Back To The Future appreciation and critique

I don't know if you all have done this before but I thought it might be fun to start a thread on BTTF, listing things one liked about the three films and maybe add any interesting things one has seen in the film that was a goof or odd.

For instance, I love the trilogy and I think I like the third film the best if I had to pick one. I particularly like the part (in #3) where Marty gives his name.... "Eastwood...CLINT Eastwood". Like it should mean something to them. What a great funny moment!

In #1, I like how the Mall's name changed from Twin Pines to Lone Pine after Marty knocks down one of the trees while in 1955.

The goof I noticed last night with #1 was in the beginning with the Doc's dog feeding machine. The can is grabbed and placed in the can opener and it removes the lid and dumps the food. The magnet retains the lid, but where did all the other lids go from all of the other cans that were opened during Doc's absence?

Another great goof was the well known one about the Gibson guitar used in the dance scene. The scene's year was 1955 and of course, Gibson didn't issue a ES335 or ES355 until 1958 or 59.

The other thing that I found odd in #1 was that Marty didn't know where Doc's street or house/garage was while in 1955, yet he had just left there in 1985. And on Martys street, the big lion entrance things are right on the street and not off to the side like they should be. Seems to me people would be driving into those all of the time.

Anyone else have odd stuff to mention? I'm going to look for odd things in #2 tonight.

 

Hoverboards are real.

 

Here's what I think. Since Doc's home in 1985 was just a run-down garage, I doubt Marty thought he would live in the same place in 1955. Marty went to the phone book to look Doc up, but the address was on a street he didn't recognize (later renamed John F. Kennedy Drive). I'd also venture a guess that the house number on the 1955 street probably wasn't the same as the house number on the remaining garage in 1985.

I'm a huge fan of the Back to the Future trilogy. I really like the setup and payoff of the Zemeckis/Gale script, exemplified by the Twin Pines/Lone Pine Mall and the Uncle "Jaibird" Joey stuff.

I went hunting for the McFly home on a recent trip to LA.



I'm more of a fan of inside jokes and references, so those are things I notice.
- The newscaster on the TV at the start of the film is Deborah Harmon, who was in Zemeckis' "Used Cars"
- Marty's siblings were played by Marc McClure and Wendy Jo Sperber, who were both in Zemeckis' "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" and "Used Cars."
- In the window of the "Blast From The Past" store in Part II, there is a Roger Rabbit doll, referencing another Zemeckis film.
- The guy who comes up to Marty and talks about the Cubbies is played by Charles Fleischer, the voice of Roger Rabbit.

I love that in the future, there are bundles of laserdiscs in the alleys.

When I was recently watching CNN with their giant wall that can show six screens of video or graphics at once, I was surprised how close it seemed to that wall screen that Marty, Jr. used to watch a bunch of TV channels at once.

 

Wow very cool, do you have more pics !!??
Back to the Future is one of my all time fav movies, I was a kid when it came out so its very nostalgic for me! I probably watched the trilogy over 30 times. Would anyone know if the trilogy is coming to Blu-Ray any time soon?

 

Here's a cool site: http://www.bigwaste.com/bttf/

 

I like the part in #1 when Marty is running the camcorder at Twin Pines Mall.
Doc says "It's 1:21 AM" And Marty glances at his watch and shakes his wrist, like his watch is broken.

Darryl

 

It's a clever and well written film. The original opening (which I can't recall but I read in script form years ago) was quite different from the one that finally opened the film. Can't recall how but it will come back to me..in time.

 

The first "Back To The Future" film brings back wonderful childhood memories ... I must have been 8 or 9 when it came out. Anyway, I still crack up at the pickup lines George McFly used to try and win over the future Lorraine McFly!!!

"Lorraine .. you are my density ... I mean, destiny."

 

One of my favorite stories about BTTF is when Doc asks Marty who was president and Marty says Ronald Reagan. Then doc asks, who is secretary of state, Jimmy Stewart.
Supposedly, when Ronald Reagan saw the film at the White House, he laughed so hard, he asked the projectionist to rewind the film and play that scene again.

 

He actually said "Who is vice president? JERRY LEWIS?", but just as funny.

 

I first saw "BTTF" during my first-ever solo trip as an adult. At 18, I spent 10 days in LA, and I saw "BTTF" at the Cinerama Dome. Man, was it a great presentation, and the movie really entertained me - it was one of those where I was just totally carried away by it.

I even got my rental car up to 88 MPH on the highway that night!

 

LOL

 

The first film is just great entertainment. I watched it a few months ago after having not viewed it for many years...the story still holds up very well, although there are certainly some dated elements. I imagine that the "Pepsi Free" joke in the malt shop would be completely lost on today's youth. And I cringe at Marty's vest jacket...I had one similar to that in 1985.

The second film had some clever moments, but got too wrapped up in the convoluted time travel mechanics. Not a bad film by any means, and an admirable attempt at a sequel, but it lacked the charm of the first.

I couldn't get into the 3rd film at all. While taking the story in a different direction was commendable, it just didn't fit with the other two in my opinion. I never made it all the way through BTTF III because I just couldn't get into the Mary Steenburgen/Doc love story.

 

This is one movie I see differently now than I did when it was released. I was nine when it came out, and the movie struck me as a big sci-fi extravaganza. As I got bigger, the movie got smaller, and today I see it as a great little comedy. Enjoyable either way, mind you.

 

Near the end of the movie, when Marty wakes up in "new 1985," you can see a can of Pepsi Free sitting near his bed. Probably a coincidence that it's there, but at least it offers some sort of in-film explanation for the joke.

 

Loved it when George McFly said 'nothing's coming into my mind'...
To which Marty replied 'Gees George, it's a wonder I was even born.'

Darryl

 

Absolutely love the first film!
It totally holds up to repeat viewings.


Recently I rewatched all three and am now making my way thru the bonus material.

 

What was the date in the DeLorean in part 1 in the mall parking lot before they go back to 1955? October something?

I remember seeing it as a kid before whatever date that was in 1985 thinking it was such a hoot that the date in the car hadn't happened quite yet.

Love the first two movies especially, the third one's not as fun. My favorite part, the "future" Nikes in the second movie



"Power laces, alright!"

 

This thread just reminded me about a BTTF moment I had a few weeks ago. As I parked my car in the supermarket parking lot, I noticed the car next to me was an actual DeLorean!!! I actually took the time to walk over to the car and marvel at this amazing piece of machinery ... lol.

As I walked away, I wondered if the flux capacitor was "fluxing!"

 

I'd be wondering if the air-con worked or whether the windows had fallen out yet

Not the best build quality those DeLoreans....

 

Dr. Emmett Brown is doubting Marty McFly's story about that he is from the future]
Dr. Emmett Brown: Then tell me, "Future Boy", who's President in the United States in 1985?
Marty McFly: Ronald Reagan.
Dr. Emmett Brown: Ronald Reagan? The actor?
[chuckles in disbelief]
Dr. Emmett Brown: Then who's VICE-President? Jerry Lewis?
[rushing out and down a hill toward his laboratory]
Dr. Emmett Brown: I suppose Jane Wyman is the First Lady!
Marty McFly: [following Doc] Whoa! Wait! Doc!
Dr. Emmett Brown: And Jack Benny is Secretary of the Treasury.

 

I think it's funny that ever since I was a kid in the 50's, whenever a film looked into the "future", no matter when that future was, the future ALWAYS has cars that fly. It's funny to think that even in 1985 they thought that a possibility. Or perhaps that was just a joke as well. Like the Cubs winning the world series!

Also, in 1985 laser discs were just becoming the latest thing, and they were right that they'd eventually be considered garbage... only it happened a lot sooner than 2015.

Even though I like BTTF#3 a lot, I too feel slightly bogged down by the romance scenes. It does slow the film in it's third quarter. However, I really like the whole western feel, the street shoot-out and the challenge to get back to 1985. It's funny, I can believe in the whole time travel bit but I can't believe that in the end of the film, when the train smashes the car right near the center of town, no one comes over to investigate the crash. You'd think people would be swarming all over it.

 

BTTF

I saw BTTF in the theater when it first came out and really enjoyed it. I thought it was a movie with a good story line, good special effects, and MJ Fox in the leading role was a good move. It was entertaining from start to finish and there is little that I could criticize.

I never did check out the sequels though.

Scott

 

Check them out. That is a sin.

 

Love the scene in II were Doc uses a blackboard to explain the alternate timeline to Marty (and of course the audience).