Just what did Back to the Future get right about 2015? More than you think

The future is now: Back to the Future II hurled cinema-goers into the futuristic world of 2015. Photo / Universal

In 1989, a year of double denim, flat tops and the Beastie Boys, 2015 seemed like a very long time away indeed. So far away that it was the setting for Back to the Future II, the second in the hugely popular film trilogy directed by Robert Zemeckis.

Fans watched Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd), Marty McFly (Michael J Fox) and his girlfriend Jennifer Parker (Elizabeth Shue) take off for the future at the end of the original film - and, in the sequel, they touch down 30 years later in 2015.

From food to fashion, technology and transport, Marty is bowled over by what he finds there.

So, as the New Year dawns, and we find ourselves in the very year Zemeckis envisioned - just how much did Back to the Future get right? And what was too far-fetched even for 2015?

Hits

1) Wearable technology Spot something familiar? Isn't that Google Glass Marty is wearing at the breakfast table? The hi-tech specs he sports could pass for early versions of the computerised eye-wear - though his could also be used to answer the phone.

2) Video calls With FaceTime and Skype now staples, the video call has evolved from a business medium to an essential of everyday life. Though we tend to prefer our screens just a tad smaller.

3) Microwave meals The dehydrated pizza could be the predecessor of microwave meals - in the film, after 12 seconds on the "hydrator plate", it grew to a meal-sized dish.

Misses

1) Flying cars We're not quite at the stage of seeing cars zip through the air - though a DeLorean could do wonders for the rush-hour commute.

2) Hoverboards Probably a good thing these haven't been invented for the mass market yet - though some clever bod has come up with a prototype - the baggy jeans and Converse look is just so Nineties.

3) Power clothing Now this is one thing we wish 2015 had brought: jackets that dry themselves and shoes that lace themselves up. Look, no hands!

4) Fax machines The film went a little too heavy on its predictions for fax machines, which it imagined would be everywhere in 2015. Fortunately, they're not.

... And there's one key invention Back to the Future II missed out: smartphones and tablets, undeniably the most important technological breakthrough of the last decade. Apple didn't even get a look-in.

Might have come in handy when Marty and the Doc wanted to escape the future and head back to 1985.