Bad Trip

Rating: 1/10 (29 February 2004)

I wasn't surprised with what I saw. This takes one gag--insanely idiotic guys--and beats it to death by having them display their ineptness through history. A few 80s movies tried this after 'Back to the Future', none lasted because they didn't understand the context.
Here we have two Biffs and no Doc to run the show. The historical figures themselves aren't interesting because they rely on the stereotypes we have in our minds. 'Kid in King Arthur's Court' also had these problems. There was so much potential here, so why did it fail?
I found the sequel more interesting because it explored the darker philosophical territory of life, death, etc. rather than simple textbook journeys like this. There was also the heavy duality motif that's absent here.
There are some good points like the self-referential Incest Joke. The writers improved on this the second time around, but it's pretty deep stuff for a light movie. Also, there's the irony of Keanu. From airhead to Messiah, that's society in a nutshell.
The music, vocabulary, and production design are throwaways. Fortunately, the writers had another chance with better crew to set things straight--and to Hell, literally, with nostalgia.
I liked sequel self-reference of 'Bogus Journey' to the history-bashing here. From there came 'Wayne's World' and Beavis & Butt-Head, two icons of early 90s culture.
Final Analysis = = Cinematic Dud