Back to the Future Trilogy 4K UHD (1985-1990)

[Nothing371]

Originally Posted by dvining

I don't understand what this is supposed to mean.

I did see II as a kid, along with the others in the franchise. I, as an adult, am able to watch a movie that I enjoyed as a child and note its strengths and weaknesses without needing to assuage my childhood self.

Most people that watched BTTF: part II as a child enjoy/ed it very much.

it's not that complicated. I wasn't making any commentary on you or your experiences.

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by Nothing371

wow. Have you met people tho?

how about on Twitter

I thought that the part where I said "which I don't dispute" along with the additional info that there would be people who would loudly declare that Stoltz was better than Fox made it quite clear that I've "met people tho".

[bobbyh64]

Originally Posted by Jay Mammoth

Entire trilogy is awesome.

I agree. My ranking of them goes 1, 2, then 3, but I love them all. I first saw them as a kid in the 80s and I always loved the future scenes in 2. They were the most fun to me. I remember I really wanted a hoverboard.

[Jay Mammoth]

Originally Posted by bobbyh64

I agree. My ranking of them goes 1, 2, then 3, but I love them all. I first saw them as a kid in the 80s and I always loved the future scenes in 2. They were the most fun to me. I remember I really wanted a hoverboard.

I remember getting the pink and black sunglasses. I think it was a promotion at Burger King.

Edit: Just looked online it was Pizza Hut

[martydmc12]

Originally Posted by Cognoscente

Interesting. Perhaps Eric knew that he was about to be fired, so the suspense came to an end. As for how he could have known, there's a quote from Matthew Modine in the previous page which makes me think that Eric was tipped off.

When I had first read Modine's quote, I wasn't quite what sure what to make of it until last year when Tate Donovan told Mike Lowery for Moviehole: "I think I auditioned for it twice. The first time Eric Stoltz got it. Eric Stoltz was the original. And then they got rid of Eric Stoltz and there was a whole new mound of auditions and we were all clamoring to get in there."

Anyway, here is another quote from Eric - this time from the January 2003 issue of Empire: "I wasn't quite ready to jump off a bridge, but my ego was shattered."

I think Tate Donovan is either very confused, or just full of shit. They never held auditions for a second time. That never happened. And no one tipped Stoltz off either. The only people that knew that Stoltz was being fired was Zemeckis, Gale, producer Neil Canton, Spielberg, Kathy Kennedy, Frank Marshall, Sid Shienberg, Lew Wasserman, Family Ties creator/showrunner Gary David Goldberg, and Michael J. Fox. They kept filming with Eric right up until they replaced him with MJF, as they didn't want to shut down production, and keep the crew and momentum going.

If anything Stoltz and Zemeckis never saw eye to eye. One story that Zemeckis told that sticks out for me, was when they were shooting in the 1955 town square scene where Marty sees it for the first time. Zemeckis asked Eric to stumble when walking on/off the curb to the street. They disagreed about this, because Eric didn't understand why Zemeckis wanted this, where Zemeckis wanted Marty to be a reactive character, where Eric was opposed to this with his character. The few seconds of Eric that have been released, and the photos that are out there, it's pretty clear Eric was not the right choice for the role. But Sid Sheinberg insisted on casting him, even though Michael J. Fox was always the guy they wanted, but just wasn't available at the time. Had they not been forced into hiring Eric, the Bob's have said if not MJF, the would have gone with C. Thomas Howell, but Universal didn't want him as the lead.

Originally Posted by RCRochester

You know, the more I read about Eric's involvement and realize that the movie was almost done by the time he was fired, the more I really want to see all of his footage assembled into a complete version of the film.

I know Bob Gale said he would be hesitant because people would troll Stoltz for giving a "bad performance" which I don't dispute, but I really think a lot of other people would be willing to give his performance a chance and appreciate it for what it is, particularly cinephiles and true fans of the series. I know there would be a lot of people out there who would loudly declare Stoltz to be better than Fox and declare that he should never have been fired.

It's such a unique situation and I really hope the parties involved change their minds and make such a thing happen in my lifetime because I'd love to see it.

They shot six weeks with Eric before making the change to Michael. As long as Eric continues as a working actor, the Bob's have made it very clear they would never release that footage, as it's unfair to him as someone who still works as an actor. No actor who's been fired from a production wants their footage released. It's just in bad taste.

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by martydmc12

They shot six weeks with Eric before making the change to Michael. As long as Eric continues as a working actor, the Bob's have made it very clear they would never release that footage, as it's unfair to him as someone who still works as an actor. No actor who's been fired from a production wants their footage released. It's just in bad taste.

I'm aware of that, I've read Bob Gale's statement. I'm simply suggesting that if Stoltz himself ever came to the conclusion that enough time has passed, he's moved on, it's been acknowledged that he gave a good performance but he was simply miscast, and that if there was enough interest among fans in seeing it he would be fine with it, then I would love to see them actually assemble it into as complete a film as possible.

[martydmc12]

Originally Posted by RCRochester

I'm aware of that, I've read Bob Gale's statement. I'm simply suggesting that if Stoltz himself ever came to the conclusion that enough time has passed, he's moved on, it's been acknowledged that he gave a good performance but he was simply miscast, and that if there was enough interest among fans in seeing it he would be fine with it, then I would love to see them actually assemble it into as complete a film as possible.

Even if Stoltz publicly stated "release the Stoltz Cut", Zemeckis would never do it, as that's not his style. Even if Universal tried to assemble a cut, the Director's Guild and the power of Amblin/Spielberg would also override that decision.

What you're asking simply will not ever happen. The most likely scenario is we may eventually get a couple of completed scenes released, but not cleaned up, mix, color graded or scored. Just raw footage, and even then, that might not even happen in our lifetime.

[WBMakeVMarsMovieNOW]

the HDR grading on Part I looks pretty good, can just leave all settings as is, don't have to muddle with tone curve, lower max highlights, etc. looks pretty natural as to how it was shot, nicely handled in terms of grading

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by martydmc12

Even if Stoltz publicly stated "release the Stoltz Cut", Zemeckis would never do it, as that's not his style. Even if Universal tried to assemble a cut, the Director's Guild and the power of Amblin/Spielberg would also override that decision.

What you're asking simply will not ever happen. The most likely scenario is we may eventually get a couple of completed scenes released, but not cleaned up, mix, color graded or scored. Just raw footage, and even then, that might not even happen in our lifetime.

LOL, I know you're working really hard to flex your muscles as a BTTF expert, but you realize my original post on this topic was a "wishful thinking" scenario, right? It's not necessary to catalogue all of the real life obstacles that would prevent such a thing from happening, I'm aware of all of that already.

[martydmc12]

Originally Posted by RCRochester

LOL, I know you're working really hard to flex your muscles as a BTTF expert, but you realize my original post on this topic was a "wishful thinking" scenario, right? It's not necessary to catalogue all of the real life obstacles that would prevent such a thing from happening, I'm aware of all of that already.

Not trying to flex any muscles, lol! It's just that sometimes people do have some weird expectations versus "wishful thinking" scenarios, and not everyone considers the reality of what's possible either. Especially now in the age of "The Snyder Cut" and the possibility of a "Schumacher Cut" of Batman Forever also on the horizon, fans sometimes like to think that with enough banging of the drum, the studios and filmmakers will do whatever they ask. I'm not saying that's you either, just re-affirming that with this particular title what the future of it holds.

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by martydmc12

Not trying to flex any muscles, lol! It's just that sometimes people do have some weird expectations versus "wishful thinking" scenarios, and not everyone considers the reality of what's possible either. Especially now in the age of "The Snyder Cut" and the possibility of a "Schumacher Cut" of Batman Forever also on the horizon, fans sometimes like to think that with enough banging of the drum, the studios and filmmakers will do whatever they ask. I'm not saying that's you either, just re-affirming that with this particular title what the future of it holds.

Understood. I do appreciate the info you've been providing on the subject, though, it's very interesting.

[steel_breeze]

Originally Posted by WBMakeVMarsMovieNOW

the HDR grading on Part I looks pretty good, can just leave all settings as is, don't have to muddle with tone curve, lower max highlights, etc. looks pretty natural as to how it was shot, nicely handled in terms of grading

Agreed. In my crazy system of down-rezzing all 4K HDR content to 1080p SDR, Back to the Future Part 1 is literally the only 4K disc I own that doesn't require any gamma or white point adjustments on my part. I have individualized settings for every other 4K disc... but not this puppy. I do reduce sharpness a tiny bit -- which I already have set very low, 'cuz I like the "soft" film look -- cuz Back to the Future does come up as a tiiiiny bit "too sharp" for my taste... but that's like one click, and isn't gamma/brightness related.

[chewbabka]

Originally Posted by steel_breeze

Agreed. In my crazy system of down-rezzing all 4K HDR content to 1080p SDR, Back to the Future Part 1 is literally the only 4K disc I own that doesn't require any gamma or white point adjustments on my part. I have individualized settings for every other 4K disc... but not this puppy. I do reduce sharpness a tiny bit -- which I already have set very low, 'cuz I like the "soft" film look -- cuz Back to the Future does come up as a tiiiiny bit "too sharp" for my taste... but that's like one click, and isn't gamma/brightness related.

Sharpness should always be on zero....

[Agent Kay]

Originally Posted by chewbabka

Sharpness should always be on zero....

0 on some TVs isn't off.

[Cognoscente]

Originally Posted by martydmc12

The few seconds of Eric that have been released, and the photos that are out there, it's pretty clear Eric was not the right choice for the role. But Sid Sheinberg insisted on casting him, even though Michael J. Fox was always the guy they wanted, but just wasn't available at the time. Had they not been forced into hiring Eric, the Bob's have said if not MJF, they would have gone with C. Thomas Howell, but Universal didn't want him as the lead.

Crispin Glover and Thomas F. Wilson have claimed that the movie was almost completed when Eric was fired. If he was so miscast, the crew wouldn't have shot that much with him. It seems that he was fired just because Fox became available.

Originally Posted by martydmc12

As long as Eric continues as a working actor, the Bob's have made it very clear they would never release that footage, as it's unfair to him as someone who still works as an actor. No actor who's been fired from a production wants their footage released. It's just in bad taste.

But here's the thing...they've already made him look bad with the three brief shots that were released in 2010, which they shouldn't have done if they wanted to spare him the embarrassment.

Eric will be turning 60 this year. I think it's fair to say that releasing the footage will hardly ruin his acting opportunities. He's more or less focused on being a director and producer, as proven with Madam Secretary. The damage has been done. He's already gone through his fair share of ridicule.

In an interview for the Voices from Krypton site circa 2007, Bob Gale claimed that they actually had the opportunity to destroy the negative print of Stoltz's performance, but they chose not to because it was a "rare historical opportunity to have this."

But then he also said that they would have to be in their sixties before they release it to the world. Well, Gale will turn 70 this year whereas Zemeckis will turn 70 next year.

[martydmc12]

Originally Posted by Cognoscente

Crispin Glover and Thomas F. Wilson have claimed that the movie was almost completed when Eric was fired. If he was so miscast, the crew wouldn't have shot that much with him. It seems that he was fired just because Fox became available.

Yes, they were close to being done with shooting the film when they decided to re-cast and fire Eric. But it was a decision based on the footage they had already been assembled when Zemeckis finally had a good look at what they had, and said it wasn't getting the laughs or comedy he was hoping for with the character. Zemeckis has said that using a take from this scene, and a take from that scene, he was hoping he would be able to assemble the film he had envisioned with some good editing. Unfortunately by the time editors Artie Schmidt and Harry Keramidas had a rough cut, it just wasn't working. Bob had Spielberg look at the film and asked him what he should do? Spielberg said re-cast, but don't stop production until you have someone else signed and ready to start filming the next day after you fire Eric. Zemeckis and Gale were still gunning for MJF, and now that actress Meredith Baxter had come back to Family Ties due to her pregnancy, MJF didn't have to carry the show as much, to which Gary David Goldberg permitted them to let Michael do BTTF, but only on nights and weekends.

By the time those six weeks of production were done, they were going to fire Eric regardless if they got MJF or not. As I said in another post, had Sid Sheinberg not been so hellbent on hiring him in the first place, Zemeckis would have cast C. Thomas Howell. The same thing would have happened the second go-around as well. If they still couldn't get MJF, they would have gotten Howell.

I suggest you check out the book "Back to the Future: The Ultimate Visual History" if you want to know the real story of what happened. Everyone, and I mean almost everyone involved in the making of the film was interviewed for this book, and the stories about Eric and the process in how it was handled from start to finish was all the same, all from different people interviewed. Plus there's a good amount of photos of Eric in it as well.

Originally Posted by Cognoscente

But here's the thing...they've already made him look bad with the three brief shots that were released in 2010, which they shouldn't have done if they wanted to spare him the embarrassment.

Eric will be turning 60 this year. I think it's fair to say that releasing the footage will hardly ruin his acting opportunities. He's more or less focused on being a director and producer, as proven with Madam Secretary. The damage has been done. He's already gone through his fair share of ridicule.

In an interview for the Voices from Krypton site circa 2007, Bob Gale claimed that they actually had the opportunity to destroy the negative print of Stoltz's performance, but they chose not to because it was a "rare historical opportunity to have this."

But then he also said that they would have to be in their sixties before they release it to the world. Well, Gale will turn 70 this year whereas Zemeckis will turn 70 next year.

I disagree that the footage release so far made him look bad. There's no dialogue from Eric, and it's only a couple of seconds worth of footage. It's not enough to show off his true acting skills or what he did with the character. It's about as informative in his acting as the still photos that have been released.

Whatever the Bob's decide to do with the footage, it's unknown. They keep their plans pretty close to their chests, so maybe one day, or maybe never. No one really knows.

I'll leave you with one thing Zemeckis said that always stuck with me. "90% of good directing is good casting." He's absolutely right about that, and he has also admitted every time when asked that he blames himself for letting Eric get cast in the first place. Eric was just not the right choice for Marty McFly, even though Zemeckis and company did try to make it work.

[Cognoscente]

Originally Posted by martydmc12

By the time those six weeks of production were done, they were going to fire Eric regardless if they got MJF or not. As I said in another post, had Sid Sheinberg not been so hellbent on hiring him in the first place, Zemeckis would have cast C. Thomas Howell. The same thing would have happened the second go-around as well. If they still couldn't get MJF, they would have gotten Howell.

I'm surprised that they didn't think about getting Tom Cruise - he was a bigger star. I remember a quote from Gale in the TUVH book about Spielberg "not ready to commit to Tommy" which got me thinking there was some kind of maturity issue that Spielberg had with C.T.H.

Originally Posted by martydmc12

I disagree that the footage release so far made him look bad. There's no dialogue from Eric, and it's only a couple of seconds worth of footage. It's not enough to show off his true acting skills or what he did with the character. It's about as informative in his acting as the still photos that have been released.

Even though there's no dialogue, many people have talked about how you can tell from those brief clips that he was miscast. Nearly everyone describes him as being wooden.

Originally Posted by martydmc12

I'll leave you with one thing Zemeckis said that always stuck with me. "90% of good directing is good casting." He's absolutely right about that, and he has also admitted every time when asked that he blames himself for letting Eric get cast in the first place.

I'm reminded of what Zemeckis said in a Tom Shone book called Blockbuster: "It was the hardest meeting I’ve ever had in my life and it was all my fault. I broke his heart."

[nick4Knight]

"Principal photography began November 26, 1984, on a 22-week schedule" <-----

The shooting schedule was planned for 120+ days before starting principle photography, 6 weeks of filming (if it was every day) is only 42 days. What on Earth are people talking about stating nearly the entire footage of Eric scenes were shot? They are just lying, misremembering, or have some weird agenda to frame the story against The Bob's and studio. In Glover's case, I'd say it's A and C combined.

Maybe a bunch of dialogue location scenes were done but these facts about the production and what certain actors are saying don't make sense.

[JimRochester]

I believe one of the commentaries on 1 mentioned that they knew right away Stoltz was wrong for the part. They obviously were not afraid to shake things up given what they did to Glover for 2 and 3 as well. In an interview Tom Wilson said when they called him into a meeting to tell them about Stoltz, he assumed he was getting fired. I doubt he would have assumed that if principal photography was almost finished.

[Cognoscente]

Originally Posted by nick4Knight

What on Earth are people talking about stating nearly the entire footage of Eric scenes were shot? They are just lying, misremembering, or have some weird agenda to frame the story against The Bob's and studio. In Glover's case, I'd say it's A and C combined.

If you think that's bad, Michael J. Fox claimed that they spent 9 weeks with Eric Stoltz. Fox said this when he was interviewed alongside Lloyd and Thompson on The Today Show back in 2015.