Back To The Future: Celebrating 25 Years Of 1.21 Gigawatts!

July 3, 1985 - History on film was made when legendary film directors Robert Zemeckis and Steven Spielberg released a movie they collaborated on which was a daring and very ambitious project on foresight, tackling the idea of time-travel and lacing it with adventure through and through. Nobody could have realized the blockbuster potential at the time unless they saw it in theaters firsthand... and my oh my, how long it has been since we saw this:


Great Scott! Has it been 25 years already?!

Yes folks, 25 years ago, Back To The Future was released in theaters, and as many of you know, it was a seminal piece of work that inspired a lot of people to do their own pieces and references on the concept of time travel... with a little style and flair of course. This flick is one of those greats that had a major impact on my popculture life, and I do not jest when I make this claim. The cast and acting ability alone were absolutely top of the line, and the way Zemeckis, Spielberg, and their team of film makers incorporated Special Effects were leaps and bounds ahead of their time. Yes, you can pretty much say that BTTF was a masterpiece, but it's all thanks to the story and elements in it that turned it into such a huge success.

Next to his role in the TV Sitcom Family Ties, Back To The Future is almost instantly associated with iconic actor Michael J. Fox, who played the role of young lead protagonist Marty McFly. Fox was the first choice for the role of Marty, but he almost didn't get it when scheduling conflicts with Family Ties had him committed to the that show. Eric Stoltz was selected as a replacement, but he was deemed as miscast, and fortunately, Fox's scheduled open up and he was able to get back into the project. The rest was history from there, and we all associate ourselves with the rebellious teenager with a budding relationship with a wacky, but absolute sceintific genius named Doctor Emmett Brown, played by Christopher Lloyd. That character is the other side of the coin that made this movie such a big deal, and Chris Lloyd's ability to instill great acting and dialogue into the Doc Brown persona is what made him so memorable, and let's not forget the DeLorean DMC-12 he created - putting style in time traveling forever. Lines like "Great Scott" and "1.21 Gigawatts" only serve to make the Doc an iconic presence to be remembered by, and that's probably why his lines are always plastered on tribute shirts these days... so iconic.

Back To The Future Trailer
So, enough with the history lesson and on with the memories and nostalgia. If you feel you need to acknowledge Back To The Future's 25 anniversary this year, go and watch this movie again. It's pretty awesome and still feels fresh even if it's a quarter of a century old already. No matter what opinions are raised of this classic by various people, one thing remains constant - it made history in cinema, and that's all there is to it.