Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2.fluke 9/24/84; site vax2.fluke.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxj!mhuxt!houxm!mtuxo!mtunh!mtung!mtunf!ariel!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!fluke!moriarty From: moriarty@fluke.UUCP (Jeff Meyer) Newsgroups: net.movies Subject: BACK TO THE FUTURE (Spoilers) Message-ID: <790@vax2.fluke.UUCP> Date: Fri, 5-Jul-85 20:34:38 EDT Article-I.D.: vax2.790 Posted: Fri Jul 5 20:34:38 1985 Date-Received: Sun, 7-Jul-85 05:10:10 EDT Distribution: net Organization: John Fluke Mfg. Co., Inc., Everett, WA Lines: 58 BACK TO THE FUTURE is one of those films, which, on reflection, makes me wonder just why it left me with such a good feeling. As you probably know, it's the story of a young man (Michael J. Fox of the Family Ties television show) who accidently travels thirty years into the past, with the aid of a scientist friend's (Christopher Lloyd, who has been in about 8 films during the last two years (Sorry, Mark)) time machine. The plot centers around Fox's attempt to return to the future (the time machine, which is built out of a Delorean automobile, needs plutonium to run on, and a substitute power source must be found), and also with the time paradoxes which follow in Fox's wake, mainly the disruption of the incident which brings his mother and father together. For people who haven't considered the premise before, I imagine this is quite entertaining in itself; for those of us who have seen the "gotta fix up the time line irregularities" plot in science fiction novels for the last millenia, it's old hat. So I can't say I found the plot too interesting (though the resolution of Lloyd's fate is shuffled around well enough that it is not apparent (though the plot twist is foreseen)). Well, how about the laughs? Pretty sit-com stuff, in terms of getting Mom and Pop back together again, and also with a lot of slapstick. The acting is also sitcom-like; nothing too interesting in that. The special effects are limited, but well-done (apparently ILM must have been pretty busy this year -- they are getting to be the SPX 'R US of the American film industry). So why did I enjoy this? Well, basically the one time the actors seem to come alive is when Fox and Lloyd are together. Lloyd's Doc character is eccentric, but not nutty enough to be a comedy character. He obviously likes Marty (Fox's character), and his willingness to risk his own life to insure Marty returns to 1985 one of the most touching parts of the film. In essence, when Fox & Lloyd are on the screen, the movie is quite watchable; when it's only Fox, it tends to grind down to HAPPY DAYS revisited. Frankly, I'd like to see another movie with Doc and Marty doing some time travelling on their own, sans the relatives. That, I think, would be a film worth paying full price for (this is a $2.50 movie, which is what I paid for it). A few questions: 1) Where have I seen (or heard) the person who played Marty's Dad before? The voice is amazingly familiar. 2) Are we supposed to imagine that Marty's parents' transformation into Yuppies makes everything OK? Is it implying that the answer to family happiness is rich, cool (rather sexually active) parents? 3) Why don't they stick up a lightening rod to get power for the car's Time Flux Do-Dad? They could drive around at 88 miles/hour with a grounded leash attached to the car.... Whoops, sorry, trying to insert logic... "Roads? Where we're going, they don't NEED roads!" If he's not one thing, he's another. ---> Moriarty, aka Jeff Meyer John Fluke Mfg. Co., Inc. UUCP: {cornell,decvax,ihnp4,sdcsvax,tektronix,utcsri}!uw-beaver \ {allegra,gatech!sb1,hplabs!lbl-csam,decwrl!sun,ssc-vax} -- !fluke!moriarty ARPA: fluke!moriarty@uw-beaver.ARPA