WHAT: Back to the Future (1985, DCP)
WHEN: May 15, 2024 1 PM & 7 PM
WHERE: Pickwick Theatre, Park Ridge, IL
WHAT ELSE: Pre-show music by organist Jay Warren at 6:30 PM!
HOW MUCH: $12/$10 advance or $10 for the 1 PM matinee
Advance Tickets: Click Here!
“Once Michael (J. Fox) arrived on set, the entire movie levitated in tone. His unique style and unbridled enthusiasm lifted everything. It became obvious this was what Bob Zemeckis and Bob Gale intended the movie to be.” ~producer Kathleen Kennedy
Warm up the flux capacitor and get ready to travel back to the 1980s! You know the characters. You know the lines. You know the music. And you know that car… Back to the Future (1985) is an endearing piece of ’80s pop culture. It’s the story of a teenager who goes back in time 30 years to the 1950s and unintentionally interferes with his parents falling in love– thereby jeopardizing his own existence. Like the story itself, the making of the film had its own intriguing timeline. It came close to having a very different history until Michael J. Fox stepped in at the last minute to set things as they were meant to be.
The story of Back to the Future starts with Chicago-born Robert Zemeckis, who as a brash young filmmaker literally stormed into Steven Spielberg’s office one day in 1977 to have him watch his USC student film. Spielberg was sufficiently impressed to offer Zemeckis his first directorial opportunity with a major motion picture. With friend Bob Gale as screenwriter, Zemeckis made the Beatles-inspired I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978). Spielberg served as executive producer.
In 1978, Zemeckis wrote the screenplay for Spielberg’s ill-fated 1941 (1979). His next film was the comedy Used Cars (1980), which told the story of rival car salesmen and starred Kurt Russell. It did not succeed at the box office. It was during these early years when the two Bobs began shopping the story that ultimately became Back to the Future. The idea had its genesis one day in 1980 when Bob Gale was going through his father’s yearbook. He wondered whether he would have been friends with his father in high school. The story slowly emerged, although the time machine at this stage took the form of a refrigerator instead of the iconic DeLoreon car. Most of the studios who read their script thought the story was cute, but they weren’t interested. By studio standards, it simply wasn’t raunchy enough to compete with the teen comedies of the day. Columbia bought the property but shelved it.
Christopher Lloyd as Doc Brown with Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly.
It was only after the box office success of Romancing the Stone in 1984 that Zemeckis finally emerged from Spielberg’s shadow. Zemeckis, annoyed by all the studios that had previously rejected his idea, went back to his mentor Spielberg with the time travel story. Spielberg loved it and they pitched the idea to Spielberg’s home studio of Universal. Since Columbia still owned the rights to the story, Universal had to work out a deal to re-acquire the rights in a property swap. From the start, Zemeckis wanted Michael J. Fox for the lead role of Marty McFly. However, Fox was committed to his television series, “Family Ties.” The filmmakers reluctantly had to look elsewhere for their star.
Eric Stoltz, who had been discovered when the filmmakers saw an early screening of the drama Mask (1985), was cast. However. it soon became apparent to all on set that he couldn’t play comedy. Leah Thompson, who portrayed Marty’s mother in the film, remembers Stoltz playing it as a tragedy. “My character remembers a past no one else remembers,” he told her. Suffice to say, it was a long six weeks on set. The production was further complicated by Crispin Glover, who played Marty’s father, George McFly. He was a manic actor of the Method school whose physical nervousness disrupted the daily continuity for the filmmakers.
Bob Z. realized he had to shut down production and go back to Michael J. Fox. During the last week with Stoltz, Zemeckis cagily shot footage that kept Stoltz in the background knowing the actor would be replaced. At this time, the director had not yet informed Universal of his decision. He shot as much usable footage as he could so they wouldn’t have to re-shoot everything.
Zemeckis’ team went back to the producer of “Family Ties” to plead his case. Gary David Goldberg relented as long as “Family Ties” remained the priority. The filmmakers thus had to shoot around Fox’s TV schedule, which was shot during the day. Fox was given the script to read. Stoltz was then fired and Fox was hired five days later. Universal was informed that an additional $4 million would now be added to the budget as a result of the re-casting. This proved to be a prudent investment. Michael J. Fox’s comedic timing and earnestness saved the film and helped make it not only the biggest-grossing film of 1985 but also one of the most loved movies in history.
~MCH
Back in Time (2015) documentary
1985 vs. 2024 at the Pickwick Theatre
