Back to the Future 42993 226139446 2008-07-17T00:13:37Z Moonlightmuse 900135 /* Plot */ {{otheruses4|the first film in the Back to the Future trilogy|information on the series as a whole|Back to the Future trilogy}} {{Infobox Film | name = Back to the Future | image = Back to the future.jpg | caption = ''Back to the Future'' [[film poster]] | director = [[Robert Zemeckis]] | producer = [[Bob Gale]]<br />[[Steven Spielberg]]<br />[[Neil Canton]]<br />[[Kathleen Kennedy (film producer)|Kathleen Kennedy]]<br />[[Frank Marshall (film producer)|Frank Marshall]] | writer = Robert Zemeckis<br />Bob Gale | starring = [[Michael J. Fox]]<br />[[Christopher Lloyd]]<br />[[Lea Thompson]]<br />[[Crispin Glover]]<br />[[Thomas F. Wilson]] | cinematography = [[Dean Cundey]] | editing = Harry Keramidas<br />[[Arthur Schmidt]] | distributor = [[Universal Pictures]] | released = [[July 3]], [[1985]] | runtime = 116 minutes | country = {{USA}} | language = [[English language|English]] | music = [[Alan Silvestri]] | budget = [[United States dollar|US$]]19,000,000 | gross = [[United States dollar|US$]]381,109,762<br /><small>(worldwide)</small> | followed_by = ''[[Back to the Future Part II]]'' | amg_id = 1:3671 | imdb_id = 0088763 }} '''''Back to the Future''''' is a [[1985 in film|1985]] [[Academy Award]]-winning [[science fiction]]–[[adventure]]-[[comedy]] film directed by [[Robert Zemeckis]] and produced by [[Steven Spielberg]]. Zemeckis wrote the story, along with [[Bob Gale]]. It stars [[Michael J. Fox]] as teenager [[Marty McFly]] and [[Christopher Lloyd]] as scientist [[Emmett Brown|Dr. Emmett L. Brown]]. The film's basic storyline involves the [[premise (film)|premise]] of [[time travel]] being used to breach the [[generation gap]]. In a [[De Lorean time machine]] invented by Dr. Emmett L. Brown, Marty accidentally travels back to the year 1955 when his parents were teenagers. Having interfered with their first meeting, Marty must ensure that his young parents [[falling in love|fall in love]] so that he will be born. Furthermore, the Dr. Brown of 1955 must find a way to return Marty to 1985 without the [[plutonium]] necessary to fuel the journey. Due to the film's success, three spin-off projects were made. [[CBS]] TV aired an [[List of animated television series|animated series]], ''[[Back to the Future: The Animated Series]]'' and [[Harvey Comics]] released a handful of similarly styled comic books, although their stories were original and not merely duplicates of the films. In 1991, [[Universal Studios Theme Parks]] opened a simulator ride based on the series called ''[[Back to the Future: The Ride]]''. The ride closed on [[March 30]], [[2007]] in Orlando, FL, and [[September 3]], [[2007]] in [[Universal Studios Hollywood|Hollywood]], California. The ride remains open at [[Universal Studios Japan]]. The "[[Courthouse Square]]" area, where scenes incorporating the clock tower were shot, was a popular attraction on the backlot tour at [[Universal Studios Hollywood]] until most of it was destroyed in a fire on [[June 1]], [[2008]]. The courthouse itself was spared. ==Plot== [[Marty McFly]] is a 17-year-old living in [[Hill Valley (Back to the Future)|Hill Valley]], [[California]]. On the morning of [[October 25]]<!--Marty time-travels back from October 26, but this occurs on the day following the opening of the film.-->, 1985, his eccentric friend, scientist Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown (Lloyd), calls him, asking to meet at 1:15 a.m. After school that day, a solicitor approaches Marty and his girlfriend [[Jennifer Parker|Jennifer]] ([[Claudia Wells]]), asking for donations to preserve the town's clock tower which has not run since it was struck by lightning thirty years before. Upon arriving home, Marty finds the family car wrecked in the driveway. Inside the house, he finds his weak-willed father [[George McFly|George]] ([[Crispin Glover]]) being bullied by his supervisor [[Biff Tannen]] ([[Thomas F. Wilson]]), who had borrowed and wrecked the car. At dinner that night, Marty's mother [[Lorraine Baines McFly|Lorraine]] ([[Lea Thompson]]) recounts how she and George first met when her father hit George with his car as George was "bird-watching". [[Image:Back to the Future.jpg|200px|thumb|left|[[Emmett Brown|"Doc" Brown]], ([[Christopher Lloyd]]) and [[Marty McFly]], ([[Michael J. Fox]]) watch as the time machine vanishes.]] That night, Marty meets Doc as planned in the parking lot of [[Hill Valley (Back to the Future)#Twin Pines Mall|Twin Pines Mall]]. Doc presents a [[DeLorean DMC-12]] which he has modified into a [[wiktionary:time machine|time machine]]. As Marty [[videotape]]s, Doc then explains that the car travels to a programmed date and time upon reaching eighty-eight miles per hour using [[plutonium]] in a nuclear reaction to generate the 1.21 [[watt#gigawatt|gigawatts]] of power it requires. Demonstrating how to program the machine, Doc enters in [[November 5]], [[1955]] as the target date, explaining that it was the day he conceived the idea of the flux capacitor; the device which "makes time travel possible". Before Doc can depart for his planned trip into the future, a pair of [[Libya]]n [[terrorism|terrorists]], from whom he stole the plutonium, arrive in a [[Volkswagen Type 2]] and machine gun him to death. Marty jumps into the De Lorean and is pursued by the Libyans until he drives at eighty-eight miles per hour and is instantaneously transported back to the year 1955. The car [[stall (engine)|stalls]] shortly thereafter; therefore Marty hides it and makes his way into town on foot, finding that the [[town square]] now reflects the [[popular culture]] of the 1950s. He runs into his own father, then a teenager, being tyrannized just as he was in 1985 by Biff, who was then the school [[bullying|bully]]. Marty follows George; as he is about to be hit by a car, Marty pushes his father out of the way and takes the impact, resulting in Lorraine becoming [[infatuation|infatuated]] with Marty instead of George. Marty is disturbed by her sexual advances, which contrast sharply with the [[prude|prudish]] woman he remembers. He flees from her home to track down Doc Brown. The scientist at first believes that Marty is a lunatic, and considers it hilarious that [[Ronald Reagan]] will be [[President of the United States|President]] in 1985. However, Marty mentions the flux capacitor and shows Doc his videotape. However, Doc is horrified to hear his older self describe the power requirements for time travel. He tells Marty that aside from plutonium, which is "a little hard to come by," the only possible source of that much power is a bolt of [[lightning]], which cannot be predicted. Marty immediately remembers that the lightning strike at the clock tower will occur the following Saturday. As a result, Doc begins planning a way to harness the bolt's power. Doc deduces that, by saving his father from the car, Marty has prevented his parents from meeting. After several failed attempts at playing matchmaker, Marty eventually works out a plan to have George appear to rescue Lorraine from a rape attempt on the night of a school dance. However, Biff shows up unexpectedly and orders his friends to lock Marty in a car trunk. Heavily intoxicated, he jumps into the car and attempts to brutally rape the horrified Lorraine. George arrives as he and Marty have planned and is shocked and terrified to find Biff instead of Marty. Biff orders him to turn around and walk away, but George cannot bring himself to ignore Lorraine's pleas for help. When Biff attacks him, George finally snaps and knocks out his tormenter with a single punch. A smitten Lorraine follows George to the dance floor, but another man cuts in as Marty begins to be erased from existence. Suddenly, George cuts in and kisses Lorraine for the first time, ensuring Marty's existence. Doc, meanwhile, has used cables to connect the clock tower's antenna to two lamp posts, which he plans to have Marty drive under in the DeLorean, now sporting a [[lightning rod]], at eighty-eight miles per hour the moment the lightning strikes. [[Image:ClockTower1955.PNG|thumb|200px|The clock tower gets struck by lightning at 10:04 P.M. on [[November 12]], [[1955]].]] Before Marty can leave, Doc finds a letter in his coat pocket that Marty has written, warning him about his future murder. Doc indignantly tears up the letter without reading it, describing the dangers of altering the future. Marty adjusts the time machine to take him back to 1985 ten minutes earlier than he left, giving him time to prevent the shooting. Upon his arrival, however, the car stalls and Marty arrives at the mall too late to save Doc. As Marty weeps over his friend's body, Doc revives and opens his [[NBC suit|radiation suit]] to reveal a [[ballistic vest|bulletproof vest]]. He shows Marty the letter he had written, taped back together. When asked about his belief in not altering the future, Doc replies, "I figured, what the hell?" The next morning, Marty finds his family has been changed for the better. Most notably, Lorraine is no longer prudish, and George has become self-confident. Biff has become a weak willed and servile car-cleaner. Just as Jennifer and Marty reunite, Doc arrives from the year 2015, insisting frantically about a problem concerning their future children. Marty and Jennifer climb aboard the DeLorean; but when after Marty points out there is not enough road wherein to reach 88 miles per hour, Doc quietly smiles. He responds, "Where we're going, we don't need roads." The car lifts off into the sky and disappears. ==Production== ===Script=== The inspiration for the film largely stems from [[Bob Gale]], who discovered his father's high school yearbook and wondered whether he would have been friends with his father as a teenager. His father was class president and pretty much the "big guy on campus," while Bob was on the other end of the social barometer&mdash;more of a nerd. <ref name="DVD Making of1"> {{cite video | people = Gale, Bob | title = Back to the Future, The Complete Trilogy - "The Making of the Trilogy, Part 1" | medium = DVD | publisher = Universal Home Video | date = 2002 }}</ref> Gale and [[Robert Zemeckis]] originally wrote the script in September 1980 but struggled to find the time to make it. Steven Spielberg read it when Gale first had the idea and asked Zemeckis a number of years later what had happened to it. The year 1955 was chosen because it fell within the era that [[youth subculture|teenage culture]] was born. Zemeckis pitched the idea to several companies.<ref name="DVD">{{cite video | people= Zemeckis, Robert Gale, Bob|year=2002|title= Back to the Future: The Complete Trilogy DVD commentary for part 1| medium= DVD||publisher= Universal Pictures}}</ref> [[Walt Disney Pictures|Disney]] turned it down because they thought that a story involving a mother falling in love with her son was too risqué, even if in a twist of time travel.<ref name="DVD"/> All other companies said it was not risqué enough, compared to other teen comedies at the time (such as ''[[Porky's]]'', ''[[Fast Times at Ridgemont High]]'', and ''[[Revenge of the Nerds]]''). [[Sidney Sheinberg]], the head of [[Universal Studios]], made many changes to the movie. "Professor Brown" was changed to "Doc Brown" and his chimp Shemp to a dog named [[Einstein (Back to the Future)|Einstein]]. Marty's mother had previously been Meg, then Eileen, but Sheinberg insisted that she be named Lorraine after his wife [[Lorraine Gary]].<ref name="DVD"/> Sheinberg also did not like the title, insisting that no one would see a movie with "future" in the title<ref name="DVD" />. In a memo to [[Robert Zemeckis]], he said that the title should be changed to "''Spaceman From Pluto''," tying in with the Marty-as-alien jokes in the film.<ref name="bbcdvd">{{cite web|first=Almar|last=Haflidason|title=Back to the Future DVD (1985)|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2002/10/11/back_to_the_future_1985_dvd_review.shtml|accessdate=2006-11-29}}</ref> [[Steven Spielberg]] replied in a memo thanking him for the wonderful "joke memo" and told him everyone got a kick out of it. Sheinberg, too proud to admit he was serious, let the title stand.<ref name="QandA">Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale, ''Q&A'', Back to the Future [DVD], recorded at the [[University of Southern California]]</ref> In the original script, Marty's rock 'n roll performance caused a riot at the dance that had to be broken up by police. This, combined with Marty accidentally making the Professor (Doc) aware of the "secret ingredient" that made the time machine work ([[Coca-Cola]]) caused history to change. When Marty got back to 1985, he found that it was now the [[Retro-futurism|1950s conception of the future]], with air-cars and other electronic devices, all invented by Doc Brown and running on Coca-Cola. Marty also discovers that rock and roll was never invented (the most popular musical style was [[Mambo (music)|mambo]]), and he dedicates himself to starting the delayed cultural revolution. Meanwhile, his dad opens a scrapbook containing newspaper clippings from the day after the 1955 dance and sees his son in the picture of the riot. The time machine is not built around a [[DeLorean DMC-12]], and the power source for Marty's trip back to 1985 comes from atomic testing, rather than a lightning strike.<ref>{{cite web|title=Back to the Future: FIRST DRAFT|url=http://www.scifiscripts.com/scripts/back_to_the_future_original_draft.html|date=1981-02-24|accessdate=2006-11-26}}</ref> Early [[concept art]] made when it was planned that Marty would return to the future via atomic testing was later utilized by [[Steven Spielberg]] for a scene in ''[[Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull]]''.<ref>{{cite web | last = Christensen III | first = Paulington James | title = EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: George Lucas Prepares Us for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull | publisher = MovieWeb | date = 2008-05-05 | url = http://www.movieweb.com/news/15/28415.php | accessdate = 2008-06-03 }} </ref> Doc Brown's "man hanging off a clock face"-themed clock reprises the famous scene in [[Harold Lloyd]]'s ''[[Safety Last!]]'' ([[1923 in film|1923]]). The fact that [[Christopher Lloyd]] and Harold Lloyd have the same last name, is merely a coincidence. ====Pronunciation of "gigawatt"==== In the film's script the word "[[watt#gigawatt|gigawatt]]" is spelled and pronounced "jigowatt" ({{IPAEng|ˈdʒɪgəwɒt}}). The metric prefix "[[giga-]]" is now part of everyday speech due to its use in computing and is now most often pronounced with a [[Hard and soft G|hard ''g'']], even though the official ([[National Institute of Standards and Technology|NIST]]) pronunciation is the soft ''g''. However, in the 1980s, the soft ''g'' was the most common pronunciation of the prefix. Bob Gale and Robert Zemeckis had been doing research for the film, during which they talked to someone who pronounced the word with a soft ''g''. This note is explained when Bob Gale is giving a commentary of the film on the special edition DVD during the scene where Doc explains the plan to send Marty back to the future. ===Casting and filming=== As ''Back to the Future's'' producers scouted locations on a residential street in [[Pasadena, California|Pasadena]], [[Michael J. Fox]] was elsewhere on that street, filming his first starring feature role, ''[[Teen Wolf]]''. The producers became interested in having Fox play [[Marty McFly]], but Fox initially had to turn down the part because of his increasing involvement in the [[situation comedy|sitcom]] ''[[Family Ties]]''. Another of the show's stars, [[Meredith Baxter|Meredith Baxter-Birney]], was pregnant at the time, and thus the show's producers were looking to Fox's character ([[Alex P. Keaton]]) to "carry the show."<ref>{{cite web|title=Frequently Asked Questions|work=bttf.com|url=http://www.bttf.com/film_faq.htm|accessdate=2006-11-29}}</ref> Production of the film began on [[November 26]], [[1984]], with actor [[Eric Stoltz]] portraying Marty McFly, and reportedly shot for more than four weeks, until the return of executive producer Steven Spielberg, who was out of the country at the time.{{Fact|date=April 2007}} After seeing a rough cut, Spielberg and the writer/directors agreed that Stoltz was a fine actor, but he was unfortunately not right for the part. Stoltz had played it seriously, and they wanted a lighter touch on the character. They returned to the idea of Michael J. Fox, who this time worked out a shooting schedule that would not interfere with his television commitment.<ref name="DVD Making of1"> {{cite video | people = Gale, Bob | title = Back to the Future, The Complete Trilogy - "The Making of the Trilogy, Part 1" | medium = DVD | publisher = Universal Home Video | date = 2002 }}</ref> Fox spent his days rehearsing and shooting ''Family Ties'', and then drove to the movie's set to film ''Back to The Future'' all night. The movie's day shots were filmed on weekends. Fox reportedly averaged only an hour or two of sleep each night during production, which was completed on [[April 20]], [[1985]] {{Fact|date=April 2007}}, less than three months before the film's release.<ref name="QandA"/> Much of the original footage was retained for the film, for shots in which [[Eric Stoltz]] was not visible. [[Bob Gale]] later explained that some dialogue scenes with other actors were from the original shoot. A few long shots with Stoltz as Marty McFly still exist in the film, according to Zemeckis and Gale, and there was at least one "teaser" movie poster released with Stoltz's name and face visible. One notable scene that was kept in the final film is the one in which Stoltz as Marty drives the DeLorean in the mall parking lot. Since the shots were fairly distant, with the driver's face not particularly visible, the footage was retained.{{Fact|date=August 2007}} Michael J. Fox had to learn to ride a [[skateboard]] for the film. To find a coordinator for the skateboarding scenes, Bob Gale went to [[Venice, Los Angeles, California|Venice Beach]] and approached two skateboarders. One turned out to be European skate champ [[Per Welinder]]. The second skater, who became the stunt double for Eric Stoltz and was later replaced in order to match Michael J. Fox's height, was reportedly a then-unknown professional skateboarder named [[Tony Hawk]].<ref name="DVD"/> [[Christopher Lloyd]] reportedly based his performance as Doc Brown on a combination of physicist [[Albert Einstein]] and conductor [[Leopold Stokowski]].<ref name="QandA"/> The extreme difference in height between Lloyd (6'1") and Fox (5'4") meant Doc's character was given a distinctive hunched-over look. To play their roles at the age of 47, [[Lea Thompson]] (Lorraine), [[Crispin Glover]] (George), and [[Thomas F. Wilson]] (Biff) had several hours' worth of makeup and extra layers of skin added to their faces; all three actors were therefore able to play their characters' younger selves as well.<ref name="1985 making of"/> Several key scenes were filmed on the Universal Studios [[backlot]] in what is now known as [[Courthouse Square]]. The setting of hundreds of other productions, including the current television show ''[[Ghost Whisperer]]'', it has suffered major fire damage on three occasions since ''Back to the Future'' was filmed.<ref>{{cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | title = Universal Studios Hollywood History File: November 6 1990 | work = thestudiotour.com | publisher = www.theatrecrafts.com/ | date = | url = http://www.theatrecrafts.com/studiotour/ush/backlot/fire_1990.html | format = | doi = | accessdate = 2006-12-01 }} </ref> <ref>{{cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | title = Fire destroys buildings at Universal Studios in LA | work = reuters.com | publisher = | date = 2008-06-01 | url = http://www.reuters.com/article/BROKER/idUSN0142277220080602 | format = | doi = | accessdate = 2008-06-01 }} </ref> The Courthouse Square [[backlot]] at [[Universal Studios]] was used for both time periods, with the 1955 scenes filmed first so that the location could be "trashed down" for the 1985 scenes.<ref name="DVD" /> The scene where Marty McFly discovers that Doc Brown has a time machine was filmed in front of the [[Puente Hills Mall]] in [[Industry, California|City of Industry, California]]. ===Music=== The film's [[sheet music|musical score]] was composed by [[Alan Silvestri]], who later wrote music for ''[[Forrest Gump]]'' and numerous other films, many of them directed by Robert Zemeckis. The themes in his ''Back to the Future Suite'' have since been heard in ''[[Back to the Future Part II]]'' and ''[[Back to the Future Part III|Part III]]'', which were also scored by Silvestri, in [[Back to the Future: The Ride]] and as ambient music at the Universal Studios theme parks. The hit, upbeat [[Back to the Future: Music from the Motion Picture Soundtrack|Back to the Future Soundtrack]], featuring two new songs by [[Huey Lewis & The News]], also contributed to the film's popularity. "[[The Power of Love (Huey Lewis & The News song)|The Power of Love]]" became the band's first song to hit number one on the [[Billboard Hot 100]] and was nominated for an [[Academy Awards|Academy Award]]. [[Huey Lewis]] portrayed the high school band audition judge that rejects Marty's band, The Pinheads, as they perform "The Power of Love," for being "too darn loud." Lewis had an additional cameo appearance as a man wearing a fedora who walks past Marty upon his arrival in town in 1955. The film's soundtrack, which was available on CD, also included songs by others such as [[Eric Clapton]], [[Lindsey Buckingham]], and [[Etta James]]. It used the largest orchestra ever assembled by [[Universal Studios|Universal Pictures]] at the time.<ref name="1985 making of">{{cite video | people= Zemeckis, Robert Gale, Bob|year=1985|title= The making of Back to the Future| medium= VHS||publisher= Universal Pictures}}</ref> Two 1950s hits Marty encounters when he arrives in 1955 ("[[Mr. Sandman]]" by [[The Four Aces]] and the [[Fess Parker]] recording of "[[The Ballad of Davy Crockett]]") were not included on the CD release. Neither was the "metal" version of, "[[Johnny B. Goode]]". In the movie, Marvin Berry was shown calling his cousin Chuck Berry about the "new sound" he was looking for. [[Chuck Berry]] is a real person, and the new sound he was looking for was obviously the early versions of Rock n' Roll. The material ostensibly performed by Marty McFly, and by Marvin Berry and the Starlighters, was recorded by Harry Waters, Jr. as Marvin Berry and Mark Campbell as Marty McFly, with the [[guitar solo]] played by Tim May (Campbell and May received a "special thanks" acknowledgment in the film's end credits, with the recording credit going to the fictional characters). Berry's group also plays the song "[[Night Train (song)|Night Train]]," first recorded by [[Jimmy Forrest]] in [[1951 in music|1951]].<ref>{{cite web | last = Dahl | first = Bill | title = Song Review: Night Train - Jimmy Forrest | work = AllMusicGuide | publisher = All Media Guide, LLC. | date = | url = http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=33:o6n20r2ar4kc | accessdate = 2006-12-17 }}</ref> == Response == The film opened on [[July 3]], [[1985]] and grossed [[United States dollar|U.S.]] $210 million at the U.S. box office, making it the highest grossing American film of 1985.<ref>[http://www.imdb.com/Sections/Years/1985/top-grossing "Top grossing movies for 1985 in the USA."] ''The [[Internet Movie Database]] (IMDb)''. 9 December 2006.</ref> The film was followed by two sequels: ''[[Back to the Future Part II]]'' in 1989 and ''[[Back to the Future Part III]]'' in 1990, forming a [[Back to the Future trilogy|trilogy]]. On [[December 17]], [[2002]], [[Universal Studios Home Entertainment]] released the film on [[DVD]] and [[VHS]] as part of ''Back to the Future: The Complete Trilogy''. ===Critical reaction=== Reviews were generally positive. [[Roger Ebert]] complimented the direction, writing that Zemeckis "shows not only a fine comic touch but also some of the lighthearted humanism of a [[Frank Capra]]."<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19850703/REVIEWS/507030301/1023|title=Roger Ebert review of ''Back to the Future''|accessdate=2 January|accessyear=2008}}</ref> Even the sequences where Marty's mom has the "hots for him" are regarded as "up-beat... without ever becoming uncomfortable."<ref>{{cite web|first=Gary|last=Panton|title=Back To The Future (1985)|work=Movie Gazette|url=http://www.movie-gazette.com/cinereviews/10|date= 2003-05-01|accessdate=2006-11-29}}</ref> The [[BBC]] applauded the intricacies of the "outstandingly executed" script, remarking that "nobody says anything that doesn't become important to the plot later."<ref name="bbc">{{cite web|title=Back to the Future (1985)|work=bbc.co.uk|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2000/10/05/back_to_the_future_1985_review.shtml|accessdate=2006-11-29}}</ref> This movie ranked number 28 on ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'''s list of the 50 Best High School Movies.<ref>{{cite web|title=The 50 Best High School Movies|work=Entertainment Weekly|url=http://www.ew.com/ew/report/0,6115,1532588_1_0_,00.html|accessdate=2006-11-26}}</ref> As of December 2006, ''Back to the Future'' had received a very respectable 95% overall rating on [[Rotten Tomatoes]], with a 98% rating from the users.<ref>[http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/back_to_the_future/ "''Back to the Future''."] ''[[Rotten Tomatoes]]''. 9 December 2006.</ref> In 2006, ''Back to the Future'' was voted the 20th greatest film ever made by readers of ''[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]]''.<ref>{{cite news | title = 201 Greatest Movie of all Time | pages = 97 | publisher = Empire | date = March 2006 (Issue 201)}}</ref> On December 27, 2007, ''Back to the Future'' was selected for preservation in the United States [[National Film Registry]] by the [[Library of Congress]] as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".<ref>[http://www.loc.gov/film/nfr2007.html National Film Registry 2007,Films Selected for the 2007 National Film Registry]. Retrieved on 4 February, 2008.</ref> ===Cultural impact=== The series was very popular in the 1980s, even making fans out of celebrities like [[Huey Lewis & The News]] (Lewis appeared in the first film) and [[ZZ Top]] (who appeared in the third film) and [[President of the United States|President]] [[Ronald Reagan]], who referred to the movie in his 1986 [[State of the Union Address]] when he said, "Never has there been a more exciting time to be alive, a time of rousing wonder and heroic achievement. As they said in the film ''Back to the Future'', 'Where we're going, we don't need roads.'"<ref>{{cite web|title=PRESIDENT RONALD REAGAN'S ADDRESS BEFORE A JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS ON THE STATE OF THE UNION|date=1986-02-04|url=http://www.c-span.org/executive/transcript.asp?cat=current_event&code=bush_admin&year=1986|accessdate=2006-11-26}} </ref> In fact, when he first saw the joke about him being president, i.e. "Ronald Reagan? The actor? Ha! Then who's Vice President, [[Jerry Lewis]]?", he made the projectionist of the theater stop the reel, roll it back, and run it again.<ref name="DVD Making of1"> {{cite video | people = Gale, Bob | title = Back to the Future, The Complete Trilogy - "The Making of the Trilogy, Part 1" | medium = DVD | publisher = Universal Home Video | date = 2002 }}</ref> He also considered accepting a role in the third film as the 1885 mayor of [[Hill Valley (Back to the Future)|Hill Valley]] but eventually declined.{{Fact|date=December 2007}}. In June 2008, the [[American Film Institute]] revealed the [[AFI's 10 Top 10]]—the best ten films in ten "classic" American film genres—after polling over 1,500 people from the creative community. ''Back to the Future'' was acknowledged as the 10th best film in the science fiction genre.<ref>{{cite news | author = | title = AFI Crowns Top 10 Films in 10 Classic Genres | publisher = ComingSoon.net | date =[[2008-06-17]] | url = http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=46072 | accessdate=2008-06-18 }}</ref> == Series continuity == Sequels were not initially planned. Zemeckis later stated that had sequels been envisioned, the first film would not have ended with Jennifer traveling in the [[De Lorean time machine|DeLorean]] with Marty and Doc, which created logistical problems in plotting the other films. In addition, Zemeckis and Gale state in the DVD commentary that the "To Be Continued..." caption was not originally in the film (the filmmakers chose to omit the caption from the 2002 DVD release to remain true to the original theatrical version). Ultimately, the sequels did not fare as well at the box office. While the first installment grossed $210 million (making it the biggest-earning movie of 1985), ''[[Back to the Future Part II]]'' (fall [[1989 in film|1989]]) and ''[[Back to the Future Part III]]'' (summer [[1990 in film|1990]]) made roughly $118 million and $88 million, respectively. Part III received generally more favorable reviews than Part II.<ref>[http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/back_to_the_future_3/ "Back to the Future Part III."] [[Rotten Tomatoes|Rotten Tomatoes.]] 10 March 2008</ref> == Home video release history == *First release May 1986 (VHS & [[Laserdisc|LaserDisc]]) MCA Home Video Label *[[January 25]], [[1987]] (VHS & LaserDisc) *[[May 18]], [[1987]] (VHS & LaserDisc) *[[December 15]], [[1990]] (VHS) *[[May 27]], [[1995]] (VHS & Compact Disc) *[[March 9]], [[1999]] (VHS, Compact Disc & LaserDisc) *[[May 7]], [[2000]] (VHS) *August 2002 [[Europe]] and [[Oceania]] (VHS & DVD; complete trilogy boxed set) *December 2002 [[North America]] (VHS & DVD; complete trilogy boxed set) *TBA 2008 (rerelease on [[Blu-ray Disc]])<ref>http://www.bttf.com/index.php?/weblog/more/bob_gale_hints_at_back_to_the_future_blu_ray_release_at_recent_screening</ref> == See also == * [[Back to the Future Part II]] * [[Back to the Future Part III]] * [[Grandfather paradox]] * [[1980s in film]] == References == {{reflist|2}} == External links == {{wikiquote}} {{Commons|Back to the Future}} * [http://www.bttfmovie.com/ Universal Pictures site] * [http://www.111webhost.com/sites/back-to-the-future.php Map of Filming Locations for ''Back to the Future''] * [http://www.bttf.com/ BTTF.com] * [http://www.jesseclarke.com/bttf/index.html Back to the Future Interactive Time Machine] * [http://www.bttf.com/film_faq.htm BTTF Frequently Asked Questions] written by Bob Gale and Robert Zemeckis * [http://www.bigwaste.com/bttf/ ''Back to the Future'' Filming Locations] * [[wikia:bttf|Futurepedia: The ''Back to the Future'' Wiki]] on [[Wikia]] * [http://www.backtothepast.perso.st ''Back To The Past'' fansite] {{fr icon}} * {{imdb title|id=0088763|title=Back to the Future}} * {{amg movie|id=1:3671|title=Back to the Future}} * {{rotten-tomatoes|id=back_to_the_future}} * [http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1800030906/info ''Back to the Future''] at [[Yahoo! Movies]] {{start box}}{{s-awards}} {{succession box | | before = ''[[The Terminator]]'' | after = ''[[Aliens (film)|Aliens]]'' | title = [[Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film]] | years = 1985 |}} {{end box}} {{bttf}} {{Robert Zemeckis}} {{Americanfilms1980s}} [[Category:1985 films]] [[Category:Adventure films]] [[Category:Amblin Entertainment films]] [[Category:American films]] [[Category:Back to the Future| ]] [[Category:English-language films]] [[Category:Films directed by Robert Zemeckis]] [[Category:Films produced by Steven Spielberg]] [[Category:Films set in the 1950s]] [[Category:Hugo Award Winner for Best Dramatic Presentation]] [[Category:Time travel films]] [[Category:United States National Film Registry films]] [[Category:Universal Pictures films]] [[Category:Time]] [[bg:Обратно в бъдещето]] [[cs:Návrat do budoucnosti I]] [[cy:Back to the Future]] [[da:Tilbage til fremtiden]] [[de:Zurück in die Zukunft (Film)]] [[es:Regreso al futuro]] [[eo:Trilogio Back to the Future]] [[fr:Retour vers le futur]] [[ko:백 투 더 퓨쳐]] [[hr:Povratak u budućnost]] [[it:Ritorno al futuro]] [[he:בחזרה לעתיד]] [[hu:Vissza a jövőbe]] [[nl:Back to the Future (film)]] [[ja:バック・トゥ・ザ・フューチャー]] [[no:Tilbake til fremtiden]] [[pl:Powrót do przyszłości]] [[pt:De Volta para o Futuro]] [[ro:Înapoi în viitor]] [[ru:Назад в будущее (фильм)]] [[simple:Back to the Future]] [[fi:Paluu tulevaisuuteen]] [[sv:Tillbaka till framtiden]] [[th:เจาะเวลาหาอดีต]] [[tr:Geleceğe Dönüş]] [[zh:回到未来]]