I think too much and have excessive amounts of free time

The most disappointing movie I have seen in 2008 is Back To The Future 2. The first time I saw the movie was age 8 and despite being released nearly twenty years ago it is this year’s disappointment. Back To The Future 2 holds this title for two primary reasons.
1. Unlike when I was a kid, I now know to have low expectations for movies. The majority of movies are mediocre or worse, so its no use being excited for movies except for those rare exceptions. Case in point: This summer’s Batman movie is going to be all kinds of fantastic and everyone knows it. For most films now, I hope for something decent and anything beyond that is a treat. I’m aware that this is a pessimistic outlook but this is not an all-encompassing philosophy I use. I only apply it to movies, Pittsburgh Pirates baseball, and women. That’s healthy.

2. The second reason BTTF2 disappoints me is only coming to fruition right now. When Marty travels into the future he visits 2015. As a kid the concept of 2015 so was far fetched I thought nothing of it. Rewatching the movie this year puts a whole new spin on Marty’s adventures in future Hill Valley. In 1989 the flying cars gave us an exciting and entertaining look into the future. The future of suburban middle class families was one of instant Pizza Hut for dinner after an afternoon of hoverboarding. BTTF2 gave us Michael J Fox in his prime, a cute Leah Thompson, and the wacky Christopher Lloyd. It showed us a world where lawyers were abolished, Cubs were World Series Champions and the USA Today was relevant. In this future we could hang out with friends at the 80’s café and a virtual Max Headroom-style Ronald Reagan would take our orders.
But now, 2015 isn’t that far off and this is where the problem with BTTF2 arises. It was more than a blockbuster summer movie and more than a Huey Lewis soundtrack. It was an optimistic outlook on life and our future. In this world a high school boy was free to befriend the local mad scientist. Time travel was possible. Life was easier. Goldie Wilson could rise from janitor to mayor. But this future is not coming true. We’re not traveling through time. Kids are still on skateboards. Instead of flying cars, we have the same automobiles(nothing nearly as cool as the De Lorean), except now its incredibly expensive to fuel them. Crummy Pizza Hut pizza is not available instantly. Instead of sharing 80’s nostalgia with friends, we’re alone, watching phony celebrities reminisce on VH1.
Ultimately BTTF2 failed my generation. That future is now and its not working out like Robert Zemeckis and we all imagined. For the majority of my life I’ve been of the belief that BTTF2 was the rare sequel which bested the original but no longer. Despite all this, I’ll still watch BTTF2 when its on, but its clear that it can’t be grouped with Empire Strikes Back and Terminator 2. I’m not one for harping on the past, but in this instance it sure beats looking towards the future.

***On second thought. I’m looking into this too deeply. Its still a classic movie……plus Billy Zane plays one of Biff’s cronies.