Back to the Future (1985) – Encore Review 8

“Damn it, Doc! Why did you have to tear up that letter? If I only had more time. [realizing] Wait a minute. I got all the time I want. I got a time machine! I can just go back early and warn him.” – Marty McFly

Number of Times Seen – Too many to count, but definitely more than 50 times (Theater in ’85, cable, video, DVD, 7 May 2013, 13 Nov 2014, 8 Oct 2015 and 8 Mar 2017, 11 Jan 2018, 7 Oct 2019, 18 Jan 2021, 1 Nov 2021 and 22 Jul 2022)

Link to original review – Here , Here , Here , Here , Here Here, Here and Here

Brief Synopsis – A teenager accidentally is sent back in time 30 years and meets his parents when they were teenagers and ends up almost causing problems that might result in endangering his own existence.

My Take on it – recall seeing this movie at least twice in the theater in the summer of 1985. I have also seen it tens of times since then on cable, VHS, DVD, but during my recent visit to the US, I had what I would call, a once in a lifetime experience. I found a movie theater called Water Tower Cinema in MontgomeryVille, PA (a 90 minute drive from where I was staying) that had 2 showing of this film in the theater every day for a limited time. I was so excited to once again see this on the big screen that I worked it into my VERY busy schedule and after unsuccessfully trying to convince numerous friends to join me on a Friday afternoon for the movie (they each had work), I decided to go by myself. I envisioned a packed theater with hundreds of fans scampering to see this film. The reality was very different. I got to the theater early, bought my ticket, popcorn and coke (which had unlimited refills) and entered the theater. To my astonishment, I was the only one on the theater and still had hopes that I was just early and that the other hundreds would show up soon. Even after the movie started, no one else showed up and instead of having a certain experience that I had hoped for I had another amazing one that I never expected. here I was, in an empty theater with 200 plus seats. I chose to sit right smack dab in the middle of the theater and had such a unique experience; I got to watch one of my all-time favorite movies on a HUGE screen as a private screening. The experience would have been better if any of my friends would have found a way to join me, but I still had a great memory to last for years.

This film was once again amazing to watch because despite knowing it practically all by heart and talking along with the dialogue, it felt so different and special watching it on a HUGE screen instead of at home. The characters are fun and enjoyable to watch as things play out and cast is superb. The film gives a very unique perspective on the genre of time travel and manages to stay fun and innovative throughout. The special effects are wondrous to look at especially on a big screen. The chemistry between Christopher Lloyd and Michael J. Fox is great and that helps keep things so entertaining throughout. By far the best of the movies in the trilogy…. Can’t wait to watch it again (even if it probably won’t be in a theater.)

Highly Highly Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – The test audience, to whom the movie was initially screened, was not told that the movie was intended to be a comedy. Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale recalled that the atmosphere in the cinema started to get really tense during the scene where Einstein the dog is sent through time, because the audience was expecting that something gruesome had happened to the dog. (From IMDB)

Rating – Oscar Worthy (10/10) (no change from original review)