Great Scott! It’s been 25 years since Back to the Future hit the big screen and guess what?! It’s BACK!
Out this Tuesday, the new collectors edition BluRay and DVD trilogy sets are pretty exciting in themselves, with tons of special features and behind the scenes bonus footage and whatnot. The real excitement, however, is that to celebrate it’s silver anniversary, the creators of Back to the Future are putting the original movie back up on the silver screen for 2 shows only. NOW who’s excited?!
I pre-bought my tickets for next Monday’s screening almost as soon as I heard it was happening. It’s an exclusive engagement for AMC theaters, which sadly means my sister in Alberta won’t be able to go. But for those of us lucky enough to live in the GTA, we have 6 locations to choose from. A digitally remastered beloved movie on the big screen, plus they’re giving away commemorative posters and other prizes at the screening. I’m SO there.
Some people wonder why I would pay the outrageous movie theater prices and line up an hour early to ensure good seats to a movie that I already own and can watch any time. They just don’t get it. There is NOTHING like the atmosphere of being in a big movie theater, watching a big screen, surrounded by people who share your passion for what you are watching. It becomes more than just the film. It becomes an experience. Like the time I went to the Lord of the Rings trilogy and spent 13 hours watching all 3 back to back to back (Fellowship and Two Towers were directors cuts). While I wasn’t one of the people in costume, I was cheering right along with them when Legolas made his kick-ass move sliding down the Oliphant’s trunk and swishes his hair. Earlier this summer I leapt at the chance to see the Grease Sing-a-long. For that one I did dress up and belted out the tunes along with everyone around me. I don’t expect everyone at Back to the Future’s screening to be in costumes, but I suspect there will be a voice or two joining Doc’s best lines and some whooping when George McFly finally punches out Biff.
Yeah!!
It’s almost a shame that the screening is next Monday and not next Tuesday, which would be October 26th: the exact date that Marty McFly takes his unexpected trip in time in the film. We’ll have to make due with the 25th though, which is still kinda cool cuz it’s almost exactly 25 years from the movie moment.
There’s no question that the movie is a classic. The special effects may look a little bit dated by today’s standards but let’s hope they can touch it up a bit in the remastering. The story is timeless, but visually and culturally I don’t think the movie really would’ve worked had it been made in a later time. Can you imagine Marty being a skater in the 90’s, traveling back to the 60’s? Or worse yet, going from 2005 to 1975? I think I might actually like to see that one, but only as a short film. It would be kinda cool if someone updates the second film in a few years to show more accurate technology in 2015 than what they anticipated back in 1985. As it is, Back to the Future is a movie I have watched, and will watch, over and over again. I’ll never get enough of Doc’s face when the toy car catches fire and crashes into his pile of rags:
My brother and I used to pause our Beta tape at that moment every time and laugh our asses off before we’d rewind and play the moment again.
On another note, did you know that they originally cast Eric Stoltz as Marty McFly, and that there is footage of him in the roll? You can see it on the new DVD/Bluray, or catch this clip from Youtube. It’s bizarre to see Stoltz where we’re used to seeing Michael J. Fox. The two actors do seem to have a vaguely similar look, but there’s just something about Michael J. Fox that nails the roll so perfectly, it’s just creepy to see someone else in those scenes. Don’t ya think?
No matter how many times I’ve seen it, I don’t think anything will compare to seeing it again next week on the big screen with digital surround sound. If you’re lucky, there still might be tickets left. Check your AMC theater listings for Saturday, October 23 and Monday, October 25. Maybe I’ll see you there. Now, if only they’d start planning a rerelease of The Princess Bride…
-Movie Minx
That Stoltz footage looks crazy weird! Without MJ, it's just not Back to the Future, is it?
Ever since this flick, I've always wanted a Delorian – a Canadian built vehicle if I'm not mistaken! “Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads!”
Maybe it'll be at the theatre?