The past and the future could be in jeopardy. Watching this sequel is fun and gives many reason why interfering with time is not such a good idea.

Rating: Null/10 (16 January 2003)

Although it is not as good as the original movie in my view, the sequel Back To The Future II' is a movie that fans of the genre will always enjoy. What is fun about this movie is how totally crazy that the whole idea behind it really was. However it is also interesting to once again visit the classic story that the two Bobs have been made famous for writing. There are other interesting aspects to this film, but if I tell you too much too soon, we might do some irreparable damage to the space time continuum'.
Brace yourself  as the most spectacular history-altering adventure of all time continues. Marty and Doc Brown have barely recovered from their first time-travelling adventure when they launch themselves once more into the space time continuum. But this time around, their history-tweaking antics in the year 2015 create a frightful, alternate 1985 Hill Valley where bully Biff Tannen is rich, powerful and Marty's Dad! Now, their only chance to fix the present is by going back to 1955 all over again. But can Doc and Marty patch up the past without igniting a universe-shredding time paradox?

What is most impressive about the second of the BTTF films is the story that was thought up by Bob Zemeckis and Bob Gale. Many sequels are entirely different sorts of movies, but in this one, the writing pair have cashed in on what was successful in the first and cleverly integrated that into the second. If I was to tell you what the main parts to the story were, it would get both of us very confused.
Another remarkable part to this movie is the way the future is presented here. The movie partly takes place in 2015, so I am sure back in the 1980s, the ideas of what the future would be like in the new millennium were quite outrageous. Yet for a film such as this they are the perfect ideas to present. Of the changes to Marty's home town Hill Valley in 2015, they include vehicles which can fly through the sky and kids who have skateboards that operate as hovercrafts'. In fact the movies special effect highlights include all of the scenes with these hovercrafts', with Marty evading a bad gang in the centre of Hill Valley.
Marty and Doc Brown (Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd) are back in very entertaining roles. Fox takes on more than the role of 17 year old Marty McFly from 1985. He is also his son Marty Jnr., the older Marty (the father of the family) and his daughter Marlene. Fox commented that the process of being the many different characters was an arduous task, but one that makes the whole BTTF experience worth it. Yet the standout role in BTTF 2 has to be Lloyd, who as the Doc has many headaches when he goes from the future, the present and the past. He is breathless as he flies about trying to repair the damage that is caused to the space time continuum'. Many times I had to laugh as the Doc is rambling on about what chaos has been caused by the latest disaster.
There are other reprising roles that are most noteworthy in BTTF 2. Biff (Thomas F. Wilson) is back, as is his older version in the year 2015, along with his grandson Griff, who is as much a butthead' as his grandfather was at his age. In fact going back to see Biff as a billionaire and a teenager was even more enjoyable this time around, as he is the tough guy that Marty McFly does not like. There is also Marty's mother Lorraine (Lea Thompson), who is very old in 2015 and placed into a horrible life when the present is ruined by her son. I feel that she was a great choice for this role and I am glad she came back. A new actor to the cast is Karate Kid and Leaving Las Vegas star Elizabeth Shue, who is Marty's girlfriend, Jennifer. Her role in the movie is funny as she is taken on a ride that will show her future.

Being behind the scenes of this movie must have been a nightmare, as you would not have known where you were from one day to the next. Perhaps that is the reason that this movie would have been so much fun to work on. I like what this movie points out about the past and the future. It shows you can go into the future and straighten out what little idiosyncrasy that you or your family might have. But it also shows what damage can be caused to the present, when one mistake is made. Back To The Future II' might not be as classy as the original movie, but what it lacks it in originality, it makes up with in comedy and humour. With that in mind, fans of the series would have to be happy with a most satisfying of sequels.
CMRS gives Back To The Future II': 4 (Very Good Film)