National Film Vault
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FILM NOTES
Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment released Back to the Future Part II in November 1989, reuniting director Robert Zemeckis and writer Bob Gale with the cast of their 1985 blockbuster. The sequel pushed into ambitious territory, depicting multiple timelines and a vision of 2015 that became culturally iconic. Shot by Dean Cundey, the film remains a landmark of late-eighties studio filmmaking and a defining entry in the science fiction comedy genre.
This three-frame run captures the Lightning Striking Clock Tower sequence, preserving the layered optical effect work that defined the film's time-travel imagery. The glowing plasma discharge and sepia-toned Hill Valley backdrop visible across consecutive frames reflect the practical and photochemical techniques used to bring the DeLorean's departure to life on 35mm.