There are always movie milestones that are praised by the critics, but don’t really reach the audience (or only with a delay of years or decades). On the other hand, viewers here and there turn movies into mega hits that anchor themselves in pop culture, although they mercilessly let the trade press down. And then there are exceptions that everyone agrees on – like “Back to the future“, one of the most iconic film classics of the 20th century.
Not only the editors of FILMSTARTS included the film in their ultimate ranking of the best science fiction films of all time, the FILMSTARTS community also sees the classic at the very top. If you haven’t seen Robert Zemeckis’ time travel cult (“Forrest Gump”, “Cast Away”) for a long time or haven’t seen it at all, it’s especially worth watching free TV tonight: VOX will show “Back to the Future” on July 20, 2023 starting at 8:15 PM.
For all those who don’t have time tonight or can do without commercial breaks, there are also the perfect alternative(s) in streaming:
Currently you can buy Back to the Future at both Netflix as well as with your subscription to Amazon Prime Video at no extra cost. And best of all, “Back to the Future II” and “Back to the Future III” are also available on both platforms!
“Back to the Future”: the perfect entertainment movie
Marty McFly’s (Michael J. Fox) first adventure offers “the right blend of humor, insanity, statement and suspense,” making it the “ideal form of entertainment film,” as stated in our 5-star review, among other things.
Yes, then no one would have thought it possible that Marty and his buddy Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) with their time-traveling DeLorean would become such a pop cultural phenomenon that it is also world famous and unparalleled almost 40 years later. Otherwise, producer Steven Spielberg and Robert Zemeckis wouldn’t have received so many rejections from several major Hollywood studios in the early 1980s. But the knocking on the door was worth it.
Whether it’s the sayings that made movie history (“No one calls me a cowardly pig!”), the grandiose, outrageous ideas (from the Calvin Klein scene to the Coast Guard outfit to all the grandiose duels between Marty and villain Biff), or the groovy, atmospheric soundtrack, “Back to the Future” burned into the collective memory and is considered one of the greatest milestones in blockbuster history for a reason.
It is therefore not surprising that it takes 11th place in the FILMSTARTS ranking of the best sci-fi films of all time (and ahead of “Star Wars: Episode IV”!) and even 6th place in the FILMSTARTS community. As a result of which. Perhaps surprisingly to the author of this article, the film (and its first sequel) doesn’t get further into the limelight – for that, little beats the time-travelling Michael J. Fox, who tries to escape his young mother’s flirtatious attempts to hook her up with his father instead – as a glance at his shelves shows:
Oh, and speaking of Michael J. Fox, he’s also the lead in one of the most watched movies of the year. The documentary “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie” is a tribute to the jetman of the same name, which will melt your heart – especially, but not only for Fox fans, it is an absolute must. Available exclusively on Apple TV+.