Bill & Ted's Excellent Use of 2.35:1

[00:00:00]Excuse me. When did the Mongols rule China?

[00:00:05]>> I don't know. I just work here.

[00:00:08]>> Gentlemen, we're history.

[00:00:16]>> [screaming] >> Hello and welcome to Waste of Space, where we analyze aspect ratio usage in cinema one movie at a time. Today, we're looking at Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, released in 1989. I have an interesting history with this movie, having first watched it on TV during a children's morning block on some channel I can't recall the name of. I want to say it was Jetix, but I have no idea.

[00:00:38]Anyway, I eventually went to my local Target and bought a copy of the film on DVD, which I still have. And if you look on the back here, you'll see the film is listed as having an aspect ratio of 235:1.

[00:00:50]The TV version I saw had the opening credits letterboxed, so I could see the film was supposed to be in a very wide aspect ratio. [music] Obviously, on DVD, I could watch the whole thing in its original aspect ratio. And I was fascinated that this film was in 235 because on the surface it's just a silly comedy. Why such a wide ratio? A ratio that is usually reserved for more serious fare. Even though I was curious as to why this film was in 235, I never dug into it. See, around this time in the early 2000s, the only reason I cared about seeing movies in their original aspect ratios was because that's how they were supposed to be seen. And I never analyzed any of this in depth because I was 10 or 12 or whatever. In any case, movies like Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure are an integral part of my journey with aspect ratios and how I came to love them.

[00:01:39]So, now that I'm a grown man with more life experience, what can I say about this movie's use of widescreen?

[00:01:45]Well, it's great. So great, in fact, that I really wanted to quickly show you this moment of Bill & Ted leaving school. I like it that much, even if I had to show it to you sped up.

[00:01:56]You know, I got so much time, you know.

[00:01:58]Elsewhere, use of widescreen in this film is so functional that I can just say characters and settings and show those examples over and over. And you will no doubt keep seeing those types of examples throughout this video. But for Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, want to do something a little different. I am going to focus on four things: Rufus, Napoleon, the mall montage, and New Mexico 1879.

[00:02:24]Each of these four things will allow me to really dig into the way widescreen is used in this film, as I feel they each provide unique and creative examples.

[00:02:32]So, let's get to it.

[00:02:34]Let's start with Rufus. He is the narrator of the film, though this movie doesn't have much narration to begin with. He's the only character to talk directly to the audience and is the first person we see after the opening credits.

[00:02:45]He also doesn't show up that much, but you know, he shows up when it matters.

[00:02:48]>> [music] >> His first scene is just him in a black void, but he's off-center. He's centered in other scenes, but in this first scene, he's not. Now, I could say it's like how the main title of the film is also off-center, and while that still remains a mystery to me, Rufus being off-center in this opening is intentional. For you see, when he begins talking about Wild Stallions, the camera doesn't have to adjust much to show off that image on the right. In fact, by keeping Rufus off-center the whole time, we, the audience, get used to it, letting the filmmakers give us our first glimpse at our heroes without having to drastically change the viewpoint. Is that a lot to look into for a scene of a man in a black void?

[00:03:30]Maybe. But Rufus is also off-center at the end of the film when he's hanging out with the band. This whole sequence is a good example of characters grouped in an environment. But notably, at least to me, is when Rufus picks up an electric guitar and plays. We have this shot of the whole group before a medium close-up of Rufus, along with a reaction shot of the four other characters. I love this sequence due to the way it plays with framing and editing. So, obviously George Carlin as Rufus is not actually shredding on electric guitar.

[00:04:00]Editing makes it look like he is, but there's more to it.

[00:04:04]When we see the top of Rufus, there's plenty of space, right? But when we're looking at his hands shred, the guitar and his torso take up the whole frame.

[00:04:13]What I realized on repeated viewings is that the way Rufus is framed up top is complemented by the way he and the guitar are framed. I don't think I'm articulate enough to explain this, but basically check this out.

[00:04:27]When both shots are seen as complementary to each other, the framing makes sense. Let us now move on to Napoleon, who is comedically and inaccurately depicted as short, but that's not what we're here to talk about.

[00:04:38]This guy has his own little adventure while our leads are out capturing historical figures.

[00:04:43]A minute or two after he's introduced, he's thrown into the circuits of history following the telephone booth before it makes it back to San Dimas. It's here we get this wonderful shot of Bill and Ted in the foreground while Napoleon lands in a branch in the background. We don't see much of Napoleon again until he's hanging out with Ted's brother. At one point during all this, he's once again lying flat on his stomach, and when he gets kicked out of the bowling alley, he's alone completely. I really like this shot, and I like how the very next shot also shows an empty environment.

[00:05:11][music] Only this one has Bill, Ted, and the historical figures they've collected.

[00:05:15]I could probably compare and contrast these two scenes further, but instead I'm going to show you this sick shot of Billy the Kid in ancient Greece before moving on [music] to my next observation. Napoleon eventually finds himself in Waterloo, where he is, for the final time, lying on his stomach going through a tube.

[00:05:32]First he was going through the circuits of history, now he's going through a water slide. Maybe it's nothing, but I find it really neat that Napoleon is the only character in the movie ever put in this physical position.

[00:05:43]Also, this sequence makes good use of the wide frame to show off the park, the people, and Napoleon enjoying himself.

[00:05:50]Now it's time to focus on a scene, the mall montage. This scene technically begins when we see that the historical figures have all split up and have started wandering the mall. This whole sequence is them getting into all sorts of trouble, whether intentionally or by accident. What surprises me most are the very few moments that don't really take advantage of the frame.

[00:06:10]Abe Lincoln right here and Joan of Arc for this moment are a few of the only shots that are victims of the format.

[00:06:16]Genghis Khan going nuts in a sports store shows us his athleticism, including him riding this skateboard and jumping on a trampoline.

[00:06:24]Beethoven brings down the house on multiple keyboards, which are easy to see with the power of widescreen.

[00:06:30]Joan of Arc gets extremely excited over aerobics and the people around her seem to dig it.

[00:06:35]And in between Billy the Kid and Socrates are run around I mean they're doing something. If anyone gets underrepresented, it's Sigmund Freud and Lincoln, though I will say the frame [snorts] is able to show Lincoln getting into an altercation and then run away all without cutting.

[00:06:50]I think the reason I like this mall montage is because it shows us different things while taking full advantage of its aspect ratio.

[00:06:59]I especially like this shot of Genghis Khan. You can even see how the camera has to quickly adjust when he gets into frame.

[00:07:06]Then you got Beethoven over here just playing music and getting in trouble for it. While it's not cool he got in trouble for rocking out, it is cool that the frame can so wonderfully capture his section in the montage.

[00:07:19]The last scene I want to cover is New Mexico, 1879.

[00:07:24]This is when Bill and Ted meet Billy the Kid in the Old West.

[00:07:28]Much of this scene focuses on the environment via wide shots, which you can see here at the beginning.

[00:07:33]Even when they're in the bar, a lot of the shots are showing off the bar and the patrons. Most of the close-ups focus on characters, including the guy who first encounters Bill and Ted while using the outhouse. Pretty standard stuff so far, but then Billy the Kid arrives and the wide frame captures him being cool as heck while also showing off the bar.

[00:07:51]From here we get some more close-ups such as those of Billy shuffling cards as well as Bill breaking his poker face to declare >> Woah, three aces.

[00:08:01]>> Once it's revealed Billy is cheating at cards, a fight breaks out and there's a good mix of wide and medium shots in addition to a few close-ups.

[00:08:09]There is this really great moment where Bill and Ted get cornered. The camera follows them as the men get closer until finally there's a close-up on Bill just before he gets thrown onto the bar and his head through a wall.

[00:08:22]Ted follows and the frame easily captures both the boys and the ladies on the other side. Right after is a great shot where our heroes are on the right and the cowboys are on the left.

[00:08:34]>> It's a good you're blend.

[00:08:36]>> Huh?

[00:08:37]>> Then we see one of the few extreme close-ups in this scene. A cowboy fires their gun at another's foot giving our heroes the opportunity to leave the saloon and run for the time machine.

[00:08:48]One environmental shot, a medium close-up, and a good view of their pursuers are the final things we see before this scene comes to a close.

[00:08:56]I really hope you enjoyed this look into how Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure uses the 235 to 1 aspect ratio. Thank you so much for watching. We'll see you next time.

[00:09:07]>> All right, what's your name?

[00:09:09]>> Abraham Lincoln.

[00:09:11]>> But that's l i n c o l n.

[00:09:15]>> I know how to spell Lincoln.