's weirder than anything he's done before or since.

Star Trek (2009) - This reboot of the franchise doesn't advertise itself as a time travel movie, but it totally is. Although Trek purists may have balked at J.J. Abrams elaborate explanation for why the original William Shatner-Leonard Nimoy universe could co-exist with his own, he undeniably reinvigorated a classic sci-fi series that was moribund before he took the reigns. This bright, gleaming spectacle was one of the best blockbusters of its era and just a great time at the movies.

Hot Tub Time Machine (2010) - One of the great surprises of that year, a raucous and silly comedy that was unpretentious fun. Rob Corddry steals the movie as a horndog eager to capitalize on a trip back to 1980s hedonism. Meanwhile, John Cusack basically plays an homage to every character he played in the 80s. One of my favorite bits? The bad guy simply stating "America" right before a fight. In an era where so many R-rated comedies missed the mark, this one hits a bulls-eye.

Midnight In Paris (2011) - Woody Allen scored his biggest crossover hit ever with this whimsical movie about a frustrated writer (Owen Wilson) who is magically whisked away to the Jazz age era Paris of his dreams at the stroke of midnight. The gimmick works because Allen doesn't waste time trying to explain it or portray the transition with special effects. Instead these indelible characters from  the past (Dali, Hemingway, Fitzgerald, etc.) just appear and come to life.

Looper (2012) - Bruce Willis is back again in this surprisingly moving mind bender which presents a very interesting concept -- assassins who travel through time in a visually inventive way. Joseph Gordon Levitt is credible as a young Willis dispatched to take out his future self, and Jeff Daniels steals scenes as the villain. Although this film did decent business I've always been shocked it wasn't a bigger hit at the box office. The action and acting are both top notch.

Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) - The first film from the director of the mega-blockbuster Jurassic World is one of the sweetest and most endearing romantic comedies I've seen in years Aubrey Plaza plays a snarky reporter who replies to an ad in the paper placed by an eccentric guy who claims he has the ability to time travel. She ends up falling for him and hilarity ensues. The finale of this movie, which I won't spoil, is genuinely heartwarming and surprising.

Edge of Tomorrow (2014) - Tom Cruise gets to show his considerably appealing lighter side in this underrated sci-fi thriller which plays almost as if Groundhog Day were an action movie. His character keeps dying and then coming back to life with new knowledge about how to defeat some souped-up CGI baddies. It doesn't sound very good, but trust me it is. And Cruise delivers one of his more nuanced performances here, he's a wimp who becomes a hero over the course of the movie.