Classic Hollywood

Rating: Null/10 (25 October 2002)

Imagine this: it is the summer of 1985 and the film that is the biggest hit and getting all the attention is "Rambo: First Blood Part II." You hear buzz about a new comedy produced by Steven Spielberg and written by the same people who wrote "1941" and "Used Cars". You get a chance to see a screening and you do not know what to expect. You come out of the film knowing that this film will soon replace "Rambo" as the film everyone talks about. That is exactly what happened to me on this film. When I first saw it, it reminded me of a classic Hollywood movie, the kind Frank Capra or Preston Sturges would have made if they had access the effects available in the 1980's. I'll go you one better, the twist of the main character meeting his mother when she was in high school and the mother hitting on him is a perverse touch worthy of Billy Wilder! Bob Gale, one of the film's Oscar-nominated screenwriters said that when audiences saw the opening of the film, they were wondering why the dysfunctional McFly family was being shown; but when Marty goes back in time, the gags payoff one by one and the audience gets it right away. That is exactly what happens. If you have not seen it, please do. They almost never make them like this anymore!