STARS : Michael J Fox, Christopher Llloyd, Elizaeth Shue, Thomas F Wilson and Lea Thomas.

Made 4 years after the first film, Back To The Future 2 is a unique sequel in that in many ways it surpasses the first film. It also takes place over a 60 year period encompassing the dates 1985, 2015, 1985 again and 1955.

At the end of the last film, Doc (Lloyd) drags Marty (Fox) and his girlfriend Jennifer (Shue) 30 years into the future to save Marty’s feeble son, Marty Jr.

Marty Jr., is about to make a mistake that sets off a chain of detrimental events, that ruins his entire family. Doc has tracked the events to that one mistake that Marty Jr. is about to do. In ORDER to stop him, Marty (from 1985) must do what Doc says in ORDER to stop the events. But, Marty is too distracted by the sights and sounds of 2015, to really pay heed. Little do they know, that Biff (as an old man) is spying on them and realises the value of the Time Machine and steals a Sporting Almanac (covering the years 1950-2000 ) that Marty buys, in ORDER to make a few bucks back in 1985.

Biff goes back in time to 1955, to see his young self and to give him the Almanac to make him a wealthy man. In doing this, Hill Valley in 1985, becomes a very different world, and when Marty, Jennifer and Doc return to this time, they are devastated and shocked to realise that their home is no longer. It is up Doc and Marty to return to 1955, steal back the Almanac and ensure that they don’t interfere with their other selves, which are still trying to get back to 1985.

The highpoint of this film for me is the clever use of footage from the first BTTF mixed with new in ORDER to create the appearance of two Marty’s, Biff’s and Doc’s throughout the course of the film. The lowpoint though it the massive overuse of product placement which can really detract from your overall enjoyment such is its enormity.

Verdict : Part 2 of the trilogy doesn’t disappoint and in many ways is superior to the first.

THE EXTRAS

* BTTF Part 2 - Featurette (6:32) : This is a brief look at the making of BTTF 2 that was first released in 1989. There are interviews are with Director Robert Zemeckis, Producer Bob Gale, Michael J. Fox & Set Designer Rick Carter. There are also brief looks at the sets used in the film for 1955 and 2015 as well as a fairly large protion of the trailer. All in all though it’s pretty light stuff and doesn’t give away terribly much about the film.

* Making The Trilogy - Part 2 (15:30): This is the second part of the documentary that was made earlier this year and this time mainly focuses on the 2nd film although there is a fairly large section relating to the first. Once again we have interviews with the two Bob’s, Zemeckis and Gale, as well as Michael J. Fox. SOme excellent peices of information as provided in this documentary such as why key characters from the first film aren’t in the sequels as well as the original concept that Biff would be given the Almanac in the 1960’s rather than 1955.

* Outtakes (0:50) : Far too short be be memorable unfortunatley and is nothing more than the actors playing up the the camera and falling over stage props.

* Deleted Scenes (3:50) : There are 4 scenes here including memorable cuts from 2015 with Biff and one from the alternate 1985 with Marty’s brother Dave.

* Hoverboard Test (1:00) : This is quite simply stuntmen practising for the chase scene. For the first part I could see the ropes used but for the second half I couldn’t. See if you can.

* Storyboard to Film - Final Feature Comparison : This time we only have one comparison and it’s not suprisingly for the film’s hoverboard chase involving Marty and Griff with his companions. Running for a little under 3 minutes we again have the screen split in 2 (top and bottom) which allows us to see the original plans for the scene and the finished product. The two are actually very similar, just like for the BTTF comparisons.

* Production Archives : Again this section has been broken down into sections. First up again we have the “Marty McFly Photo Album” (5:40) which has 35 photos from the film and on set with each being on screen for about 10 seconds. Next up is “Behind The Scenes Photos” (2:10) which has 13 shots, this time of the crew rather than the cast. “Futuristic Designs” (5:20) takes a look at the items used in the visions of 2015. These drawings include hoverboards, the electronic dog walker, Marty’s runners and more. “Vehicles Of The Future” (4:20) You don’t have to be Einstein to figure out what drawings are shown here.

* Theatrical Trailer : Not a bad trailer that uses a lot of footage from the first film, shows the characters in the second and divulges stuff all again about the plot. If only films these days used such vague trailers.

CONCLUSION

A superior film and a superior DVD print wise but what is sadly lacking is a commentary, especially from Michael in regards to his mutilple character roles.

With thanks to Universal, Back To The Future 2 is only available as part of the Back To The Future Box Set to buy from August 21.