Not sure how to feel about the whole chicken thing.
But otherwise, this movie is a lot of fun.
shareI know, I found it jarring too
True, BTTF established Marty as a hothead, ready to fight Biff without much provocation. And it makes sense that the son of George McFly, as he originally was, would have a chip on his shoulder about cowardice.
BUT
The whole "nobody calls me chicken" thing is SO specific that it feels tacked on in this film (and BTTF3)
I wonder if they could've gotten away with it by eliminating that one line.
Just have Marty react the way we'd already expect him to act, i.e., exactly the way he DOES act but without saying, "nobody ... NOBODY calls me chicken!"
Totally correct.
It's how specific it is that is offputting.
It does not feel organic with the rest of the writing.
It smells of screenwriting class 101 "my character needs a reson to react and do this and this".
"Well, he could get mad when he is called chicken".
So they forced this random gimmick in.
I agree with you. And the dramatic music after Griff/Biff say it shouldn't have been added either. It's too campy.
sharejarring is exactly it.
I remember thinking "have i missed something" when it came up , like some previous scene explaining it
You didn't. It's just simply that 2 and 3 were written at the same time as one big film so it was a set up for the rolls royce crash.
shareI really cant remember how it pans out , whens the chicken first mentioned?
at the end of "1" they zoom off - "we dont need roads"
then in II
oh , Biff calls him chicken over "tonights activities"
and the work colleague calls marty jnr chicken and then he's fired .
does the drag race thing only come up at the end - when he dont do it ?
It goes like this. Never mentioned in the original because no sequel was planned.
He gets called chicken for the first time in the cafe by Griff. (I don't think he calls Marty Jr it, I just think they make fun of him because he says he'll have to ask his dad about joining them).
Jennifer hears Marlene McFly (daughter) tell Lorraine that older Marty threw the TV repairman out of the house because he called him chicken (who knows why?), and Lorraine talks about how that stupid insult had caused him to have a car crash with a Rolls Royce years earlier.
Needles calls the older Marty one over the telecall which causes him to be fired because Needles wanted him to do something wrong (I've forgotten what). Afterwards, Marty tries to play his guitar but can't because the car crash has damaged his hand. Then Biff calls 1985 Marty one in 1955 which causes his other self to knock him out with the door and Biff get the almanac back. Then in 3, Buford calls him yellow in 1885, Seamus (great grandfather) tells him he should've just walked away from stupid insults it's what caused his brother to be killed by a knife, Doc says the same but adds "it's what causes you to have that accident in the future".
After returning to 1985, Needles calls him chicken to goad him into the drag race but Marty backs out and avoids the Rolls Royce.
got it , thanks