Back To The Future III

The end of the Back to the Future trilogy of films sees the 1980 time travelling characters, Marty (Michael J. Fox) and Doc (Christopher Lloyd) in the American old west. While the first film in the series is often considered the best, and the second in the series with it's misstep of focusing too much on the McGuffin of Biff's Gambling Almanac the worst. The third has often been viewed as a wishy-washy end to the series.

However I'd argue that it's this third film that is not only the best crafted of the series but also the defining film that not only resolves the Marty 'cowardice' story arc (tacked on haphazardly in the second and never seems convincing) but redefines the series. Not as the adventures of Marty McFly through time but as the story of the trials and passions of Doc Emmett Brown.

In the previous two films the Doc character was used as an impetus to the stories as well as a deux ex machina to the plot contrivances. Even though a fair amount of his history was given light, such as his being institutionalised for his laser-like dedication to his scientific beliefs, he always stayed firmly in the role of sidekick to Marty's lead (an interesting inversion of the standard man and boy dynamic in fiction).

With this third film he comes to the fore and eclipses Marty as the star of the films. And even though the last two films were made some years later after the first (number one 1985 and two and three filmed at the same time and released 89 and 90 respectively), it's the expanded focus on Doc that not only reframes the series but makes the whole greater than the parts.

Suddenly with this third instalment the series it's all about Doc. A man whose passion for science drove him to the edge of society. A man of unrelenting intellect not seeking reward but rather the wonder of discovery and understanding. Alienated in his own time and seemingly burning his entire lonely life away on his dreams of leading humanity into a new world of science, he is finally smiled upon come this third feature. Where his persistence and purity of vision sees him finally at the end of his pursuits and happily facing retirement in the wild west. Doc now turns from his lonely existence to find whole new fields to discover and explore. Those being the more fuzzy lands of the human heart as he falls in love with a comely 1900s school teacher. Shifting his focus from flux capacitors to the importance of inter-relating with those he loves. As character arcs go in the movies it's hard to find one as poetic as Doc's.

The wild west setting of the third film also challenges the makers to abandon their 80s decade referential extravaganza so prevalent in the second film (and somewhat in the first) and instead create a story of light mood and character driven drama. But that doesn't mean they don't find some knowing winks to throw at things to come. From the quiet little barbed-wire salesman to the Frisbee Pie Plate, which Marty uses to good effect as a flying discus. And for those wondering how historically accurate that is, yes, Frisbee's did indeed start out as cheap metal pie plates and were only re-purposed later as a recreational toy.

The whole Back To The Future series is a joyous excess of 80s excellence and really can not be recommended enough. The movie series withstands multiple viewings and is filled with several highly likeable characters. But ultimately, any film series that ends with the over arcing theme that your future hasn't been written yet. No-one's has, so make it a good one. Is well worth a watch. They just don't make 'em like this any more.

Some Kind of Wonderful

Some Kind Of Wonderful, John Hughes' 1987 oft overlooked masterpiece, eclipsed by his lighter Pretty in Pink, Breakfast Club, and Sixteen Candles. Telling the story of a poor hard working boy (Eric Stoltz) falling madly in love with rich high school girl (Lea Thompson). All the while blind to the affections of his spunky drum playing hot friend (Mary Stewart Masterson).

Stoltz acts the film with a stoney intensity that borders on serial killer. It's a little uncomfortable to watch, especially the scenes where he's spying on Lea Thompson. Creepy. If the plot veered off and had Stoltz killing prostitutes to have sex with their severed heads, you'd probably just shrug and say, “eh, saw that coming”.

Lea Thompson is... well, Lea Thompson. Has she ever played a role where she wasn't flashing that smile and just seemed like she was buzzing on a small hit of coke? I've often thought that the main impediment to greater success for Thompson was her sheer like-ability. In this film she plays a slut.

Mary Stewart Masterson has all the best lines. 'Don't go mistaking paradise for a pair of long legs', 'It's better to swallow pride than blood', 'You're losing it. And when it's lost, all you are is a loser'. She's just the cutest fringed-glove wearing Confucius you'll ever find!

And the young Stewart Masterson is sexier in this film than any other. Her big impassioned watery eyes. Her near sexual frenzy when playing the drums. Mixed with the bristly nature she uses to protect her fragile heart, is a stand-out performance, that makes repeat viewing of this film very easy.

It's a very well cast film (including creepy Stoltz). Even the secondary characters like the neo-Nazi semi-retarded school thug, Duncan, with a mischievous nature and over abundance of wit. Like drawing a picture of what his girlfriend would look like without skin... “Nice”, says creepy Stoltz.

Hughes portrays Stoltz poor life the way most 80s directors sketched out on screen people who were short a few bucks... e.g.: copious amounts of food on the table, lots of possessions about the place, a giant record collection etc. Being poor in 80s cinema wasn't too bad.

Hughes is well known for crafting the soundscapes of his movies with contemporary songs, often drawn from the fringe of popular music at the time. This film is no different, with Hughes choosing to go for an Earthier heavier rock choices than he does in his frothier flicks. With such performers as the Stones, Lick The Tins, March Violets, Psychedelic Furs, and even a little Jesus And Mary Chain. Which goes well with the theme of the movie; the importance of being true to yourself. A trite message worn bare by a multitude of films, particularly Hughes own, but trotted out for a fine showing here.

I can't recommend Some Kind Of Wonderful enough. It's an 80s film that transcends it's decade and sidesteps cliché by embracing it head-on.

Masters of the Universe

Anyone can make a He-Man movie. It's simple, get a bunch of muscle-heads together, put swords into their hands, then stand back as they go at it. It's a toy line, not Tolstoy.

That's why this 1987 He-Man film is so impressive. It's impressive how much they missed the concept. What we get is the cliché 80s brilliance that if you have great fantasy characters, then they're going to be twice as great if you remove them from their own world and put them into our modern one. Sure, it never once made for a good film, but it sure did make filming a lot cheaper.

What we get here is He-Man meets synth-music loving teenagers, lots of people in ill-fitting costumes, a plot about a cosmic tuning fork, a disbelieving cop who has more screen time than He-Man, and a midget in a rubber suit. The midget (Billy Barty) is probably the worst of it, as every time he makes what passes for a joke, the entire scene stops so everyone can laugh heartily. It's beyond excruciating.

The film however does have three good things going for it. It stars Dolph Lundgren, who makes for a great looking He-Man with his heroic golden mullet. Though it's a shame his English sounds as if he's regurgitating walnuts. Courtney Cox as the hapless wide-eyed Earth teen actually puts in a fairly good performance. So it isn't surprising that for the last third of the film the director has her unconscious. And a brilliant and truly menacing Skelator design (right up till he becomes super gold disco Skelator, anyway. My god, he looks like he has a Columbian drug lord's bidet stuck on his head!). He's huge and radiates evil. He'd be perfect if he didn't spend the entire film sitting down just saying nasty things to hurt peoples feelings. Sort of like your drunken spinster Aunt at the family Christmas party.

The rest of the cast is, I'm fairly sure by their performances, stoned off their tits. As was the writer of this mess who seems to forget the thin motivations of each character whenever he needs to set up a new funny line. The film is highly derivative. From the opening titles it steals from Superman, along with a bad attempt at stealing the theme as well by Tom Conti, to too numerous to name Star Wars riffs. Especially the final showdown at the end. It certainly answers that eternal question; What would the last five minutes of Return of the Jedi look like if it starred He-Man? Special mention for creativity goes to Skelator's oddly familiar post-credits line, “I'll be back!” No, thank god, you won't be.

The film is actually painful to watch in places, made no less so than when Dolph finally howls out the He-Man battle cry of 'I have the power!', which due to all those walnuts he seems to be choking on, comes out as 'Ay erv da prawn!'. All the action sequences are slow and clumsy, often with the actors tripping on their own costumes. The fight scenes aren't so much choreographed as the actors just wobbling their swords around slightly, being very careful not to hurt one another. I had cardboard tube fights with my sister that were better staged!

Meg Foster playing Evil-Lyn is darn sexy. But not worth the price of viewing.

Ancient Eternia saying: 'Live the journey, for every destination is but a doorway to another.' Masters of the Universe is a doorway to a quintessential 80s corner of Hell. And in that regard, it's fantastic!