De Volta Para o Futuro - Parte III

Part III, the wild west entry, is probably the most fun. The original has just such a fantastic premise that creates a sense of urgency about seeing it out till the end, but there is something uncomfortable about your mother having a crush on you that leaves a bad taste in the mouth during Part I. The premise of Part III is this: in 1955, Doc learns that he will eventually travel back to 1885 to live out his days as a blacksmith, but then Copernicus, Doc's 1955 dog, stumbles upon a gravestone that tells Doc and Marty that Doc will be shot to death by Buford Tannen over a matter of 80 dollars. Naturally, Marty says he will travel back to 1885 and get Doc and bring him back to the future with him (though it couldn't be 1955, because there's already one Doc there).

There are time-jumping laws that are not obeyed by the scriptwriters here, and much worse than in the second film, but this one's so well concentrated and so much the better movie that they hardly matter. It has a climax involving a train that rivals the clocktower climax of the first one. A fantastic scene.

Thomas F Wilson, the perennial bad guy of these movies, who started off as Biff Tannen in the original, played Griff Tannen in the second one, throws himself into a Yosemite Sam part as Buford 'Mad Dog' Tannen in the third. Mary Steenbergen, in one of her few leading roles, is a nice addition to the cast. She fits right into the wild west world, as the dainty schoolteacher who plays "his beloved Clara" to the Doc.

Like the others, its larger-than-life tone, with the over-blown time-travel dialogue and melodramatic highs and lows, render it into a kind of live-action cartoon. Kids will enjoy Part III the most, but it is so good-natured that adults should have fun with it too. Out of the three, this is the one that you'll be able to put on any time and feel good. Great, harmless fun.

Having set a new standard in time travel films with Back To The Future and Back To The Future Part II, it was with eager anticipation that I looked forward to seeing if Robert Zemeckis could bring his trilogy to a satisfying conclusion. To conclude any trilogy in a successful manner some of the key ingredients you need are: 1. do something in your wrap up you haven't done before 2. keep the main characters true to what they have been previously 3. tie up all the loose threads and 4. give us a satisfying ending.

For this third outing in the series, Zemeckis takes us where we have yet to tread, that being 1885 Hill Valley. With Marty trapped once again in the year 1955, he enlists the 1955 Doc Brown to help him return home. As we know by now, things are never that simple when it comes to Marty and Doc. Marty has no magic ruby slippers to click together three times and say, "There's no place like home." It seems Doc ended up in the Old West, but hid the DeLorean in a cave for Marty to find some 70 years later so he may return home back to 1985 and destroy the time machine. After discovering that Doc met with some misfortune shortly after arriving in 1885 Hill Valley, Marty decides to travel back in time to rescue him.

While BTTFIII does not have the break neck frantic pace of Part II, it is a good film on its own. For the first time, Zemeckis slows things down a bit, making this third film straightforward, yet just as delightful in a lot of ways as the other films. The first thing he does is throw us a little change up. Zemeckis and Gale decide to center the complications of this third film around Doc Brown by having him fall unexpectedly in love with a school teacher by the name of Clara(Mary Steenburgen). In essence, Doc loses his head over a woman and loses his scientific reasoning in the process. It is left up to Marty to become the voice of reason when Doc begins to let his emotions rule his reactions. Yet, Marty seems as a amused as we are by the whole thing. This is one romance that could easily have been the downfall of this film, but thanks to the performances of Steenburgen and Christopher Lloyd, together they develop a chemistry that makes it all work and work to perfection. So by having the majority of the film take place in the old west, then introducing something to the plot we didn't expect, Zemeckis takes care of the first point I mentioned above.

There's also the matter of Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen. The meanest, grimiest, filthiest, most ruthless outlaw to ever inhabit Hill Valley. If you liked Thomas F. Wilson's portrayals of Biff, you'll be amazed at his rambunctious portrayal of Mad Dog. He even somehow manages to top his villainous portrayals in the first two films which is not an easy task. So yes, all the characters from the first two films are here in some form or another, and though Doc Brown may be in love, he is still the Doc. This solidly takes care of my second point about keeping the characters true to what they have been before.

Zemeckis and Gale have been absolute geniuses in writing these films. In each film they have taken little pieces from the previous films and make them essential to what's happening. For instance, if you've seen the second part there is a short scene that is extremely relevant to what goes on in the finale. When originally viewing it in Part II, I'm sure you never gave it a second thought. When the pay off comes in this film, you can't help but chuckle and say, oh I see. As for my third point about tying up loose ends, they do that and tie up some things we didn't even know were loose ends.

In Part II, it was necessary for several of the actors to play different roles. This one is no different. Besides being Marty Mcfly, Fox also portrays his ancestor Shamus Mcfly, who is Irish, and again Fox shows his versatility as Lea Thompson does as his wife Maggie. Of course James Tolkan is back as Strickland and theres a couple of good jokes about his character that will surprise you...well at least one of them will surprise you the other will just leave you laughing. As if all this wasn't good enough, Zemeckis also gives us several old western character actors, Dub Taylor, Pat Buttram, and Harry Carey Jr. Another great touch thrown in just for the fun of it.

In reviewing the fist two parts of the trilogy, I failed to mention Alan Silvestri's terrific score. All three films owe a great deal of their success to it, and the fact that he was able to keep the same theme, yet do variations on it that perfectly fitted each film deserves as much credit as all the others responsible for making this film received.

So what about point 4, a satisfying ending? Of course, you'll have to see the film to find out for yourself. I can only say that when Part 3 was over I felt a certain amount of sadness that the trilogy had ended. Even now when I watch the three films, I wish there had been a fourth, and a fifth. This was not because the ending of the third film left me unsatisfied in anyway, quite the contrary in fact. It was because I would miss not only the films themselves, but most of all the rich detail and characterizations brought to life for us by a wonderful cast, director, writers and the rest of the crew responsible for enabling us to enjoy one of the most memorable series of films ever. And when you live in my memory forever, you get my grade. For Back To The Future Part III it's an A+. As for the trilogy, there is no grade high enough, no rating high enough, for me to give it the award it so richly deserves.

Sitting back to watch the final, for now, entry in the Back to the Future trilogy, I was a little disheartened. I had a lot of fun with this series, and was sad not to be traveling through the dimensions of time with Marty and Doc Brown for the last time. But alas, all good things must come to an end, and of course, I can always rent the DVD, or perhaps even add any of them to my own collection. Back to the Future Part III, didn't simply "phone it in" for its' final act, it provided a complete compilation to its time travel exploits.

This story picks up where the second left off; with Marty (Michael J. Fox) acting on a letter he received from Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd). At the conclusion of Back to the Future Part II, the DeLorean is struck by lightning, with Doc inside, and he is transported all the way back to 1885, in the old west. Since Doc had always dreamed of living in the Wild West, he was not severely disappointed to be stuck in the 1800's, and he certainly was stuck because it would be 70 or so years before the replacement parts he needed to repair the DeLorean would exist. He writes Marty a letter explaining to him what he is up to and that he is fine and should be left in 1885. Soon after receiving the letter, however, Marty uncovers that Doc Brown is about to die. Unwilling to leave him to that fate, Marty ignores all risks, intent on traveling to 1885, to find Doc Brown. This would prove impossible without a trip back to 1955, to get some help from the Doc Brown of the past. Marty's crash landing in 1885 creates quite a conundrum, however, as a fuel line breaks causing all of the gas to leak out of the DeLorean. Doc reminds him that gas hasn't been invented yet, and they will have to be innovative to find a way to power the DeLorean to the necessary 88 M.P.H. needed to travel through time. After devising a plan to power the DeLorean by locomotive power, a new distraction, of a feminine nature arrives. A Ms. Clara Clayton greets Doc Brown, and he is instantly smitten by her. Doc even vows to stay in the past with Clara after helping Marty fix the DeLorean. Our Heroes situation is made even more difficult because Marty, in typical McFly fashion refuses to be called "chicken", or "yellow" in 1885 terms. After an altercation with Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen (Thomas F. Wilson), Marty gains the attention of the gun that he discovered was to kill Doc. In the final installment of Robert Zemeckis beloved time traveling adventure, out duo is outrunning a gun, deciding between love and fate, and learning that the words of others should only ever be words rather than a reflection of ourselves; a pleasing finale to the Back to the Future series.

Once again, the brilliant on-screen chemistry of Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd bring Back to the Future Part III to life. Years working together on the same franchise were nothing to dilute the pair's on-screen chemistry. Still as engaging as ever, it was pure joy to watch Marty and Doc on screen again, one last time. This film also kept the heart in to the movie. Each entry in this trilogy has heart at the center, no pun intended. It was endearing to see our zany Doc Brown fall in love, even if he did wish to pick his new love over traveling with Marty.

I would recommend Back to the Future Part III to almost anyone. Rated PG, it is appropriate and engaging for all ages. Fans of the trilogy have to see it, as it wraps up all of our favorite's story lines. Anyone who believes in the power of love, time, and destiny will feel empowered by the message. I'm not sure what type of viewer Couldn't find something to appreciate about Back to the Future Part III, and to me, that's exactly how a franchise should end; pleasing the one time viewer and the series fanatic alike.

Marty and doc are back, but in another time. They go to the West in 1885 in order to save Doc's life and from then on the Western adventure takes place. It's a pity that so many people disliked the third movie because, in my humble opinion, it's a great finale to this fantastic trilogy. It is very well written with rich characters and clever dialogues. This third part does differ in the sense that it's set in the West and has less of the futuristic gadgets and gizmos (obviously, since it's not set in the distant future but you'll still see a few including a time-travelling freight train) but it still retains the same energy, a different kind of action and it pays a nice homage to Western classics. Fox and Lloyd continue their roles of the teen hero and the crazy doctor (and it never gets old) but this time there's a new female lead. Mary Steenburgen delivers a hilariously wonderful performance as the ditsy Clara. She and Lloyd are funny and sweet together. Clara is the perfect lady for Doc and Steenburgen fits the part like a glove. This time, Lea Thompson appears as an Irish settler. Zemeckis has brilliantly picked up from where the second one ended. The film ends on a delightful note and I would have liked to see more 'Back to The Future' movies. But, I'm still very pleased with the way it is. There have been only very few trilogies that have impressed me overall. My list includes names like Ray's 'Apu Trilogy' and Coppola's 'Godfather' trilogy and of course Zemeckis's 'Back To The Future' movies.

Even in the best franchises which proved that sequels can be just as good, if not better than the originals, the third parts are often fairly controversial. Look no further than to the third entries in "The Godfather" and "The Terminator" movies. "Back To The Future III" is no exception to that rule as it clearly is the weakest part in the trilogy, but it's still one hell of a great ride.

Writer/producer Bob Gale and writer/director Robert Zemeckis are two very clever men. They know the difficulties of sequels well. As Zemeckis explains somewhere on the "BTTF"-DVD set, the hardest part is to give the audience something new without moving too far away from the original's spirit. "Back To The Future II" achieved that goal gloriously (although Zemeckis who is very critical about his own work is always downsizing the greatness of it). Maybe the two Bobs went a bit too far away from what audiences loved about the original in part 3.

Although the movie is set mainly in the Wild West, it's still seen through the eyes of two people from the 80's. There are shootouts, horse chases and train robberies, but "Back To The Future III" is never a real Western. What makes this movie seem different from its predecessors is that fittingly it doesn't have a lot to do with teen culture anymore (save for a Michael Jackson-reference). Marty himself seems to have grown up quite a bit and you'll be surprised to see him behaving more focused on his mission than Doc in the latter half of the movie. This change of places by the characters was a deliberate decision by the writers and it does push the story and the relationship of Marty and Doc forward, but something about it just doesn't feel right.

It's intriguing to learn about the origins of Hill Valley and the ancestors of the McFly-clan. However, the earnest Seamus McFly and his family - that for some reason includes a woman looking like Marty's mother - seem strangely out of place in a BTTF-movie. They're just not quirky enough.

What makes the story seem even more estranged is the introduction of a new character, Clara Clayton, with whom Doc falls madly in love. Now, although we should all be happy for Doc having found his own private happiness, somehow we don't want him to behave like that. It's not Doc as we know and love him - and that's exactly the problem Robert Zemeckis was talking about. Marty and Doc used to be a team. Was anyone happy for John when Yoko got between him and The Beatles?

I still think "Back To The Future III" is an amazing accomplishment, a fine finale to one of the best trilogies ever made. You can't give enough praise to Zemeckis and Gale for not just making these movies for financial reasons but for actually trying to make them as good as possible. Personally, I love this movie to bits and I don't think it could have been realized any better. The only explanation I got for why this brilliant sequel got a lukewarm rating of 6.7 from IMDb users, is the dilemma Zemeckis himself was aware of, but couldn't fully avoid.

Fans who are still longing for a fourth part should keep that in mind and would be best advised to let it go. Zemeckis and Gale have said repeatedly that they don't plan on ever continuing the story. And why should they? Everything has been said, everything has been done. The movies are perfect the way they are. Let's be thankful there are still filmmakers that stick to their artistic conviction.