Back to the Future Part II (1989)

Directed by: Robert Zemeckis | 108 minutes | action, comedy, adventure, science fiction | Actors: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Thomas F. Wilson, Elisabeth Shue, James Tolkan, Jeffrey Weismann, Casey Siemaszko, Billy Zane

As a rule, sequels are less good than their predecessors. That also applies to ‘Back to the Future Part II’. But while this movie isn’t as strong as the original, it’s still more than worth watching.

Caution is required. The story is so complicated that halfway through the film Doc has to explain on a chalkboard to Marty and the viewer how the fork is in the handle. That complexity has a major drawback. Much of the humor that made the first film so appealing has given way to complicated storytelling. The result is that the viewer is treated to a cleverly conceived plot that always surprises. And in this the film stands alone in the time travel genre. Many scriptwriters choke on the theme and produce illogical stories. For ‘Back to the Future Part II’, the details have clearly been well thought out.

The nice thing about a time travel sequel is that the characters can return to the original movie. And that’s exactly what director Robert Zemeckis has Marty and Doc do. Returning from 2015, the schoolboy and inventor travel through 1985 to the Hill Valley of 1955. There they end up in the story of the first film. Marty attends the prom for the second time where he sees himself playing Johnny B. Goode on the auditorium stage. And again he gets into a fight with Biff and the bald headmaster Strickland.

The sets in ‘Back to the Future Part II’ are beautifully made. We see Hill Valley in three different periods, always with the famous clock tower at the center. The city looks special, especially in 2015. Cars fly, children play with floating skateboards and the newspaper contains moving images. Also in the Hill Valley of the future: Café Eighties. Here Ronald Reagan and Michael Jackson welcome the visitor. In the scene that takes place in the cafe, we also briefly see Elijah Wood, who is not yet ten years old at the time.

Not featured in ‘Back to the Future Part II’ is the actress who played Jennifer Parker in the original film. She has been replaced by Elisabeth Shue (“Hollow Man”, “Hide and Seek”). Actually, the creators couldn’t use Jennifer’s character at all in this story. But they ended up part one with a scene where she travels to the future together with Marty and Doc. So there had to be a Jennifer in. Crispin Glover (“Charlie’s Angels”, “Willard”), the actor who played George in the first film, is also no longer in the game. Allegedly because he set too high standards.