“Back to the Future” (バック・トゥ・ザ・フューチャー), Original Release Japanese Movie Poster 1985, Ultra Rare Horizontal B2 Size (73 × 51 cm) Q171
This is an original Japanese horizontal B2 poster printed in 1985 for the first theatrical release of Back to the Future (バック・トゥ・ザ・フューチャー), Robert Zemeckis’s landmark time-travel adventure and one of the defining films of the 1980s. Original Japanese posters for the film are highly collectible, and this is an especially desirable rare horizontal variant featuring an action-based still montage rather than the more commonly seen standard key art.
This type of horizontal B2 is best understood as a front-of-house / cinema lobby display poster, intended for use inside Japanese theatres during the film’s release campaign. It is not an advance or teaser poster, but a scarce still-based theatrical display variant.
Film background
Released in 1985, Back to the Future was directed by Robert Zemeckis and stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover, Thomas F. Wilson, and Claudia Wells. Produced by Steven Spielberg, the film follows teenager Marty McFly, who is accidentally sent from 1985 back to 1955 in the DeLorean time machine invented by Doc Brown. There, he must ensure his parents fall in love while finding a way back to his own time.
The film became an immediate international success and remains one of the most beloved science-fiction adventures ever made, celebrated for its ingenious screenplay, unforgettable characters, and enduring cultural impact.
Poster design
This is a superb and highly unusual Japanese release design. Rather than relying on the standard one-sheet artwork, this variant uses a striking photographic collage built around one of the film’s most iconic sequences: the first full reveal of the DeLorean time machine at the Twin Pines Mall.
The main image shows Doc Brown, played by Christopher Lloyd, seated in the open DeLorean in his white radiation suit, speaking urgently to Marty McFly, played by Michael J. Fox, who kneels beside the car in amazement. The DeLorean’s gull-wing door is raised, instantly giving the image its unmistakable futuristic silhouette. In the upper left, a smaller inset still captures the DeLorean racing across the wet car park, its tyres blazing with the luminous streaks that signal the approach of time travel.
At upper right appears the bold red Japanese title logo バック・トゥ・ザ・フューチャー, with the English “BACK TO THE FUTURE” embedded within the arrow motif. Above it is the credit スティーブン・スピルバーグ製作 — “A Steven Spielberg Production.” On the far right edge, a vertical red marker printed with 1985 anchors the image to the film’s present-day timeline.
For collectors, that is exactly what makes this poster so appealing: it is a scarcer Japanese horizontal B2 with a very different visual identity from the standard release poster, focused instead on one of the film’s most memorable and visually important scenes.
Condition
Very Good / Excellent. Please review the photos—they show the exact poster for sale.
It is over 41 years old!
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.
Certificate of Authenticity included.
