Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
Two rock-'n-rolling teens, on the verge of failing their class, set out on a quest to make the ultimate school history report after being presented with a time machine.
What critics thought
Critics at the time were sharply split: trade and prestige outlets dismissed the film as shallow, clichéd, and barely competent, while others found its cheerful stupidity oddly winning. What's most interesting is how badly the initial critical consensus aged — a film that leading reviewers called inept and undernourished has outlasted most of its detractors, accumulating genuine affection that contemporary reviews simply did not predict.
“Each encounter is so brief and utterly cliched that history has little chance to contribute anything to this pic's two dimensions.”
Variety
“Make no mistake, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure [...] is not a satire of mindlessness; it's unabashed glorification of dumbness for dumbness' sake. Bill and Ted are heroic in their ability to reduce some of history's great minds to their level.”
Chris Willman·Los Angeles Times
“A nonstop giggle from start to finish, this beguiling grab-bag of time-travel clichés, hard-rock music and Valley-speaking cool dudes is a flawless, purpose-built junk movie”
Alan Jones·Radio Times
Parents guide
- Violence
- mild
- Sex
- mild
- Profanity
- mild
- Substances
- mild
- Intensity
- none
Genres
Adventure, Comedy, Science Fiction
Cast & Crew
Stephen HerekDirector
Keanu ReevesTed 'Theodore' Logan
Alex WinterBill S. Preston
George CarlinRufus
Terry CamilleriNapoleon
Dan ShorBilly the Kid
Tony SteedmanSocrates
Rod LoomisFreud
Al LeongGenghis Khan
Jane WiedlinJoan of Arc
Robert V. BarronAbraham Lincoln
Clifford DavidBeethoven
Hal Landon Jr.Captain Logan
David NewmanComposer
Ed SolomonWriter
Chris MathesonWriterBill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
Two rock-'n-rolling teens, on the verge of failing their class, set out on a quest to make the ultimate school history report after being presented with a time machine.
What critics thought
Critics at the time were sharply split: trade and prestige outlets dismissed the film as shallow, clichéd, and barely competent, while others found its cheerful stupidity oddly winning. What's most interesting is how badly the initial critical consensus aged — a film that leading reviewers called inept and undernourished has outlasted most of its detractors, accumulating genuine affection that contemporary reviews simply did not predict.
“Each encounter is so brief and utterly cliched that history has little chance to contribute anything to this pic's two dimensions.”
Variety
“Make no mistake, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure [...] is not a satire of mindlessness; it's unabashed glorification of dumbness for dumbness' sake. Bill and Ted are heroic in their ability to reduce some of history's great minds to their level.”
Chris Willman·Los Angeles Times
“A nonstop giggle from start to finish, this beguiling grab-bag of time-travel clichés, hard-rock music and Valley-speaking cool dudes is a flawless, purpose-built junk movie”
Alan Jones·Radio Times
Parents guide
- Violence
- mild
- Sex
- mild
- Profanity
- mild
- Substances
- mild
- Intensity
- none
Genres
Adventure, Comedy, Science Fiction
Cast & Crew
Stephen HerekDirectorKeanu ReevesTed 'Theodore' LoganAlex WinterBill S. PrestonGeorge CarlinRufusTerry CamilleriNapoleonDan ShorBilly the KidTony SteedmanSocratesRod LoomisFreudAl LeongGenghis KhanJane WiedlinJoan of ArcRobert V. BarronAbraham LincolnClifford DavidBeethovenHal Landon Jr.Captain LoganDavid NewmanComposerEd SolomonWriterChris MathesonWriter