Back to the future Marty McFly is a great protagonist with many strengths, but some aspects of his character have not aged particularly well, proving that he is always somewhat unlikeable. McFly was responsible for some of Back to the futures best-quoted and most iconic scenes throughout the entire trilogy, and despite his flaws, he remains a beloved character who plays a crucial role in the films. It is certainly true that Back to the future Would not have been such a huge success without him – but Some of his traits didn’t need to be played so negatively.
Over the Back to the future trilogy, Marty and Doc travel through the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, creating new timelines as they go. This opens the door for some of the most innovative and creative time travel stories ever to hit the screen, but unfortunately, it also forces the characters into some problematic situations that quickly highlight their flaws and don’t hold up well today. . Marty McFly is probably the worst culprit of them allBehind the charm and charisma, is a selfish and often creepy teenager.
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Marty blatantly checks out other girls in front of Jennifer
He’s a terrible boyfriend at first
From as early as the opening of Back to the futureIt’s no secret that Marty McFly has eyes for other girls. His relationship with Jennifer is the core romance of the entire trilogy, with their dynamic playing a huge role in each character’s respective development – but his loyalty to the relationship is immediately tested. This scene is played for laughsIntended to prove that McFly is just a “a simple guy,“But the subtle objectification didn’t work well at all.
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Obviously, Marty and Jennifer’s relationship isn’t fully established at this point in the movie, so audiences aren’t as critical of Marty as they would have been otherwise, but the moment still feels strange. The couple will eventually come together and emerge from the trilogy stronger than before, but it’s an unusual decision to start the entire franchise with a very subtle proposal The protagonist is not devoted to his love interest.
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Marty’s reaction to Biff trashing his father’s truck is selfish
He shows no sympathy for his father
There are many hidden story clues within Back to the futureAnd many of them relate to the enigmatic character of Biff. He begins as an unremarkable side character but quickly becomes the antagonist of the entire trilogy, causing trouble for Marty and Doc Brown wherever they go. However, there is one moment in the first film that is intended to make audiences turn against Biff Makes them turn against Marty instead.
In this scene, the film tries to show Biff’s selfishness by giving him junk George McFly’s truck, but the real selfishness comes from Marty when he complains about not being able to use the vehicle. He shows no sympathy for his father, who originally owned the car. of course, Marty is only a teenager and has problems of his ownBut his reaction here seems exaggerated considering it was never his car to begin with.
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Marty is embarrassed by his father being bullied
His attitude is pretty selfish
When Marty travels back to 1955, the main conflict of the movie arises when he accidentally prevents his parents from meeting – and therefore erases himself from the timeline. In order to stop this disaster, he is forced to free the younger versions of his parents and put them on a date. However, there are a few glaring plot holes in it Back to the future, But perhaps The biggest problem with the story is that Marty is a terrible friend to George.
He doesn’t give George any reason to accept his friendship, but he takes it for granted that his unpopular father will want to hang out with him.
Marty is constantly embarrassed by his father’s shame and always embarrassed when Biff and his friends pick on him, despite Marty having the upper hand. He doesn’t give George any reason to accept his friendship, but he takes it as a sign that his unpopular father will want to hang out with him. It’s another example of Marty’s selfishness, and while it allows for some great jokes, This may contribute to the protagonist being unlikely in certain aspects.
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Marty’s plan involves simulating a sexual assault scenario (on his own mother)
This is an unnecessarily traumatic way to get the couple together
Although Back to the future Is old well overall, there are some scenes that definitely wouldn’t have made the cut today. The most obvious is Marty’s mastermind plan to bring his parents together, which involves simulating his mother’s own sexual assault in order to spur his father to take revenge. The scene is very dramatic And does a good job of getting audiences invested in the story, but there are much easier paths Marty could have taken to save the timeline.
The whole plan to put his mother in danger seems unnecessary from Marty, and it would have made a lot more sense for him to calculate something that did not involve so much danger and possible trauma. He knew that George and Lorraine loved each other In another reality, so surely it should not take such drastic measures to get them together now. Marty’s actions in this plan are completely inconsiderate and unnecessary.
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A back to the future deleted scene reveals that Marty was afraid of “turning gay”
The joke didn’t land at the time, and it’s worse now
Although it did not make the final cut of the film, there is one unfortunate deleted scene for Back to the future In which Marty confides in Doc that his ingenious plan of beating his own mother could make him “be merry,” Which obviously doesn’t make any sense. It’s a pretty insensitive line that exposes Marty’s own regressive views, and if it was kept in the film, it would be very difficult to justify Marty’s actions.
Thankfully this scene didn’t make the final cut, but the fact that it exists in the screenplay still speaks to Marty’s character in a negative way. The line is clearly a joke, and he’s not actually “Afraid“That he will become gay, but it feels completely unnecessary.
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The end of Back to the Future proves that Marty is very materialistic
He only cares about his family’s newfound wealth
The end of Back to the future See Marty and Doc Brown successfully bring George and Lorraine back together, resetting the timeline and allowing Marty to travel back to his home in 1985 – but when he returns, everything has changed. His family is suddenly rich, and instead of bullying them, he now works for them. It’s a happy ending all aroundBut for some reason Marty seems happier about his newfound wealth than about saving his own life.
The fact that George and Lorraine have overcome their financial troubles is obviously great, however It should not be the main focus of the ending. They still have sources of happiness before the timeline reset, but Marty acts like everything is finally resolved because his dad has a new car.
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Marty is insecure about coming across “Chicken”
It is always his biggest concern
throughout Back to the futureMarty struggles with being called “chicken.” It happens several times throughout the film, usually because of Biff, and each time Marty is unable to take the insult. It is usually played as a joke, however This quickly becomes the definition of the character And Marty comes across very insecure as a result.
The macho nature is clearly a result of the era in which the film was made, but it allows modern audiences to find Marty judgmental and lacking in confidence. The character’s charm and humor comes across as defensive and harsh Instead of being cool and carefree, as the film intended, it gives a whole new dimension to his attitude.
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Marty takes credit for Chuck Berry’s song in the dance
He rewrites an important period of music history
Back to the futureChuck Berry’s paradox has long been a point of contention when discussing the iconic movie, but whether it’s a logical fallacy or not, it’s still very ignorant of Marty to pass off the iconic song as his own in the final scene. Not only does it paint him as selfish once again, but it also raises the important issue of A white teenager steals an important piece of black musical culture.
Marty obviously didn’t think about this when he performed the song, and it simply involved giving extra life to the Enchantment Under The Sea dance. But those who are familiar with the history of Chuck Berry’s music and its importance in the development of rock and roll as a genre can clearly see the problem with this moment.
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Marty has a strange obsession with getting revenge on Biff
Marty was far too concerned with making Biff suffer
Marty’s anger against Biff and his multiple attempts to embarrass him make for some of Back to the future‘s strange scene, but when considered as a whole, it does not make sense for him to be so wound-up about the person that he hardly knows. It could be argued that he is trying to take revenge for bullying his father, however Marty never seems that bothered about George’s misfortune Until he gets to benefit from bullying Biff back.
Marty’s rivalry with Biff makes a lot more sense Back to the Future Part II. Here, the antagonist’s actions directly affect the timeline and cause problems that urgently need to be solved, but he is simply minding his own business in the first film when Marty decides to rope him into his over-the-top revenge plot.
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Marty has issues controlling his temper
He struggles to keep his emotions in check
throughout Back to the futureThere are several moments when Marty could have easily walked away and saved himself some trouble. Whether it’s being called chicken, watching Biff throw insults at his father, or building his overly complicated plan to bring George and Lorraine together – there’s always a moment when he snaps and goes too far. The scenes are always littered with jokes, however When the humor is removed, Marty comes across as volatile and unpredictable.
Several other actors were considered for the role of Marty McFly Back to the futureBut without Michael J. Fox’s innate charm and sense of humor, the character could easily become unlikeable and make the project much worse. His pitch-perfect performance manages to save the character from ever turning too deeply into anger or revenge, which is very important.