140 Character Movie Review – #140RVW
Professional & obviously loving documentary about the film phenomenon. Nothing eye-opening here, but fun stuff well-crafted by caring hands.
Spoiler-free Movie Review of Back in Time:
Today is October 30, 2015; we are over one week into the future. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, you may as well stop reading now, because this one is strictly for Back to the Future geeks…
It was very easy to get caught up in the media saturation last week as we finally caught up with the date in the future into which the characters of Back to the Future Part II traveled. It was a great story that had something for everyone. It did get a bit much for some, I’m sure. Even as someone who was guiltier than most of spreading the #BTTF30 & #BackToTheFutureDay stories around, I became a bit weary at a certain point. It didn’t do to look too closely at the second film, after all. (This is a point of disagreement in my house; BTTF2 is my daughter’s favorite of the trilogy.)
So the Kickstarter-funded documentary Back in Time had to wait a little bit to be reviewed, even though I watched it on when it was released on #BackToTheFutureDay.
Back in Time is structured around two parts, focusing on the film and the fans, respectively. This approach not only makes for a logical structure, it also keeps the film fresh after the one hour mark. Because for all of the positive elements of the film, the first half of the picture really is pretty standard behind the scenes content. Back in Time would not be out of place on a box set bonus disc; in fact, that’s where it probably should exist. The filmmakers made a great feature on the film and have better than usual access to the talent involved. Pretty much everyone you would want to hear from was included. Universal should have hired them to create supplements for the 30th anniversary edition that just came out. (Not that I’m disparaging the content that is on the set – it’s great stuff.)
But Back to the Future is actually pretty well documented already. Possibly because it came after the big Spielberg/Lucas blockbusters that fueled so much public interest, it was understood that the public would be interested in knowing more about the film. So there’s a ton of behind the scenes footage, EPKs, books, articles, you name it. So while I enjoyed the first half of Back in Time, there was a certain familiarity to much of the stories and information.
No, it is in the second half where Back in Time really shines. This is where they introduce you to super-fans with unique stories to tell, like:
- Joe Walser, who led the efforts to restore the “hero A” car
- Massachusetts resident Bill Shea, who owns several screen used vehicles
- Stephen Clark, founder of BTTF.com
- Terry & Oliver Holler, who travel the world in their homemade DeLorean time machine to raise funds for the Michael J. Fox Foundation
This is where the film becomes something more than a simple retrospective. The focus on individual stories ironically is more effective at reminding you why you care about this franchise than the more traditional clips and talking head approach.
Back in Time is an easy recommendation for fans of the Back to the Future series. While you likely won’t learn anything new, the access to the cast and filmmakers alone make it worth your time, and the focus on the fans provide the most compelling reason to watch both the doc and the film series.
Poster:
Trailer:
https://vimeo.com/ondemand/backintime
Bechdel Test:
n/a
The Representation Test Score: n/a
| Main Cast | Michael J. Fox Himself Christopher Lloyd Himself Lea Thompson Herself Claudia Wells Herself |
| Rating | G |
| Release Date | 2015 |
| Director | Jason Aron |
| Genres | Documentary, Family, History |
| Plot | Cast, crew, and fans explore the classic time-travel trilogy’s resonance throughout our culture 30 years after Marty went Back in Time. |
| Poster |  |
| Runtime | 95 |
| Tagline | |
| Writers | |
| Year | 2015 |
