BACK TO THE FUTURE BREAKDOWN: Every Detail You Missed | Deep Dive

Back to the Future (1985) is considered the best time travel film of all time, starring Michael J Fox and Christopher Lloyd in Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale's thrilling sci-fi adventure that led to modern titles like Avengers Endgame and Rick and Morty. Despite its iconic status, the film still contains quirks and mysteries that perplex viewers to this day, from debates over the "Johnny B Goode" sequence, plot holes in the time travel logic, and the absurdity of Doc and Marty's friendship. Enjoy this analysis and visual investigation by Erik Voss (New Rockstars) to finally reveal the emotional core of this film and dozens of details that you may have missed!

Welcome to The Deep Dive, a new channel in the New Rockstars Digital Network. Hosted by Erik Voss, The Deep Dive is the destination for more pointed media investigations. From full seasons of Marvel streaming shows to cult classic films, Erik will dig to the roots of the hidden agendas beneath every title.

00:00 - Why Are Doc and Marty Friends?
02:39 - Foreshadowing Details
03:50 - Michael J Fox
06:07 - Save the Clock Tower
08:17 - George McFly & Biff
09:35 - DeLorean Breakdown
10:45 - Time Travel Analysis
13:07 - Marty Goes to 1955
15:17 - Marty and Lorraine
17:43 - Doc Brown
20:19 - Van Halen
20:57 - Biff Town Square Chase
22:30 - Marty & George
23:14 - Biff's Revenge
24:59 - George Punches Biff
25:39 - Johnny B Goode
27:27 - Lightning Storm
29:32 - Back in 1985
31:01 - Marty & Doc Friendship Explained

VIDEO CREDITS:
Written and Produced by Erik Voss
Edited by Devin Cleary
Executive Producer: Erik Voss

[richardboss]

The scene of George finally standing up to Biff was incredible. You can hear a slight hint of fear in his words, but in that moment, he was willing to accept the consequences of what he was saying/doing. Anyone who's been bullied in their life and never mustered the courage to stand up for themselves can celebrate this moment.

[Chubbs]

I never thought that Marty was having an anxiety attack during “Earth Angel”. I always thought he was unable to perform because he was being “erased from time”. The same thing happens to Biff in part 2 when he returns the Time Machine back to 2015.

[christophersantiago]

I'm in my mid forties and have seen BTTF a hundred times and just realized the amp was specifically built for Marty. I always just assumed it was a weird science thing that happened to be in the lab. But now realizing, yeah, there'd be no reason for Doc to use his time and talents on building a huge amp just for the sake of having a huge amp. Really solidifies their relationship and friendship.

[TheFunko]

I’ve seen BTTF easily 100 times and I’ve watched dozens of YouTube breakdowns of “things we missed” / “Easter eggs”, and this is the first video I’ve seen in at least 10 years that has actually given me something new to think about when analyzing the movie. Thank you for all the hard work that went into putting this together.

[AmPrnvvv]

Never get tired of watching BTTF. My Fav movie of all time!

[ScottHowell]

This video was great. This is my favorite movie of all time and everytime I see an article or video about it, I almost get frustrated because I feel like I know all the nuances and trivia of the film by now. This is the first video in years I've watched that is pointing things out I never knew. That's incredible!

[joaomarcosjunqueira]

Doc and Martin are friends, cause "they've always been". Doc knew he needed to befriend Martin, the same way he knew he needed to built his time machine.

[niagargoyle]

One of my favorite parts about Back to the Future is that everything is telegraphed. There's always some event that subtly or blatantly explains why certain things happen. One of my favorite payoffs is related to the note that Marty gives Doc. You never see him actually throw the note away; he puts it into his pocket after tearing it up.

And when Marty tells Doc that his dad had never stood up to Biff, you can see the gears turning in Doc's head... until he's interrupted. But he then has 30 years to ponder and decide that certain things are okay to change.

[macronencer]

Thank you for giving a shout out to the composer. Silvestri did an absolutely fantastic job of blending "sci fi Lydian strangeness" with classic "American Hero fanfare" in the score. I studied film music back in around 2008, and this was always one of my favourites.

[furbyfubar]

I always read the part of Doc having a massive amp as the reason for Marty being friends with him. But watching this made me realize that from *Doc's* perspective, if he had to work to *make* the time loop close (and the timeline isn't self-healing and self-correcting) he would have been in a situation where he *had* to get Marty mixed up in the experiment in a way that made it possible for what was written in the letter to happen! So it might have been more a case of Doc getting a massive amp *because* that would make it easier for him to befriend this high school kid?

[joshmradio]

This is my all time favorite movie. This breakdown gave me some even more Easter eggs I never knew existed. Thank you, Voss, for this. Now do parts II and III!!

[Sooch]

Wow…I never thought anyone could show me something new about BTTF that I didn’t already know, but you pulled it off amazingly! It really just makes my appreciation of this movie go higher! You guys should be proud of what you made here!

[DickDiamond]

Growing up, I thought Star Wars would be my favorite trilogy. Then 1985 happened. This was a great breakdown of the deeper themes

[srayj]

I absolutely love this movie and now I think you’ve set yourself up by doing such a good job that you have to do the entire trilogy. If you do, I would love for you to address how in this movie, Marty literally parrots his father’s words when he says, “I’m not sure I can take that kind of rejection” yet in parts two and three, he gets into trouble because he doesn’t want to be called a chicken. So, it always made me wonder if this was done to show that even though we think Marty was the same person as before, given that he remembered his old life, we also have to assume that in returning to this alternate 1985, Marty may have started to embody the traits of his self that grew up with these parents who probably would have taught their son not to back down or let anyone make him think he can’t do something. This likely made Marty more arrogant and self-destructive, because growing up he didn’t back down from a fight or a challenge, even when he knew better, going from a life ruled by fear to one more driven by pride.

[jinkyu]

I've been an insane "Back to the Future" fan my whole life, and there was foreshadowing and parallels I never got until your deep dive here. I LOVED this video!! Thanks so much for putting it together! Here's to hoping you do parts II and III. 🙂

[SKtube]

One of my favorite film trilogies of all time. Growing up in southern CA, it was cool to actually be able to go check out some of the film locations, many of which are still standing. The chase scene was filmed at the Puente Hills Mall and if you stand at a certain spot, you can see the layout for the entire scene. Doc's mansion is also in Pasadena.👍🏽

[samuraicheems]

Eric, you are a hero to us all. You gotta spend so much damn time looking for all these details and thank you so much for it! I’ve been following new rockstars for a while, watching all the marvel videos, then your other videos peaked my interest. But you Eric really just keep me coming back! Thanks for all the little things you’ve been able to point out! 🤙

[Paul_Wetor]

Jumping ahead a bit, in Part III the Marshall was telling his son something (I just rewatched it last week) and I was puzzled by the unnecessary line. Then I realized that the Marshall was Strickland, a forefather of the teacher. These movies are full of internal references and connections, which is part of what makes them so interesting. As with the opening clocks scene, there are little bits of cleverness that are not obvious. Like the Twin Pines Mall becoming the Lone Pine Mall. Most directors would have zoomed in to make sure we noticed.

[KnightFoxx]

I’ve watched this movie probably hundreds of times since I was 6 years old and you explained the hell out of it. It works on so many levels and while somethings I always caught into. There’s this small details that I’ve never caught. Thank You! 🙏🏾

[blake]

Thanks for keeping the content coming Erik I appreciate you more than you know!