“‘Sing, sing out Daughter Zion. Look; because, I am coming to live amongst you,’ the Holy One says” (Zechariah 2.14).
Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey travelled into theaters 19 July 1991. A sequel to 1989’s Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, it continues the story of two dim but kind San Dimas, California dudes who, believe it or not, will one day change the world with their music.
The premise behind the three films in the franchise is that these two guys, who aren’t very good musicians when we meet them, will one day write a song that brings the entire universe into harmony. They will be an inspiration, bringing peace to all creatures, eliminating pollution, repairing the damaged environment, and making things most excellent for everyone.
But, of course, some people don’t like that at all. The villain—a former gym teacher—builds robot duplicates of Bill and Ted and sends them back in time to kill and replace the real ones in order to stop that future from happening. The robots succeed, sending the real Bill and Ted on a journey though the afterlife in order to rescue their fiancées and form the band that will bring harmony to the universe.
As you may have gleaned, the plot is rather absurd, which is part of its charms. But nothing in it is more outrageous than the idea that a song, one single tune could somehow unite the world in a desire to be excellent to each other. The idea that one song would have such wide appeal was stretching the imagination in 1991 when radio was still a large part of people’s lives.
And, honestly, outside the pages of books or beyond the edges of the movie screen, do any of us believe a song can be powerful enough to bring about that much change?
Scripture mentions songs or the act of singing more than two-hundred times. The bulk of those mentions are in the Psalter, which makes sense. But the next most common usage comes from the Prophets. In Isaiah there is the encouragement to sing in praise. Jeremiah has the same. Of course, in both, the call to rejoice is for the events that have not yet happened. In one sense, they’re telling those who will live through the terrible events on the horizon to lift their voices in joy. Which, when you think about it, is as absurd as the plot from this week’s movie. It’s not as though singing and making music could change the situation, or the people who hear it.
At the climax of the film, the band, Wyld Stallyns, is an eclectic collections of humans, robots, an alien, and Death. And we are left to imagine the world transformed by their music, a world where their songs continue to be sung and played. A world that once looked like our own, and like ours seemed past hope sometimes. One where it seemed like seemed nothing would ever change.
A world that never imagined a song could teach them to be excellent to each other.
Gracious Light, shine in us as the storm clouds approach and the sky grows dark and may your Spirit sing through us and inspire us to hope.