Chekhov's Guns in Back to the Future: A Case Study

Back to the Future is the undisputed master of Chekhov's Guns - in other words, setup and payoff. The clock tower, Mayor Goldie, Uncle Joey, plutonium, the Libyans, the radiation suit, Lorraine and George, the Enchantment Under the Sea Dance, the car accident, skateboarding, guitar playing, and fear of rejection...all of it is introduced early on for a specific reason, creating the tightest written movie possible. Here's how.

Back to the Future is a 1985 science fiction time travel movie from Universal Pictures, starring Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly, Christopher Lloyd as Doc Brown, and Crispin Glover as George McFly.

00:00 Intro
02:00 Chekhov's Gun Explained
03:08 Why Back to the Future?
05:10 Making Convenient Coincidences Feel Natural
06:43 Creating Solutions
08:34 The Reminder
09:36 Important Setup, or Joke?
11:07 Lorraine and George First Meeting
12:09 Character Setup
13:33 Character Arcs

#backtothefuture #martymcfly #docbrown #chekhov #writingadvice

My Breaking Bad video:
   • Chekhov's Guns in Breaking Bad: A Case Study  

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