Final Film is Fun Enough, but Missing Something

Rating: 7/10 (14 September 2009)

Robert Zemeckis's fantastic time travel trilogy ends with a whimper. Well, all right, that may be a little harsh, but I don't feel it lived up to the fun of the first two. The finale finds Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) trapped in the wild west of 1885 and Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) is determined to bring him back when he discovers Doc is murdered by local outlaw Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen (Thomas F. Wilson). It's got some fun moments but my favorite aspect of the trilogy, time travel, isn't as prominent this time around.
After Marty arrives in 1885, the time travel element is put on hold for the duration of the film, as the DeLorean is temporarily out of commission. This is unfortunate, as the DeLorean is probably my favorite "character" from the trilogy. Watching as Doc and Marty bounce around time to fix the paradoxes they create was always a blast; this time it's just a matter of getting back to the future before Tannen kills either one of them. We're also treated to a new love interest for Doc, in the form of Mary Steenburgen as schoolteacher Clara Clayton. It's nice to see Doc getting attention but it's still not what I was looking for in a BTTF film.
The movie plays out like a generic western/fish-out-of-water comedy and is good for some laughs. Marty's reaction to antiquated life in the old west is funny enough and I loved the final act with Doc and Marty's final confrontation with Tannen and race against time to get the DeLorean up to speed. Still, of the three films, this film finds itself as the weak link in the chain. The cast is phenomenal as we've come to expect, and it really helps with the mediocre storyline. On the off chance you haven't already since this, don't expect the final installment of one of cinema's most memorable series to leave you completely satisfied, but at least you know you can count on an entertaining two hours.