SnoopyStyle In the future, Bill (Alex Winter) and Ted (Keanu Reeves) have become legends creating an Utopian society. Rufus' former teacher De Nomolos takes control to change history. De Nomolos sends evil robot Bill & Ted back in time to kill the real Bill & Ted, and take over their lives before their all-important Battle of the Bands victory. Bill & Ted are still not good as Wyld Stallyns despite princesses Elizabeth & Joanna's excellent musicianship. The guys are killed by the robots and face Death (William Sadler). There is/are also the Martian Station.This sequel is always going to have to face the difficulty of repeating such an unique premise and memorable concepts. The good news is the addition of Death. He is hilarious and the best part of the movie. The guys are slightly older but still the same. The movie seems to be trying for the craziest ideas. Some work but some don't. There is an interesting but rambling detour into hell which could be improved with Death. This sequel works well at times mostly due to Death. It needs more Death and he proves to be a fun part of a new trio. It's a little bumpy but the ride provides some good fun.

GusF The second but seemingly not the last entry in my second favourite time travel comedy film series, this is a most non-heinous sequel. It is not on quite the same level as the first film but the script by Chris Matheson and Ed Solomon is nevertheless very funny and it is well directed by Peter Hewitt in his feature film debut. The second half is generally stronger than the first. I loved many of the designs in the film such as the Devil, Station (the two little ones more so than the one big one), the Easter Bunny, the Good Robot Usses, Heaven (clearly inspired by "A Matter of Life and Death") and Hell. The film's original title was "Bill & Ted Go to Hell" but it was changed at the insistence of the studio because of the (over)sensitivity concerning the use of the word "hell." However, I think that they made the right decision for the wrong reason as the film's actual title is catchier and more descriptive. Besides which, I don't think that they spend enough time in Hell to justify the original title.Five years (relatively speaking) after their jaunt through time to pass history, the lovable metalheads Bill S. Preston, Esq. and Ted "Theodore" Logan have moved away from home and are gainfully employed at Pretzels and Cheese but their band Wyld Stallyns has yet to become to the musical force that will bring the world into perfect harmony. That said, they are poised for fame as they hired to play at the 4th Annual San Dimas Battle of the Bands. However, things are afoot in the future. In 2691, the decidedly fascist ex- gym teacher - is there any other kind? - De Nomolos has built evil robot versions of Bill and Ted and sends them back in time to the late 20th Century to kill our heroes. They are most triumphant in their mission and the dearly departed Bill and Ted spend some time as ghosts before being exorcised straight to Hell by Missy, the former's ex-stepmother and the latter's new stepmother. The boys must make their way through the afterlife and back to the temporal plane in order to prevent their fiancées - the Princess Babes Joanna and Elizabeth from Medieval England, which isn't really in Iowa - from being killed. Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves are once again very entertaining as Bill and Ted. They also get some great material as the Evil Robot Usses who, since they have much the same personalities as the original versions, are oddly likable as murderous robots from the future go. While I was watching the film, it occurred to me that Evil Robot Usses would be a great name for a band. Someone obviously agreed with me as there is already a band with that every name on Facebook. Winter also plays Hell's manifestation of Bill's rather frightening looking grandmother Granny S. Preston, Esq.William Sadler is hilarious as the put-upon Death, who is astonished when he loses to the duo in a game for their immortal souls. Losing to Bill and Ted can't have done much for his self-esteem. Although he is initially not too pleased at the thought of being their lackey, he gradually grows rather fond of them and willingly helps them in their mission to defeat the Evil Robot Usses. Not many people can say that they have literally laughed in the face of Death but Bill and Ted do it several times. That's certainly something to boast about! One of my favourite little moments is when Death apologises to God for inflicting Bill and Ted on him. One would think that God would be a little aggrieved that they mugged three people in Heaven itself but he seems pretty cool with it, actually. Sadler also has a cameo as the Englishman who is seen watching Wyld Stallyn's first TV appearance with his wife and daughter, played by his actual wife and daughter. Joss Ackland, who later admitted that he thought the film was pretty rubbish, is good as the vaguely German-accented De Nomolos but he has barely ten minutes screen time even though he is technically the main villain. Still, he has more than George Carlin, who appears in a mere two scenes as Rufus but is nevertheless great in the role. Pam Grier has a fun cameo as Ms. Wardroe. The film also features nice appearances from Hal Lindon, Jr. as Captain Theodore Logan and Amy Stock-Poynton as Missy and makes excellent use of the considerable vocal talents of Frank Welker as the Devil, Station and the Easter Bunny. However, I have always thought that Matheson and Solomon missed a trick in the Heaven scenes in not briefly reuniting Bill and Ted with one of the personages of historical significance from the first film such as Socrates, Lincoln or Joan of Arc. The film's original ending, which was unfortunately not used, would have featured De Nomolos spending eternity in Hell with the Evil Robot Usses, whom he despises as he did too good a job in recreating Bill and Ted's personalities.Overall, this is a very enjoyable sequel. I am really looking forward to the recently (re-)announced "Bill & Ted 3", which has been in development hell for five or six years now but will hopefully see the light of day in 2017/8.

Python Hyena Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey (1991): Dir: Peter Hewitt / Cast: Alex Winter, Keanu Reeves, William Sadler, George Carlin, Pam Grier: Bogus certainly describes the film. It begins with a Star Wars parody with George Carlin making a narrow escape to warn our moron guitar playing heroes about a world domination scheme. Bill and Ted are teenagers with the intelligence of a snot rag who are auditioning for a major concert but they are eventually thrown off a cliff by robot look-alikes. Perhaps they tried to stop production of this film. Darn it, they failed. The Grim Reapers challenges their souls in the film's one great laugh where he is whooped at Battleship, Clue and Twister. Then they venture to Heaven in search of the smartest scientist who ever lived so that good robot look-alikes can be manufactured. Anyone who claims to be the world's smartest scientist ought to know better than to be caught on camera during one of the year's stupidest films. Bogus plot directed by Peter Hewitt with dazzling special effects. Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves look foolish and act like jackasses. William Sadler is the one performance of great hilarity as the Grim Reaper completely overtaken by teenage madness. Pam Grier is underused, but then again she should be thankful not to be seen more than needed here. Carlin is unfortunately wasted in a film that might have been interesting had it not been so stupid. Score: 2 ½ / 10

Mr-Fusion All of the charm (and most of the humor) of the original seems to heave been sucked right out of "Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey". It's nowhere near as funny and tends to drag in places as a result. Really, the reason to watch this is William Sadler as Death. The entire sequence with Bill & Ted challenging him to various board games is the movie's best part, and he's still a bright spot as he tags along through the rest of the story. Still can't believe that's the bad guy from "Die Hard 2". In any case, it's a textbook case of one actor stealing the whole show.5/10