Bill And Ted’s Bogus Journey
Bill and Ted may have had their first Excellent Adventure in 1989, but it was their Bogus Journey in 1991 that really made the most of the cast’s comedic skills. With a darker, edgier script featuring travel between life and death as well as travel between history and future, Bill (Alex Winter) and Ted (Keanu Reeves) must team with the Grim Reaper to defeat two “Evil Robot Us-es” and save the world.
This sequel builds on the original by giving its stars an opportunity to expand their characters far beyond that of standard follow-on movie chapters. Here, we see Winter and Reeves play alternate, evil versions of their iconic, airhead roles – and they seize the challenge with relish. For his part, Evil Ted becomes an intimidating figure – physically imposing, and dangerously unencumbered by human morality. The power of Bogus Journey, in terms of an appreciation for the comedy skills of Reeves, is that – at a time when the actor was frustratingly type-cast as the ‘bumbling airhead’ – the contrast of the two Teds provided a reminder that Reeves could do much more.
In addition to getting to play the darker side of the characters, Reeves and Winter flexed their comedic muscles to a greater extent as the ‘good’ Bill and Ted, too – particularly in their scenes negotiating with Death, their fathers, Satan, and eventually, God.