I've been playing a lot of games lately, and to be honest I'm kind of burned out at the moment so it seemed like a good time to catch up on my video backlog a bit. That said, I picked up the Blu-Ray of the Back to the Future Trilogy last year, but I only ever got around to rewatching the first movie. Now that I have a little free time, now seemed as good a time as any to rewatch my favorite movie in the trilogy: Back to the Future Part 2. Yeah, it's a bit of the Black Sheep of the 3, something that's very much reflected both in the transfer and the number of new bonus features on the Blu-Ray (the first movie has 3 new documentaries detailing early concepts to box office returns, whereas the second film has one and it's pretty flimsy). While never as well received as perhaps the other two movies (though I've seen some vocal opposition to Part 3, a movie I've warmed to over the years), I always found the ideas and ambition of the second movie the most interesting in the trilogy.
So how does the HD restoration of Part 2 look on my LCD TV? Well, I thought the first movie looked fantastic, so utterly clear and vibrant you would think it was just filmed last year. The second movie has not transitioned so well to HD. Maybe it's the increase in special effects shots that is the main culprit. You can clean a print as much as you like, but 1980s video compositing tricks (particularly on the Hoverboards, which up-close look just as fake as that compositing shot from the first movie with Marty and Doc standing in the middle of the flame trails) are just not going to hold up under the cruel scrutiny of the HD lens. The movie also looks a little desaturated and dim/soft in some areas, though that could be just how the film was shot (or perhaps the masters have degraded worse than the first's). For the most part, the film looks great, and like the first movie it also looks like it could have been filmed 2 years ago instead of over 20. There is something to be said for the power of practical effects, so for the most part the movie still holds up quite well. I do suspect, though, that the first movie got the lion's share of the restoration budget.
I'll be watching Back to the Future Part 3 probably tomorrow. Also, I have to admit I splurged a little and scooped up a good deal on Amazon: $65 for the Blu-Ray set of the first 6 Star Trek movies. I haven't seen any of these movies in at least a decade, so I'll be rewatching all 6 sometime in the next week or so. And yes, that includes the first movie and Star Trek 5. I want to see if maybe I can appreciate them a bit more now that I'm much older, or if they truly are utter garbage like I remember. Sadly, the Next Generation movies Blu-Ray set has not seen the kind of discounts I've seen for the original 6, so those movies will have to be on the backburner for a while (yes, I know only Generations and especially First Contact were any good, but I like having all the movies).