Bill & Ted Face the Music is not unlike the original two films in the franchise in that its laughs are so silly and stupid that you're almost embarrassed to be laughing at it. These were never 'great' comedies, they were amiable ones -- and they were mostly watchable because Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter were so committed to their lead roles.
The good news about the long delayed sequel is that they are still in fine form -- although both are definitely showing their age. I personally think it was a mistake not to update the characters in any significant way (how interesting would it have been if say Reeves' Ted had abandoned his 'dude' patois and become a mature professional) but they are both a lot of fun here, especially when they get to play off of various heightened versions of themselves.
Unfortunately, in a pandering attempt to be all things to all people -- the film also shoehorns in a pathetic attempt at a passing of the torch, with the pair's daughters (played as a female facsimile of their dads, unconvincingly by Samara Weaving and Brigitte Lundy-Paine) which falls horribly flat.
The idea of making this a hand-off to a younger, female generation is well-intentioned and even noble, but the filmmakers forgot to make the duo's kids distinct, interesting or funny and casting actresses clearly in their late 20s to pass as teens feels particularly misguided.
The film's threadbare plot involves the two dudes last minute efforts to come up with the song they were supposed to compose that would unite the world. They are sent on their quest by a criminally and completely wasted Kristen Schaal in the role previously occupied by the late George Carlin's Rufus and they are pursued by a -- at first -- creepy alien assassin played to perfection by Anthony Carrigan (who pretty much steals the movie with his deadpan delivery).
As is the case with the first two films, Bill & Ted's wives are completely inconsequential and for some odd reason played by American actresses who can't carry off an English accent at all. There's no real attempt to ground much of this movie with any real serious stakes, but as long as the focus is on Bill & Ted the proceedings are breezy enough that you don't bother with the plot holes.
Still, when the action turns to the daughters who are on their own time travel crusade to form a band for their dads, the movie drags -- although there is some genuinely enjoyable musical sequences throughout like when Jimi Hendrix and Mozart end up jamming together.
By the end the film culminates with a bunch of just ok special effects that play just fine on the small screen (this is the rare 2020 movie that isn't suffering from not rolling out in theaters) and an earnest message about how the world can come together through song (the end credits are a genuinely cute montage of people singing and dancing in viral videos from all over the globe). It's fun, it's forgettable and it didn't really need to happen -- kind of like this movie.
The tone and content of the film is decidedly family friendly. It's basically a kids film, although I am hard pressed to find any kids who know anything about Bill & Ted. For me, someone who grew up with them, this is probably the best film we could have gotten all these years later with many of the original players in place (even Ted's cop father returns at a sprightly 79 years old!).
So if you are looking for a completely disposable but distracting PG-rated 90 minutes you won't go wrong with this one, but I also think that we can leave these characters in the past and present for good.
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