The start of a very entertaining trilogy

Rating: Null/10 (10 July 1999)

Ohhhh...such a great film, even after so many years! I first saw Back to the Future as a seven-year-old, and while I enjoyed it then, I didn't grasp all the subtle implications. The idea of a teenager accidentally mucking around in his parent's first romance is mind-boggling, but enjoyable. In some ways, this is not only a sci-fi flick (which really it isn't) but a character drama, a comedy (at many times) and a period piece. The contrast between the 80's and the 50's is comical in a time when both decades are part of America's colorful past. After you've seen Back to the Future at least a dozen times, you start to pick up on the attention to detail--and how one incident in the past can drastically affect the future. The name of the mall, for instance, is changed from Twin Pine to Lone Pine in one fell swoop of an out-of-control DeLorean. Such comedy arises from Marty's encounters with his family-to-be. Lorraine, his mother, is infatuated with him, much to the dismay of her family; her father remarks, "He's an idiot. Parents probably idiots too. Lorraine, if you ever have a kid like that I'll disown you." If he only knew!!!
BTTF also sets the pace for the rest of the trilogy, and you really have to watch the first to understand any of the movies. Plus, if you look at the trilogy as a whole, one big incorporate story, it's really a very inventive, involving joyride. Plus, Christopher Lloyd makes a very amusing nutty professor-type, and the soundtrack's great. The costumes are convincing, as is 50's Hill Valley. A great experience for anyone.