Forget the awful Forrest Gump: Robert Zemeckis' best film remains this classic of eighties cinema. I don't think there is any other film from the era that so epitomises Hollywood filmmaking at its best. The film is elaborate, expensive, and special-effects laden (as you'd expect given that Zemeckis and co-screenwriter Bob Gale wrote Spielberg's 1941) but it owes its success to the fundamentals: an ingenious script, fun performances, and a pervasive air of good natured charm.

Zemeckis is at the height of his powers here: his direction is as slick as always, but hasn't descended into the gimmicky contrivances that would mar his work from Who Framed Roger Rabbit? onwards. With Gale he has written a fantastic script: while relentlessly plot driven (there's hardly a line of dialogue that isn't exposition of some sort), you never feel characters are being sacrificed to the time-travel machinations. And while the film is likely to be remembered for its big comic set-pieces, much of its humour is small scale and character driven. There's a subtlety and wit here that is absent from other Gale / Zemeckis scripts.

These are drawn out beautifully by the performances. True, just about all the characters are stereotypes, but I don't think that's really a vice in this kind of film, and the actors manage to ad a surprising roundness. Michael J. Fox replaced Eric Stoltz early in filming, and as Marty he shows what a polished light comedy performer he is (it's a shame he doesn't get such quality material more often). Christopher Lloyd gets the mad scientist role he was born to play. But it's the parents who are the most fun. Crispin Glover takes one of those overdrawn geek roles so common in eighties teen movies and makes it charming as well as funny - when Lea Thompson falls for him at the end, it actually makes sense. I didn't much enjoy Thompson's performance in the sequels, but she's very effective here as the apparently demure young Lorraine.

The thing you notice when you've watched it a few too many times: Note that the mall Marty leaves from has become Lone Pine Mall (rather than Twin Pines Mall) by the time he returns, thanks to the tree he ran over at Peabody's farm.

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For  my review of Part II, click here.