Comparing three buddy system movies

1. Buddy System Movies
By Victoria Piper

2. • The Buddy System is a sub genre of Comedy.
• These movies have two main characters usually male, who are
very close.
• The genre has immediately noticeable qualities.
You always know when you are watching a
buddy system film

3. THE TWO SHOT
The two shot gives you a perfect view of both characters and
their reactions at the same time.

4. The two shot

5. The two shot

6. The two shot

7. The two shot

8. The two shot

9. The two shot

10. I am going to be comparing three films

11. THE CHARACTERS
Buddy systems movies have two main male characters.

12. The Characters
• Meet the guys.
• To the left we have Bill S.
Preston, Esquire. and Ted
"Theodore" Logan
• Just below are Jake and Elwood
Blues
• and at bottom right you can find
Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar

13. The Characters
• Bill S. Preston, Esquire. and Ted "Theodore"
Logan are best friends from San Dimas,
California.
• They are a Slacker- Rocker duo.
• They have even started their own band (Wyld
Stallyns) despite lacking musical talent, decent
instruments, Eddie Van Halen and a triumphant
video.
• They have a lot of heart and view the world with
openness and wonder.
• They are currently failing history. Which could
send Ted to a Military Academy in Alaska.
• They are a very friendly pair and are not scared
to talk to strangers nor do they get hurt by
other people. They treat everyone like they are
a new friend.
• When a version of themselves appear out of the
sky in a phone booth and begin telling them
things about time travel it only takes one
question of "what number are we thinking of?
69 dudes!" for them to be completely accepting
and excited.
• They might not be geniuses but they are going
to save the world.

14. The Characters
• Jake and Elwood Blues are brothers from
Chicago, Illinois.
• They grew up in an orphanage run by nuns,
which despite the nuns whacking them with a
ruler when they misbehaved (even doing it now
when they are all grown up) they have a
connection with it and when they find out it is in
trouble stop at nothing to help raise the funds.
• The Blues Brothers from the very start are
identifiable as criminals. I mean it begins with
Jake being released from prison so what do you
expect.
• They are charming but make enemy's very
quickly.
• despite this they have close friends who will
back them up always; leaving jobs, not listening
to their wives telling them to stay at home, and
even ending up in prison by the time the credits
roll, all to help out Jake and Elwood.
• They are well dressed in theory, black suits, hats
and sunglasses, although in practice not so
much; as they are constantly wearing them the
suits muddy easily (especially the situations
these boys get themselves into) and loose what
could have at some point been a professional
image.
• They are on a mission from god.

15. The Characters
• Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar are twenty-
something best friends from Aurora, Illinois.
• They are rock music enthusiasts, to the point of
when they meet their idols such as Alice Cooper
and Aerosmith they will bow down loudly calling
"we're not worthy, we're not worthy."
• They have their own talk show which they host
from Wayne's parents basement. It is a popular
local Friday late-night cable access program.
• The show centers around the pair ogling
pictures of beautiful celebrity women, playing
guitar and air drums, and interviewing local
people, indirectly making fun of them over the
course of the interview.
• Wayne has a confident, loud and outgoing
personality whereas Garth is painfully shy to the
point of keeping his thoughts on a shady
business deal offered to them to himself. When
Wayne gets fired for refusing to interview the
shows sponsor a panicked Garth is left to host
the show. He freezes on close up and crawls
away backwards over the sofa.

16. The Characters
• In all three instances one character is taller than the other, Ted and
Elwood tower over Bill and Jake. Wayne and Garth's difference it isn't
as clearly noticeable but Garth is taller.
• Despite this the smaller is the one seen more in control; they take on
more of a leader role than the other.
• The smaller are louder and can be seen as more confident.
• The taller characters are quieter and can be convinced by the shorter
that there is nothing to worry about if they are concerned, and that
even a ridiculous sounding idea is completely plausible and something
they should get on board with.
• This doesn't mean that they are unable to think for themselves, when
seen on screen away from their smaller counterpart they actually cope
very well with situations (Garth possibly exempt), they just seem to
take a back seat role.

17. The Characters
• Bill and Ted and Wayne and Garth are
particularly similar.
• They are all slackers; seeming a little
dumb (though you soon learn that is not
the case) and they are very much into
their rock music.
• The way they look and dress - long hair,
baggy almost shabby clothes
• They all have the same style of speech,
recognizable as surfer - even talking using
the same vocabulary featuring the same
kind of words and 'catch phrases.'
• The release date of Excellent Adventure
was the same weekend as the first
appearance of Wayne and Garth on
Saturday Night Live.
• Bill and Ted kind of paved the way for
Wayne and Garth

18. The Characters
Bill and Ted's Eexcellent Aadventure
• Party on, dudes!
• Excellent
• Bogus
• No way
• Dude
• Air Guitar riff
• Babes
• Be excellent to each other
Wayne's World
• It's Wayne's World,
Wayne's World, party time,
excellent!
• Party on Wayne
• Party on Garth
• We’re not worthy!!
• Not!
• As if!
• No way! way!
• Sh'yeah!

19. THE MISSION
For most buddy system movies the characters have a
mission, something that they must achieve by the time the
credits roll.

20. The Mission
• Bill and Ted are failing history and if they
fail Ted's dad will send him to a military
academy in Alaska. This could end their
friendship and the band which could ruin
the future of the planet. Their music will
create world peace in the future so if they
can’t make it the future is in jeopardy.
• Using a time machine they must collect
famous historical figures to pass history
and save the world.
• Wayne and Garth sell Wayne’s World
to a TV executive but they soon
realise that he only wants to have the
show because of its popular name
and that they are expendable to him.
• Wayne also has his sights set on a
singer called Cassandra and “she will
be his.”

21. The Mission
• In the Blues Brothers once Elwood picks his brother up from prison they
go to their childhood home, a catholic orphanage, only to find out that it
is facing imminent closure unless $5,000 in property taxes are collected.
They immediately agree to get the money to help them out but get kicked
out receiving a small beating in the process as the sister refuses to take
stolen money.
• After visiting a church Jake has a vision, they decide to get the band back
together and do a big performance to raise the funds legally.

22. THE VILLAIN
There is always going to be someone against the boys staying
together and completing their mission.

23. The Villain
• Ted’s dad is trying to send him to
Alaska, which would separate the
boys and their band. He believes
that Bill is a bad influence and
that him and Ted need more
discipline.
• Their history teacher also seems
to want them to fail.
• Benjamin Kane is a TV executive
who buys Wayne’s World and
then tries to get rid of Wayne and
Garth as they cannot be
controlled with what they say or
do. He wants the fame their show
has to transfer to something that
he is in control of.

24. The Villain
• Jake and Elwood get on the bad side of more
than their fair share of baddies. The police, a
disgruntled ex-fiancée, Illinois Nazi’s and band
The Good ‘Ole Boys. Somehow even with all of
these things against them and even though
they even end up in prison, it all works out
pretty well for them.

25. THE MUSIC
Music plays a huge roll especially in these three movies.

26. The Music
• For both Bill and Ted’s Excellent
Adventure and Wayne’s World the
characters are such huge fans of rock
music that it features heavily in the
movies.
• Bill and Ted loudly play instruments
for Wyld Stallyns and when they
enjoy something they can be found
playing an extreme air guitar riff.
• They even include music in their
presentation with Beethoven on
Keyboard.

27. The Music
• With The Blues Brothers music plays a huge
roll, it is one of the bases of the entire film.
• The way the music is delivered varies, it isn't
just there in the background to set the
scene, there are also performances from
Jake and Elwood with the Blues Brothers
Band and by some amazing top stars that
make appearances along the way. (Including
James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles
and Cab Calloway.)
• The first song you hear in the film ‘She
caught the Katy’ introduces you to Jake and
Elwood and the actors who play them it is
used in a brilliant way.
• The film features a piece of music that is
used during the driving and transition
scenes, it sounds perfect for a mission.
• The songs that they perform are upbeat and
catchy they make you feel good.
• The scene with James Brown singing in the
church was filmed in one take.
• Aretha Franklin especially struggled with lip-
synching as old school artists would never
sing a song the same way twice. She also had
a dance routine to perform so her scene was
shot line by line.

28. CHARACTERS IN SITUATIONS
None of the characters are fazed by anything that happens.

29. Characters in Situations
• A phone booth falls from the sky, a man steps out and tells them about time travel.
There is a little bit of confusion but they accept it. Another version of the phone booth
falls next to the first and future versions of themselves step out, Ted does question it
and seem concerned but after Bill ask them a question and they answer correctly
"What number are we thinking of?" "69 dudes!" they are ok with the situation and
completely on board. They never look back and think about exactly what they are
doing; they just travel through time, collect famous historical figures and bring them to
present day. They even say "you are handling time travel with the greatest of ease" to
Billy the Kid but that also perfectly describes them.

30. Characters in Situations
• Jake and Elwood are the epitome of not being affected by ridiculous situations. Throughout the
film there are many explosions and after each and every one of them they get up, dust themselves
off and walk away. They are in Elwood's apartment with police about to knock on the door and
Jakes ex-fiancée blows the building up, it collapses and they are not even shaken. They clamber up
out of the rubble, dust off those precious suits and carry on with the mission. They step in a phone
booth together (Jake wants to make a phone call but Elwood follows him) and a bazooka is aimed
at it, they fly into the air to a ridiculous height in the booth, crash land with all the glass smashing
and the booth ending up on its side. The only difference? - Elwood happily announces that there
must be a load of money in change and they begin to collect the coins that are now all over the
floor.

31. LOCATION & LIGHTING
Where are the characters from? Where does most of the
film take place?

32. Location
• Both the Blues Brothers and Wayne's World are set in Illinois with Blues Brothers much more
direct in Chicago and Wayne's World set in the suburbs of Aurora which is on the outskirts of
Greater Chicago.
• Jake and Elwood Blues (Elwood especially) are much more identifiable as being from Chicago,
having much stronger accents.
• Wayne and Garth sound (Wayne more so) like surfers both with vocabulary and speech,
sounding more like Bill and Ted (from California) despite being from a landlocked state.
• Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure is set in San Dimas, California home of the Raging Waters
theme park one of the largest water parks in California.
• Bill and Ted visit many moments through history so it would be difficult to pick a main
location, though I guess the phone booth would count. The garage is seen during both the
intro and before the credits of the film.
• The Blues Brothers spend a lot of time in the car so most of the scenes are showing them on
roads or travelling and the rest are in places of performances (on stage, in clubs and pubs
and even a soul food restaurant.)
• The main location of Wayne's World is the set of the show, whether it is the actual basement
of Wayne's parents’ house or the fake one built in the studio.

33. Lighting
• For Wayne's World and Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure the scenes are always bright and
colorful. They are comedies so that lighting means happy moments.
• Bill and Ted especially seems very 80's in the colors used and the brightness of the moments.
• The Blues Brothers is also bright and colorful during daytime scenes, but a lot of the scenes are set
in the car and at night, which means they are darker.
• Though the film does include funny moments it is not just a comedy, therefore the scenes are not
all filled with bright colors, they are sometimes more suited to the action and crime themes of the
film.

34. EXTRAS
Other similarities between two or more of the films.

35. Extras
• Boys in a Buddy System need to travel, and they need to do so in
Style.
• From a time travelling phone booth
• to the bluesmobile (a brilliant cop car being driven by criminals)
• the characters in these movies know how to look good on the
move.

36. Extras
• In both Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure and The Blues Brothers they have an older
character who acts as a mentor.
• For Bill and Ted its Rufus. He's from the future and came back with the time machine to help
them pass their history report and ensure everything happens as it should (them staying
together, Wyld Stallyns making music, their songs ending war and creating world peace.)
• For Jake and Elwood it is Curtis. He works at the orphanage and did even when they were
little, he introduced them to blues music and believes in them. He even performs on stage
with their band when they are running late to buy them some time.

37. Extras
• Dancing also features in a couple of the
films. Whether it is well executed by the
Blues Brothers during performances by
other artists, of which I cannot decide the
one that I love and enjoy most. Or
unexpected, weird and kind of brilliant
moves by Garth.

38. SIMILAR SCENES
Scenes where the things that make them the same are in full view

39. Similar Scenes
• The introduction to the characters of Bill and Ted and Wayne and Garth is very similar.
• Bill and Ted are filming themselves and loudly 'playing' instruments
• "I'm Bill S. Preston Esquire. And I'm Ted "Theodore" Logan. And we are WYLD
STALLYNS."
• Wayne and Garth are on their TV show set filming an episode, with theme tune.
• "Wayne's world, its Wayne's world, party time, excellent!"
• "I'm Wayne Campbell and this is my best friend Garth Algar."

40. Similar Scenes
• Bill and Ted are out collecting
historical figures for their
report. They are gathering
them all up and travelling with
them in their phone booth to
present day so they can talk
about what they think of San
Dimas 1988 in the boy’s
history lesson.
• Jake and Elwood are going
round Chicago and getting the
band back together. They are
finding all of the previous
members in their new jobs
and reminding them of how
much they loved to perform so
they will help them complete
their mission.

41. Similar Scenes

42. Similar Scenes

43. SIMILAR SCENES
With music playing such an important role in all three of the films,
there is going to be some kind of scene in a music shop.

44. Similar Scenes
• For Bill and Ted it is Beethoven at the San Dimas Mall. He sits down at a
keyboard, the salesman shows him one of the pre-recorded songs and he
is then unsure of how that much sound can come out of the small box,
where he is used to a full sized piano. It doesn't take long for him to
smile and get into it and play all that he can. He plays so much and on so
many keyboards that he is escorted out of the shop.

45. Similar Scenes
• Once The Blues Brothers have got the
band back together they need to purchase
some instruments. They are told about a
shop that one of the guys always got his
instruments from when Jake was in
prison.
• The owner of the shop, Ray Charles!
• Some of the guys complain about the
quality of the instruments but he proves
them wrong, performing the song 'Shake
your tailfeather' which sounds brilliant
and includes a dance routine performed
by people on the streets and with Jake
and Elwood in the shop. It is possibly my
favourite routine, but not the favourite
steps that I see Jake and Elwood perform
throughout the film. It is catchy, feel good
and the moves are hilarious.
• Wayne has an obsession with a specific
guitar that he has stared at through the
shop window every Friday. Even after
being told to "live in the now" by Garth he
is still determined to purchase it.
• He has clearly asked to play it multiple
times as the salesman has to tell him that
he needs to put it away. He uses the may I
help you riff to get the attention of the
salesman and he is not allowed to play the
song he wishes to. "Stairway, denied."
• Garth also gets in on the action by playing
the drums. The scene includes his
performance happening as if part of a
proper rock concert - this leads to a kid in
the shop to say "Wow. You're amazing
dude." with Garth responding "Thanks. I
like to play."

47. Similar Scenes

48. EPIC MOMENT
There is always one stand out moment in a movie that you
will remember.

49. Epic Moment
• The presentation. Performed in true rock concert style.
• It takes place in the theatre of their school, with a huge audience of other
students.
• It includes all of the figures they collected on their adventure, with
examples of what they did and why there are so famous.
• It ends with Abraham Lincoln telling everyone to "party on, dudes!" which
is something special.

50. Epic Moment
• The Blues Brothers featured what was the largest and most expensive car
crash scene in movie history. It held the record for most cars destroyed in
one film. (Until the sequel came along 18 years later.)
• The chase scene where the bluesmobile is shown to be going at the speed
of 120mph was actually filmed at that speed. The director added
pedestrians to prove that the footage was not sped up in post.

51. Epic Moment

52. Epic Moment

53. Epic Moment

54. Epic Moment
• There is a scene right at the beginning of Wayne’s World that is recognised and
loved by all of the films fans.
• Bohemian Rhapsody in Garth’s car.
• This hilarious performance sent the Queen classic to number 2 in the charts nearly
20 years after it was first released.
• Mike Myers was upset that Dana Carvey didn't know the words to the slower part
of the song as he wanted it to be everyone singing every word.

55. WHY DO PEOPLE GO AND SEE
BUDDY SYSTEM MOVIES?

56. Why do people go and see buddy
system movies?
• To find out the answer to this question I went round and asked some of my classmates. The all
gave the same answers so it was very clear very quickly exactly why viewers watch films of this
genre.
• People who enjoy these types of films go to see them for the comedy factor. They are comedy
films and their audiences are there waiting and prepared to laugh in their seats.
• These types of films can also be a form of escape; both in that they can sit and do nothing but smile
for an hour and a half, forgetting about stresses of school, college, work, friends and family; and
also because they can watch it and relate to a character they can go on this weird wacky adventure
and step away from their regular lives.
• The actors in these films are normally known and that can make a fan of theirs go and see the
movie. People they know in these weird comedy situations are fun for a viewer to watch.
• Recommendations from peers and friends, cinemas and watching films are a great group
experience. If you enjoy something you want to go out and tell people and tell your friends so they
watch it and you can all socialise and talk about this thing you have in common.
• If you want to go out and do something, like see a film, the choice of a buddy system comedy is
easy as you know what you are going to get. You don’t have to think about it too much and you
know you can enjoy it, its light hearted and fun.
• What more do you want in a movie?

57. The End.