I went to see Back to the Future at the cinema tonight, as you do - or as you did
in the mid-1980s.
I took my wife along as a birthday
present, as it's her favourite film. Though she's seen it many times, she
didn't get to watch it at the cinema first time around; if she had, like me,
she would have been too young to appreciate it.
The atmosphere was great. The showing was advertised as a 'geek out', which had sowed a seed of worry in my head: would it be full of over-zealous fans, quoting along with all the dialogue? I needn't have been concerned; while there were a few people dressed in Marty McFly-style gilets or Doc Brown wigs, this didn't spoil it. It was exciting to watch it with an audience – and one who clearly held the film in great regard. We clapped and cheered when Marty's dad punched Biff in the face, and when Biff's car got covered in horse shit; when Marty played Johnny B Goode at the Enchantment Under the Sea dance and when Doc managed to reconnect the cable after zip-wiring from the top of the clock tower, successfully sending Marty back to 1985 - what I'm saying is we got into all the good bits.
Seeing it on the big screen reminded me what a well-constructed and well-shot film it is. It moves along faster than I remembered (88 mph?), though the last time I watched it, I also saw the two sequels in quick succession. It's the sort of film you wish you’d been in. They don't make 'em like it these days. The Eighties was a great time for family movies - if you forget Mac and Me, Short Circuit and Weird Science; the first being a poor-man's E.T, the second being mildly racist, and the third being a little too spermy for my liking.
They showed trailers for other films from the same year, before it started, which was a nice touch. A few have stood the test of time, such as Cocoon or The Goonies, while others have been lost in the ether. Who remembers the film D.A.R.Y.L., for chrissakes?
The atmosphere was great. The showing was advertised as a 'geek out', which had sowed a seed of worry in my head: would it be full of over-zealous fans, quoting along with all the dialogue? I needn't have been concerned; while there were a few people dressed in Marty McFly-style gilets or Doc Brown wigs, this didn't spoil it. It was exciting to watch it with an audience – and one who clearly held the film in great regard. We clapped and cheered when Marty's dad punched Biff in the face, and when Biff's car got covered in horse shit; when Marty played Johnny B Goode at the Enchantment Under the Sea dance and when Doc managed to reconnect the cable after zip-wiring from the top of the clock tower, successfully sending Marty back to 1985 - what I'm saying is we got into all the good bits.
Seeing it on the big screen reminded me what a well-constructed and well-shot film it is. It moves along faster than I remembered (88 mph?), though the last time I watched it, I also saw the two sequels in quick succession. It's the sort of film you wish you’d been in. They don't make 'em like it these days. The Eighties was a great time for family movies - if you forget Mac and Me, Short Circuit and Weird Science; the first being a poor-man's E.T, the second being mildly racist, and the third being a little too spermy for my liking.
They showed trailers for other films from the same year, before it started, which was a nice touch. A few have stood the test of time, such as Cocoon or The Goonies, while others have been lost in the ether. Who remembers the film D.A.R.Y.L., for chrissakes?