1. Film Opening Analysis – Back to the Future (1985)
Director: Robert Zemeckis
The costume that Michael J. Fox wears in Back to the Future shows that he is young, cool and the
audience point-of-view character by wearing clothes that were cool at the time. The orange jacket
that he wears is also used because it is incongruous and will make him stand out later when he
travels back in time as well as letting him remain recognisable throughout the film. The plutonium
box is coloured yellow to make it stick in the audience’s minds when it becomes important to the
plot later. The props used for Marty McFly’s character are all used to make him look cool – the
skateboard and the guitar. The props also set up many plot elements later in the film. The first image
seen is a collection of clocks which sets up the time motif that is a crucial part of the main narrative.
There are newspaper clippings about a Doc Brown’s house being destroyed, providing important
information on his character before he appears. There are pictures of Benjamin Franklin and Thomas
Edison as well as numerous devices that set up that Doc Brown is an inventor. Lots of rubbish
scattered around the set tells the audience that he is untidy and unsuccessful, while the TV features
a news report stating that plutonium has been stolen, which coupled with the plutonium’s
appearance in shot later sets up a mystery of why he has it. Michael J. Fox also acts like he is used to
this situation showing that he is friends with Doc Brown. The opening is almost enti rely one shot,
which reinforces the sense of anarchy in the house and that these events happening in sequence are
routine in Doc Brown’s life. There is no music in the scene, but underscoring it is the sound of ticking
clocks, that reinforces the time motif.
I like the long shot that was used to set up many of the plot elements and would like to include that
editing pace in my film.