Revisiting ‘Back to the Future’ For Its 40th Anniversary!
Great Scott! Has it really been 40 years since Back to the Future came out and blew all our minds? It starts with a simple enough premise: What would it be like to meet our parents when they were our age? (assuming you were a teenager). But it takes it further when the main character Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) accidentally travels back in time 30 years using a Delorean that’s been converted into a time machine. But it turns out Marty’s presence in the past has serious repercussions in the future. Now, with the help of his friend/mentor Doc Brown, he has to get back to the future before his time runs out.
[Warning: spoilers from Back to the Future are below!]
Accidents abound in Back to the Future
Part of the magic of Back to the Future is that it’s an off-the-wall, crazy adventure from the start. Doc Brown (Christoper Lloyd) got the idea to build the flux capacitor that powers the time machine when he fell and hit his head. Thirty years later, he builds the time machine, but Marty’s human trial was a complete accident; he was just trying to get away from gun-toting terrorists.
Then he arrives in 1955 by accident and accidentally takes his father’s place in his parents’ love story. When he finds Doc, and they realize that Marty’s presence is messing up 1985, they have to try to fix what Marty broke and get him …“back to the future!” And of course, there are a million more accidents that ensue before Marty manages to straighten everything out and get home (both of which happen more by accident than plan, honestly). Every moment is hilarious, and the chemistry between Christoper Lloyd and Michael J. Fox is what really makes it all work. If these two characters don’t mesh well and don’t play off each other right, the whole thing comes tumbling down. Luckily, the two worked together perfectly, and an intergenerational classic was born.
Time travel with style and caring in this Robert Zemeckis film
Everyone thinks Doc Brown is just a crazy old quack, and he is a little crazy, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be a genius at the same time. Thanks to a knock to the head in 1955, he manages to unlock the secret of time travel. And after double-crossing some terrorists, he builds a time machine in a DeLorean. Because like Doc says, “…if you’re gonna build a time machine into a car, why not do it with some style?” And everything Doc does has some style, if you ask me. There’s no denying that Doc is nuts, but he’s so animated and excited all the time that you just go with it.
The dynamics between him and Marty are interesting. Because he’s a little bit of a mentor to Marty, and a little bit of a big brother looking out for Marty, and a little bit of a little brother that Marty’s looking out for. While Marty is a smart-aleck who makes plenty of jokes, he really becomes the straight man in their duo because Doc is just so far out there, and he doesn’t even mean to be! That’s what makes Doc lovable instead of annoying; he’s crazy, but he doesn’t know it, so you can look past it and smile, kinda like a toddler. It can be really hard to keep Doc focused, but Marty does a good job of pulling him back on track.
And there’s no denying the two care for each other. I mean, Doc nearly kills himself helping Marty get back to his proper time. Sure, you could say he’s just into the science of it all, but Lloyd’s performance makes it obvious that Doc sees Marty as family, and it’s more than just a scientific interest that has him hanging off the clock tower at 10:04 pm.
Style is the key to making this work
It’s not only Doc that’s interested in style. One of the reasons Back to the Future works so well is that the two time periods are stylistically very distinctive. When Marty goes back to 1955, it’s instantly obvious to him that something isn’t right. Everything looks jarringly different from 1985. Even if you don’t count the urban decline that Hill Valley undergoes, the difference between poodle skirts with saddle shoes and jeans with sneakers is glaringly obvious. Not only does Marty know something is off, but everyone who sees him is confused by his outfit. This difference is obvious in everything.
From the font used on signs to the slang being spoken to the style of the cars, things are very different in 1955, and we, the viewers, are just as rattled by the differences as Marty is. Style continues to be extremely important moving forward in the series, with each time, and indeed timeline, being marked by distinctive stylistic choices in everything from clothing to architecture to toys. But I’m just focusing on the first movie here, so I won’t go into that. Style helps us keep track of where and when we are in Back to the Future. And watching it now, 1985’s style gives me such a sense of nostalgia; I imagine 1955 did the same for parents when the movie first came out. It’s interesting to be on the other side of the fence now. It brings up more warm feelings when I watch Back to the Future, which I love. It makes this movie the gift that keeps on giving.
Back to the Future is a story to share and love
So I didn’t really go into the story too much here. That’s because I’m pretty sure that after 40 years, we all know the story. I wanted to look at why I thought Back to the Future worked so well. There have been a lot of time-travel movies, but we relate to this one for three big reasons. First, the phenomenal acting jobs. The chemistry is great, especially between Lloyd and Fox, and that really draws us into the story. Second, the humor. There is a lot of comedy in Back to the Future, and it comes in many forms. There is situational, slapstick, farcical, satirical, and more. You just laugh constantly, and the variety keeps it from feeling stupid or over-the-top.
Finally, the time-jump is small. Usually, time travel jumps back hundreds (hello, kings and queens) or thousands (welcome to Egypt). Sometimes the jump is even millions of years (meet the dinosaurs). And those all offer fun adventures to be sure, but there isn’t the same relatability of the small jump. By only going back one generation, things are still recognizable, but they’re just different enough to cause problems. And there’s the fun of seeing your parents when they’re young and finding out that they’re not perfect. In fact, they’re just as messed up as you. That’s fun and exciting in a personable way that big jumps just can’t give you, and that’s maybe the single biggest reason that Back to the Future resonates with so many people and has stayed relevant for the past 40 years. Now, if you’ll excuse me, there’s been a sudden 1.21 gigawatt jump in my power usage that I need to go check on…
Back to the Future is streaming on Netflix! When was the last time you revisited this classic? Let us know your favorite part @BoxSeatBabes on all social media platforms!
Spectacle Over Substance: A Newcomer’s Take on Back to the Future: The Musical
