Episode #3 - Back to the Future (1985)

Podcast - Before You Die

In this episode, we're gunning it to 88 and discussing the 1985 sci-fi classic, Back to the Future!

Small-town California teen Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) is thrown back into the '50s when an experiment by his eccentric scientist friend Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) goes awry. Traveling through time in a modified DeLorean car, Marty encounters young versions of his parents (Crispin Glover, Lea Thompson), and must make sure that they fall in love or he'll cease to exist. Even more dauntingly, Marty has to return to his own time and save the life of Doc Brown.

EPISODE NOTES

• A film which saw Eric Stoltz take the lead for over a month of filming before being swapped out for Michael J Fox. Some of the existing reaction shots were actually of actors reacting to Eric, rather than Micheal.

• One of the first truly mutual and equal on-screen friendships between a teenager and an adult.

• The script is considered to be near-perfect and is used in many film education institutions as reference

• Crispin Glover and his lawsuit over the use of his likeness in Back to the Future II set a precedent in Hollywood that changed the legalities around how the likenesses of actors are portrayed in film.

• A wonderfully crafted element of visual storytelling that demands repeat viewings to fully take in the experience

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