We Don't Need Roads

May 15, 2015

When Bob Zemeckis and Bob Gale started out as budding filmmakers, little did they expect to write a sf comedy that would capture the imaginations of moviegoers at the time Back to the Future was released in 1985, let alone still be enjoyed by future generations. Gaines (A Christmas Story) takes the reader on an action-packed, behind-the-scenes look at the making of the movie and its two sequels. He details how the filmmakers struggled to get a studio to create the picture until they got the support of their mentor, Steven Spielberg. After production started, their troubles continued as they realized that Eric Stoltz was not the right fit for the lead role of the fun-loving high schooler Marty McFly, opting instead for successful sitcom star Michael J. Fox. By conducting extensive interviews with cast and crew, the author sheds light on why this well-written story with its endearing characters, flux capacitors, hoverboards, and a flying DeLorean time machine still resonates today. VERDICT Coinciding with the movie's 30th anniversary, this comprehensive account is a must-read for Future fans, media studies students, aspiring filmmakers, and time-travel buffs.--Donna Marie Smith, Palm Beach Cty. Lib. Syst., FL

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 15, 2015
It's been 30 years since Back to the Future was released, and this enthusiastic book celebrates that anniversary with a collection of entertaining stories about the making of the movie and its two sequels. Author Gaines, who's clearly a fan of the time-travel trilogy, doesn't provide the kind of detailed, day-by-day coverage that some readers might prefer (don't expect something like J. W. Rinzler's encyclopedic books about the making of the Star Wars movies), but he does offer enough behind-the-scenes lore to satisfy most fans. Gaines interviewed numerous people involved with the production of the three movies, from special-effects experts to on-screen performers to the films' director, Robert Zemeckis, to Doc Brown himself, Christopher Lloyd. Much has been written about the movies over the years, but Gaines does a nice job of expanding on common-knowledge stories to reveal new details: most BTF fans know, for example, that Eric Stoltz was initially cast as Marty McFly and that he was replaced by Michael J. Fox about a month into filming, but how many know the Marty recasting caused another important role to be recast, too? For all but hardcore BTF junkies, this book will do very nicely.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)