The original script for Back to the Future Part II was considered too long, so it was split into two. Universal Studios, alongside co-writer/producer Bob Gale and co-writer/director Robert Zemeckis, decided that Parts II and III would be filmed back-to-back. Once Part II was finished filming, Part III would start immediately afterward, amounting to roughly 11 months’ worth of shooting. There was even a short teaser trailer for Part III added to the end of Part II. While working on the first film, one idea that started circulating was moving the action to the Old West. To realize this, they built a whole Western town in Monument Valley, California, and everyone in the crew was excited. For this third installment, Zemeckis felt there wasn’t much left for the McFly’s, so the focus shifted to Doc Brown. After a lengthy production, Back to the Future Part III was released in 1990.
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Synopsis
Following Part II’s ending, Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) gives 1955 Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) instructions left by 1885 Doc. They show how to repair the DeLorean so Marty can return to 1985 and to not go to 1885. However, Marty discovers that Doc will be shot in 1885, so he uses the DeLorean to try and save him. Unfortunately, the DeLorean’s fuel line gets cut, so it can’t go 88 miles per hour to make time travel possible. Marty manages to find Doc after running into local outlaw Buford “Mad Dog” Tannen (Thomas F. Wilson), who’s after Doc. After Marty warns him, Doc devises a plan to get the DeLorean moving: have a locomotive push it. Along the way, Doc meets local schoolteacher Clara Clayton (Mary Steenburgen) and they fall in love. It’s a race against time to stop Mad Dog and get Marty back to the future!
Review
While Part II expanded on the original and asked thought-provoking questions, Back to the Future Part III plays it safe. As a whole, it’s largely a retread of the first film, the only main difference being the setting. Marty goes back in time, arrives at an older Hill Valley, confronts a bully, and must get back to 1985. Admittedly, this film does have several major differences besides the setting, namely that this is largely Doc Brown’s story. Not only is Marty’s motivation to prevent Doc’s death, but he’s given more character development and a bigger arc. It’s an interesting angle to take, essentially role reversing Marty and Doc, even giving Doc a love interest. It doesn’t hurt that Lloyd and Steenburgen have great chemistry together, and they feel like a fully fleshed out couple. There’s a mixture of old tropes and new ideas thrown into the mix.
Acting-wise, everyone does a good job, Fox and Lloyd still working as a comedic duo and being the franchise’s heart. Since he’s given more of an arc, this entry allows Lloyd to further show his acting abilities aside from eccentricity. Like before, Wilson steals the show, this time as the gun-totting and ill-tempered outlaw Mad Dog Tannen. While George “Buck” Flower doesn’t return, there are plenty of Western character actors thrown in, some even from Blazing Saddles. Production-wise, the Western town built for the film is impressive, feeling like something that would’ve existed at the time. The climactic train sequence is just as thrilling as anything else from the series, and the ending perfectly wraps everything up. Though arguably the weakest film in the trilogy, it still works as a satisfying conclusion without any loose ends. Overall, Back to the Future Part III is a solid final chapter.
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