The Back To The Future trilogy made a splash in the 1980s. Following Marty McFly and Doc Brown on time-traveling adventures, the series goes through several different points in time. Back To The Future became a key point in understanding how time travel works for other pop culture. Its most prominent point is that going into the past could change your future, a detail that was overturned during Avengers: Endgame. Still, Back To The Future became one of the most popular references to time travel, with scripts that let each film be completely entwined in the overall storyline and history.
Back To The Future Part II takes the first film's concept and kicks it up a notch. Not only does Marty exist in 1985, but he also returns to 1955 and gets a look at his future in 2015. The film creates an engaging paradox where a Biff from 2015 visits 1955 and changes the future. Biff's actions in 1955 create an alternate 1985, which forces Marty to fix his present. Still, one of the movie's stand-out moments shows Marty and Doc visit 2015 in an attempt to save Marty's family from a major downward spiral. While in 2015, Marty takes a tour of the area, and viewers are given an inside look into the possibility of what 2015 may look like. However, they didn't get everything right.
Flying Cars
Cars have improved since 1985. Vehicles had immensely updated safety features, technology, and other aspects by 2015. However, the way Back To The Future Part II presents flying cars is not accurate. The movie portrays active air traffic as cars fly through the sky. There are even traffic lights and sections acceptable for flying. But, none of that was going on in the real 2015.
Hover Board
Hoverboards that go far off the ground have yet to exist. The hoverboard Marty borrows can fly above the ground, and he still uses his foot to move the board forward. It doesn't go very fast, but he still finds a way to outsmart the people chasing him. However, Marty hits a snag when he attempts to fly the board over water, something the hoverboard is not meant to do.
Food
Back To The Future Part II is not the first film to suggest the concept of instant food. Still, having food heated up and edible so quickly had not happened during 2015. People still take their time cooking a meal, and, even if it is a food that needs to be heated up, such as a pre-cooked meal, it needs to take its time in the microwave or oven first. In the movie, a tiny pizza is referred to as being "hydrated" and grows to become a larger size, cooked and ready within seconds.
As for fresh fruit, that is also something people were still buying at a store or growing themselves. The movie shows picking fresh fruit off a plant in the kitchen that comes down from the ceiling.
Hologram Advertisements
Advancements in technology played a big role in the differences between the 1980s and 2015. While 3D lets viewers feel like aspects of the movie feel closer with 3D glasses, the world has not expanded to hologram advertisements. Instead, they remained in 2D on television and phone screens. Advertisements are everywhere, on websites, social media, television commercials, billboards, and more.
Clothes Adjusting To The Body
One of the most interesting predictions of the future pertains to the attire. Clothing trends were predicted as the movie tried to create a world reminiscent of how Marty grew up while including futuristic elements. Still, the decision to have clothes and sneakers that can change to fit a person's body has yet to be explored. The sneakers Marty puts on in 2015 even tighten themselves, and his jacket can dry on its own.
Advanced Technology
Of course, any movie, book, or television series about the future would include advanced technology. It is a way to prove the world has evolved from the one viewers know in their present. However, Back To The Future Part II gives 2015 too much credit for technological advancement. While multitasking with electronics is an accurate representation, the way the film goes about it is not.
Rather than phones, the future McFly family has goggles that allow them to watch television and make phone calls. Their large television plays multiple channels at once, and, while split-screen is a feature that existed in 2015, it was not to the degree that the movie portrays.
Lawyers
Marty McFly Jr. quickly went through the justice system and received a heavy sentence. Within two hours of being arrested, Marty McFly Jr. was tried, convicted, and sentenced to prison. Doc explains to Marty that the justice system works at an accelerated pace because lawyers had been abolished. In the real 2015, such a claim is most definitely not accurate. Lawyers continued to exist, playing a role in the justice system.
Fax Machine
Fax machines do continue to exist, but they are not the first choice. Marty gets fired after participating in illegal activity with Needles. Marty's involvement was immediately discovered, and Marty was fired over video chat.
Video chat, especially in the last few years, has been a much more commonly used way of communicating. However, fax machines have not become the main source of electronic communication. In the actual 2015, Marty likely would have received an e-mail about being fired rather than several faxed papers.
Thumbprint Lock
Smartphones have managed this one, but homes still needed a doorknob, lock, and key in 2015. During Back To The Future Part II, a younger Jennifer is brought back to 2015's Jennifer McFly's home by police.
When the officers walk her to the door, they use her finger as a scanner to open the door. This is the first real look anyone gets at the inside of a future house. They also use her fingerprint as a way to pay for the ride home.
The Look
Back To The Future Part II makes 2015 look like a drastically different environment, and, today, it's easy to spot the differences in how the world looks. In the movie, the world of 2015 doesn't look like a normal environment and instead has the appearance of a world that exists to look futuristic but doesn't match the realism of what an average location looks like.
From the perspective of watching the film during and after 2015, it looks like they were trying too hard to figure out what the future would look like rather than grounding the movie in a more average and relatable landscape.