It has been 41 years since Back to the Future premiered, but the movie has left a lasting imprint on Hollywood, and has produced some of the most memorable and quotable lines in cinema history. Back to the Future expertly bridges the gap between the sci-fi, fantasy, and action adventure genres, and this unique blend has allowed for some comedic one-liners and emotionally-rich quotes to bleed into the scientific jargon.
Directed by Robert Zemeckis and co-written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale, Back to the Future explores the adventures of Emmett “Doc” Brown (Christopher Lloyd) and Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox), who use a modified DeLorean to travel through time. Their journey to 1955, and later to 2015 and 1885 in the sequels, is made even more thrilling by a fantastic script that includes spot-on comebacks, genre puns, and perfectly-timed spoonerisms, many of which are quoted even four decades later.
“When This Baby Gets Up to 88 Miles Per Hour, You’re Gonna See Some Serious Sh*t.”
Doc Brown drops the magic number in the very first Back to the Future movie, as 88 miles-per-hour is the speed that the DeLorean needs to reach in order to travel through time. Towards the end of the first movie, Marty needs to leave enough room to ramp up the vehicle so that it catches the lightning bolt that promises to send him home to his time. The inclusion of this lends an air of the fantastic to Doc Brown’s time machine.
The number makes a return throughout the film series, notably in Back to the Future Part III, when Doc Brown, Marty McFly, and Clara Clayton (Mary Steenburgen) use 1885 technology to get the DeLorean up to speed after it runs out of fuel. The quote sets a kooky, fun, and a little dangerous tone that is reflected in the entire film series, and showcases the anarchic, eccentric, and mad scientist qualities of Doc Brown himself.
“Are You Telling Me That You Built a Time Machine… Out of a DeLorean!?”
Doc Brown’s time machine has outlasted the dated vehicle on which it is based. The 1983 DMC DeLorean was the Cybertruck of its day in some ways: a wonky, ugly, and poorly designed machine known more for its novelty value than its functionality. Its gull-wing doors and stainless steel exterior made it a standout in the 1980s, and proved to be the perfect aesthetic choice for Back to the Future’s iconic time machine. It’s no wonder Marty was so shocked at the modifications.
While controversial and scandalous headlines were still reporting on the criminal activities of company founder John DeLorean when Back to the Future released, the movie helped to popularize the car as an eccentric choice of vehicle. Doc Brown transformed the DeLorean DMC-12 into a time machine using custom-built temporal displacement equipment, with modifications including the addition of a Flux Capacitor, a plutonium-powered nuclear reactor that powered the vehicle.
“No, Biff. You Leave Her Alone.”
The first installment of the Back to the Future film series saw Marty travel to 1955, where he worked to ensure his parents began their relationship, allowing himself to exist. The villainous Biff Tannen (Thomas F. Wilson) almost got in the way, but George McFly (Crispin Glover) finally gained courage and confidence to earn the adoration of Lorraine (Lea Thompson), Marty’s future mother. Fate puts George in a position to be the hero, and he takes full advantage of it.
Having spent the entirety of Back to the Future as Biff’s cheerful doormat, it was cathartic to see George muster up the courage to finally knock him out. He steps up, not because he thinks he’ll win in a fight against Biff, but because it’s the right thing to do, and it’s this quality that makes Marty McFly such a keen adventurer alongside Doc Brown in the future. George earns huge respect for finally standing up to Biff and protecting Lorraine.
“I’ll Also Be Able to See Who Wins the Next 25 World Series.”
As any Back to the Future fan can attest, knowledge of the future is dangerous. When Marty arrives in 2015 in Back to the Future Part II, he lands upon the idea of taking a sports almanac back to 1985 and making a lot of money betting on the outcome. Biff takes the idea and runs with it, creating a nightmarish alternate reality where he rules Hill Valley as a wealthy casino owner, though Back to the Future Part II follows Doc Brown and Marty’s quest to undo the damage to the timeline.
The original Back to the Future movie, however, contradicts the devastation of its successor. Doc Brown speculates on what traveling to the future might be like, and casually suggests that he’ll be able to find out who wins the World Series for the next few decades, guaranteeing himself riches. Later, Doc chides Marty for thinking about using time travel for personal gain, proving that it might be one rule for him, and another for everyone else.
“Hold It, Fellas. I’m Afraid You’re Just Too Darn Loud.”
Back to the Future interestingly established a theme of featuring prominent musicians in cameo appearances. Before Flea’s appearance as Needles in Back to the Future Part II and ZZ Top’s portrayal of a 19th century folk band in Back to the Future Part III, it was Huey Lewis — from Huey Lewis and the News — who appeared in the original movie. He starred as a disapproving Battle of the Bands judge who shut down Marty and his band during their iconic, but very loud, performance.
Lewis’ line reflects the dismissive attitude of George McFly in the future, but highlights how the events of Back to the Future have changed both Marty and George for the better. Lewis also recorded a pair of songs for the Back to the Future soundtrack, continuing his hot-streak in the mid-1980s following the band’s hit #1 album on the Billboard Top 100, Sports, which released in late 1983, and with the similarly-successful Fore! releasing only a year after the movie.
“You Know, Marty, You Look So Familiar to Me.”
Before Marty arrives in 1955, the McFly family story began when Lorraine’s father accidentally hit George McFly with a car, and Lorraine felt sorry for him after he was brought inside to recover. In the new timeline, however, Marty pushes his future father out of the way, effectively taking his place, so it’s him who is brought into the Baines home, where he gets to know the teenager who will become his mother, and her parents — his grandparents.
Stella Baines might be more intuitive than the rest, however, as she quickly comments on just how familiar Marty looks. She asks if she knows Marty’s mother, putting Marty in a tough position, as he can’t quite explain that he is her grandson from the future. This line is quirky, ironic, and hilarious, and shows just how twisted and entangled Marty’s journey to 1955 could cause his own future to become.
“Since When Can Weathermen Predict the Weather?”
As Marty and Doc Brown are getting ready for the night that Marty intends to travel back to his time, hoping to use a lightning storm to power the DeLorean, they still have a lot to accomplish. Marty has to make Lorraine and George fall in love and still needs to have time to get to the DeLorean so he can connect to the lightning-hit clock tower at exactly the time the storm strikes. As they’re setting up, however, a weather report says the skies will clear.
Doc asks Marty if he’s sure about the storm, prompting this brilliant quote that, among others, highlights the paradoxes of time travel. Marty knows the storm will hit as, in his time, it’s a memorable and notable event in the town’s history. This also proves to be the final opportunity that Marty finds to explain more about the future to the younger Doc Brown, perhaps informing his own developments in time travel.
“Because of the Fallout From the Atomic Wars.”
The comedic double-act between Marty McFly and Doc Brown in Back to the Future is one of the things that makes the movie so iconic. Doc has so many great one-liners on his own, and his penchant for drawing absurd and ridiculous conclusions about the future is something that we can only imagine Christopher Lloyd pulling off properly. He’s totally earnest in everything he says, such as when he comments on Marty’s futuristic outfit.
When Marty shows the younger Doc video footage from the future, the latter asks what the former is wearing. Marty replies that it’s a radiation suit, and, with the Cold War in full effect and the threat of nuclear attacks looming, it’s no surprise Doc Brown suggested this might have been because of the “fallout from the atomic wars.” He must have assumed everyone in the future wears radiation suits, not knowing that it was to protect from the plutonium powering the DeLorean.
“Well, That Is Your Name, Isn’t It? Calvin Klein? It’s Written All Over Your Underwear.”
After being hit by the car instead of George, Marty is brought into the Baines family home to recuperate, where the teenage Lorraine, not knowing Marty is her son from the future, quickly becomes attracted to him. When Lorraine keeps on calling him Calvin, Marty asks why, bringing this inappropriate attraction to light as it’s revealed the name is written all over Marty’s underwear, which Lorraine must have been looking at.
Of course, Lorraine had noticed that the name Calvin Klein was written on Marty’s purple underwear, referring to the brand, rather than his own name. It makes sense that Lorraine would be confused, as the Calvin Klein fashion house wasn’t established until 1968, 13 years after the events of Back to the Future. This is one of the best jokes in the original movie, with Marty’s confusion, Lea Thompson’s expert delivery, and the inappropriate nature of the entire situation making everything funnier.
“It’s Your Kids, Marty!”
Back to the Future ends with Marty returning to his time of 1985, where he reunites with his girlfriend, Jennifer (Claudia Wells), and reconciles with his family, who now vaguely recognize him. Their peace is disrupted, however, when the DeLorean appears and Doc Brown bursts out, wearing outlandish clothes and strange sunglasses, with a warning to Marty and Jennifer that there is some issue involving their children from the future.
This was not only a satisfying ending to Marty’s original adventure, but also planted huge seeds for future stories involving Marty and Doc Brown’s time traveling. Back to the Future Part II was released in 1989, and brought Marty McFly to 2015 to prevent his and Jennifer’s son from tarnishing their family’s future. The second installment picks up where the first ended, allowing the Back to the Future film series to follow one continuous story.