Hmm..I didn't realize the new 4K transfer was so different in color. My two cents: This film has long been stuck in an old video era master dating back to the LD. This is why even the BD had some video NSTC-era problems. WB kept polishing up an old circa 1991 era transfer which had been contrast boosted etc. to better match CRTs of the era (much like what they did on the Burton Batman films). Like those they did a new video job for the SE DVD but even that was essentially the same as the older one.

But I don't think a print would be that strikingly different. The contrast looks fixed but I think trying to get back to 1990 coloring workflows in the modern digital domain doesn't always quite sync up. Add in the fact that Marty is much older and has favored heightened color and contrasts in his films since, and I can kind of see why this happened. I think the positives far outweigh the negatives, and likely a print would fall somewhere between the two in color.

Just wish the new BD had the original mix in PCM 2.0 or 4.0. Now I have to still keep my LD. It far outdid all the DVD 5.1 remixes.