This is of course the final installment of a trilogy that started all the way back in 1989, rumored but delayed for so long that it seemed increasingly unlikely it would ever be made. But of course the delay has been incorporated into part of the story with Bill and Ted being well into middle age with grown up daughters. While it is kind of impressive how they pull out all of the stops for this and the plot is fitting, this film lacks the spark of brilliance that made the first two so memorable. It makes for an adequate ending to the trilogy but no more than that.

Some 30 years after, Bill and Ted are still trying to write the song that has been prophesied to unite the world without success. Their careers are in tatters even as they experiment with ever more exotic musical styles and their obsession is harming their marriages. The only thing they have going for them are their daughters, Thea and Billie respectively. They are best friends with each other, idolize their fathers, and have had a first-rate education in music. Soon after Bill and Ted attend a marriage counselling session that their wives have asked for, a visitor from the future arrives to tell them that they are out of time to create the song that will unite the world. This failure is causing time travel anomalies and will lead to all of reality breaking down. Instead of trying to write the song, Bill and Ted decide to travel to a future where they have already written the song to obtain it. Meanwhile their daughters want to help and travel across time as well to gather the greatest musicians in history to play the song.

This wasn’t made with a very large budget so you can see how the special effects and costumes look somewhat cheap. Then again, I suppose this B movie quality is part of the charm of the series in the first place. Despite their limited means, the script doesn’t compromise on scope and ambition as the film takes you on a fantastical romp through time and space. At the same time, it also plays up Bill and Ted’s age and yet how they remain fundamentally the same people, foibles and all. You can see the twist coming from a mile away of how their daughters are really the ones who have to take up their mantle but that’s fine. All in all, it’s a sequel that stays true to its characters, upholds the original themes and yet manages to update them to fit with today’s values. Notable for example is how it tries very hard to be inclusive as they exhort everyone to be excellent to each other. The original had a whiff of homophobia in it as the two were anxious for their friendship not to be mistaken for homosexuality.

Unfortunately while it ticks all the right boxes, this film lacks the spark that made the first two special. The director, Dean Parisot, who they hired to take on this project seems competent but doesn’t seem to have done any other work before this and brings nothing in particular to the project. The two daughters are great but are only interesting as a modern variation of Bill and Ted. The overall story is okay but it’s hard to point to any especially incisive joke. It is nice how they insist on every character having a good side, including even the killer robot, but overall this is just okay film, made only to close out the trilogy for committed fans.