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Back to the Future Part II

1989 · directed by Robert Zemeckis · 108 min
25,918 feet · Prominence
258th of 24,106 films scored
The Rewatchables‘Back to the Future Part II’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, and Cousin Sal →

How this film scores

Draw77

Lifetime worldwide gross $332m, re-releases included; about $884m in 2026 money.

Rank253 of 11,051In 19893 of 156

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise62

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics60 baseAwards11 signal → +2 lift

Oscars1 nominated Visual Effects
BAFTAs1 won Special Visual Effects
How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy80

Judged directly: Hoverboard and 2015 predictions endlessly referenced.

Verdict80 of 100IMDb7.8 from 621kWikipedia52k views a monthAge37 years

Scored beside it · 131 of 4,039 films judged

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 77 praise 62 legacy 80averages 73, placing it at25,918 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

Whose apex this is

▲ Christopher Lloyd▲ Thomas F. Wilson

In these careers — elevation for this film

Michael J. Fox20,287 ftChristopher Lloyd20,045 ftLea Thompson18,774 ftElisabeth Shue18,320 ftThomas F. Wilson18,303 ftElijah Wood17,672 ftBilly Zane17,664 ftCharles Fleischer17,634 ftGeorge Buck Flower17,630 ft