Like many, I grew up on Back to the Future. This film, which is one of the best movies of the ‘80s, blew me away as a kid, and I’ve watched it over and over again since. However, I had never seen it in theaters. So, when it premiered in cinemas alongside the projects on the 2025 movie schedule, I knew I had to catch it on the big screen. Then, as I watched it, I had a totally new experience as I took in this film with a crowd and realized that a different character stole the show this time.
I’ve Seen Back To The Future Many Times, And Marty Has Always Been My Favorite Character
I’ve seen this great time travel movie more times than I can count. It’s aged well, it’s timeless, and I will never, ever get tired of going on this journey with Marty McFly. I’ve always adored Michael J. Fox, and I was absolutely charmed by him in this movie.
Of everyone in the Back to the Future cast, I was always gravitated toward Fox. He’s equal parts charming and hilarious, and watching him navigate the ‘50s is endlessly entertaining.
The movie is also told from Marty’s point of view, so Fox’s performance and how he specifically reacted to the wild world around him carry the story forward. Therefore, every time I’ve watched it before this last time, Marty has always stolen the show.
Also, he falls over so much, his reactions to the ‘50s are hilarious, and he walks around with an effortless charisma that is impossible to look away from. Oh, and he’s a cutie. However, this ensemble is stacked, which I’ve always known. So this time, I found myself more enamored by the man who invented time travel, not the man who went back in time.
Seeing It In Theaters, Christopher Lloyd’s Doc Brown Absolutley Stole The Show
As I mentioned in celebration of Back to the Future’s 40th anniversary, it was re-released in theaters, which meant I was able to see it on the big screen. More importantly, it was with an audience for the first time. That meant it wasn’t just me reacting; a whole room of people was laughing and gasping, and that heavily influenced this experience.
That’s because literally any time Christopher Lloyd said one of his iconic Doc Brown lines or reacted funnily, the crowd would react in a big way. That helped emphasize the brilliance of this performance from Lloyd, and it helped me focus more on his storyline.
Now, I’ve always found Doc and Lloyd in general very funny. However, for some reason, watching Back to the Future this time, he was even funnier. Maybe it was the bigger screen and I could see his expressions better. Maybe it was the crowd laughing at him. Overall, it was remarkable, and he literally gives a masterclass in comedic performance in this film.
His smaller silly moments really got me this time too, like him walking in a straight line into the school and stepping over the bike instead of going around it. That goes to show that every choice Lloyd made, down to the smallest details, is meaningful and comical.
On the flip side, there was something about Doc’s more dramatic moments that hit me way harder this time. That last scene in the ‘50s, when Marty is trying to get him to read the letter, is so tragic and beautiful, and it tells us so much about this mad scientist without him really saying much.
All this is to say, Christopher Lloyd really stole the show during my theatrical viewing of Back to the Future, and I loved it so much. To be clear, I always loved Doc and thought he was hilarious – I’ll scream “1.21 gigawatts” randomly and think about how “Where we’re going we don’t need roads” when I’m going to the airport. However, Marty was always my favorite character whom I focused on most.
Well, now that’s changed a bit, and the next time I watch Back to the Future, I can’t wait to see how my feelings about it continue to evolve.
