Film Roar

Back to the Future (1985)

I was delighted when I first read that the Back to the Future trilogy was finally going to make it to DVD. I have many fond memories of seeing the original Back to the Future (1985) the year it was released and was eager to see if the movie could make me laugh today like it did back then.

I am happy to report that I was not at all disappointed. Writer / Director Robert Zemeckis (Romancing the Stone (1984), Cast Away (2000)) did a superb job with the script for this fun and witty 80s update of H.G. Wells’ The Time Machine (1960). The twists and turns that the plot takes as timelines come unraveled are perfectly laid out to enjoy the ride.

Of course it did not hurt anything that I am a big Michael J. Fox fan. You have to bear in mind that this was Fox’s big movie break (lets just pretend that Class of 1984 (1982) never happened). He shot most of Back to the Future at night because he had a daytime commitment to "Family Ties" (1982). Fox has a particular way of looking lost and confused that is charming, and he keeps the charm turned out throughout the movie.

The rest of the cast does a great job as well. Christopher Lloyd (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), "Taxi" (1978), The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984), The Addams Family (1991)) seems a natural for Dr Brown, Lea Thompson (Red Dawn (1984), Howard the Duck (1986), Some Kind of Wonderful (1987)) gives Lorraine just the right edge as the sexually curious young mother to be. Crispin Glover (Wild at Heart (1990), River’s Edge (1986), Charlie's Angels (2000)) always seemed a bit odd to me in his role as Marti’s father. It was not until later in Charlies Angels that I started to realize he seems odd, because the man IS odd.