In both the first and third movies part of the storyline hinges on how to power the DeLorean, there’s a love interest at the center of the drama, a Tannen is the main antagonist, a prominent ‘80s band makes an appearance and contributes to the soundtrack (this time ZZ Top instead of Huey Lewis), a photo of Marty represents the time-traveling exploits of the main characters, and Marty and Doc even exchange their iconic lines. Part III - which was released a short six months later in May 1990 - not only delivers on that, but it also functions as a masterful semi-mirror image of the original.
#Back to the future 3 train crash movie
Still, I can’t imagine being an audience member in 1989 and seeing that “To Be Concluded …” played across the screen at the conclusion of the second movie because all you want is more once it’s over. Zemeckis and co-creator Bob Gale made a deal with Universal Pictures at the time to shoot the second and third movies back-to-back, so it’s only natural that the second movie would live in that dreaded Act II limbo of being after the beginning and before the end. That’s no fluke, they were designed that way. If anything, Back to the Future Part II perfectly sets up the payoff of the series’ last part despite being a relatively self-contained story. Most people even forget the second half where Marty goes back into the timeline of the first movie altogether. It’s the minutiae, not the entirety of the movie. They remember the flying car, the hoverboard, and the glowing Nikes. People love the sequel, but not for any real story-based reasons. In terms of sheer emotion, excitement, and downright fun, Part III is as good if not equal to the original, and leaves the first sequel far in the DeLorean’s rearview. But just because something is great doesn’t mean that other movies, including those in the same series, can equal it. It’s the best kind of mainstream popcorn entertainment that typified the 1980s Spielbergian cinema that defined many a childhood. The original movie is good, in fact it’s not just good, it’s great. We’ll tread lightly here, as the 1985 first installment has gone down by some as objectively the greatest thing to happen in cinema history, no questions asked. Where is Part III in all of this, the full-on western concluding installment, and why does it get shafted in favor of the inferior movie that came before it? Back to the Future Part III gets no respect even though it’s almost as good as the original. For all the pomp and circumstance around the 30th anniversary of the original classic, and the iconic what-if scenarios of the second installment, there is a conspicuous absence in the fandom of the adventures of Marty McFly and Doc Brown. With the time circuits off and the dust all settled after Back to the Future Day, everything that needed to be said has probably already been said about Robert Zemeckis’ time travel trilogy.