Back to the Future (1985): Great Scott, This Movie Still Holds Up!

Back to the Future is one of those movies that proves you don't need an overly complicated story to make an unforgettable sci-fi adventure. It's funny, charming, exciting, and packed with characters and moments that have become part of pop-culture history. Michael J. Fox is perfect as Marty McFly. He's likable, funny, and easy to root for as he finds himself accidentally transported from 1985 back to 1955. Christopher Lloyd is equally fantastic as Doc Brown, bringing an incredible amount of energy and craziness to the role. Their friendship is one of the movie's biggest strengths. Of course, we can't talk about Back to the Future without talking about the DeLorean DMC-12. The DeLorean was already an incredibly distinctive car thanks to its stainless-steel body and gull-wing doors, but turning it into a time machine was absolutely brilliant. The image of that silver DeLorean hitting 88 mph, disappearing in a flash of lightning and leaving flaming tire tracks behind it is one of the coolest scenes in movie history. Honestly, the DeLorean practically became a character itself. The 1955 setting is another thing that works extremely well. Seeing Marty interact with younger versions of the people he knows in 1985 creates plenty of hilarious situations, especially when he discovers that his future parents were very different people when they were teenagers. There are a few things that haven't aged perfectly. Some of the jokes surrounding Lorraine's attraction to Marty can be uncomfortable when viewed today, and if you start thinking too deeply about the movie's time-travel logic, you'll probably give yourself a headache. But the movie is so entertaining that it's easy to just go along for the ride. What makes Back to the Future special is how effortlessly it mixes science fiction, comedy, adventure and heart. It's a movie about family, friendship and changing your future while also being one gigantic love letter to the 1950s and 1980s. And yes, the DeLorean absolutely deserves its own five stars. 

Rating: 5 / 5