Total Recall (1990)
3/4
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Ronny Cox, Michael Ironside, Sharon Stone
Rated R (probably for Strong Graphic Violence, Language, and Some Sexuality/Nudity)
Probably the best way to begin a review of "Total Recall" is to compare it to Len Wiseman's bastard child of a remake. "Total Recall" has its flaws (weak writing and action scenes that are sometimes more over-the-top than necessary), but it is infinitely better than the wretched disaster that made my Bottom Ten list two years ago.
For starters, Paul Verhoeven knows what he's doing. Verhoeven has skill in crafting stories and action sequences. This is a visually kinetic movie with adrenaline-generating action scenes. Len Wiseman, on the other hand, is clueless. He's the equivalent of a 13 year old boy raised entirely on crappy anime like "Digimon" and "Dragonball Z." Wiseman's only interest is in what looks cool, which would be okay if his attention span and intelligence weren't that of a flea. The remake leeched out not only the film's brains (and its gore), but its coherence and complexity. Verhoeven's action scenes are cinematic and exciting; Wiseman's were straight out of a crappy video game that you didn't even get to play. Verhoeven knows how to direct actors; Wiseman doesn't care.
Now let's pretend Wiseman's crapfest doesn't exist and get on to the real "Total Recall."
Paul Verhoeven's sci-fi festival of bullets and gore was the second most expensive movie at the time (after "Rambo III") with a budget of $65 million (how times change). Based on a short story by beloved sci-fi writer Phillip K. Dick, it was the final result of 16 years of delays (to the point where people thought it was cursed). Enter Schwarzenegger, who handpicked Verhoeven personally after seeing "RoboCop" (which was going to have him in the title role until it was decided that he's look like the Michelin Man), and the film was made.
Doug Quaid (Schwarzenegger) is bored in the city. He hungers to visit Mars, but as his wife points out, it's boring and about to explode into a full-blown revolution. Still, Mars is calling to him. He decides to go to Rekall, where a memory of a trip to Mars as a secret agent will be implanted into his head. Something goes wrong, however, and people are out to kill him. He's stranded in a story he doesn't understand but everyone else seems to. But is this real, or is this just the memory implanted by Rekall?
The ambiguity of the film's plot is "Total Recall's" biggest selling point, but it's also the film's least successful plot. I was never wondering whether or not this was real. Still, it's an engaging story with some surprise twists (this is where the film gets ambiguous, but it also stretches the film's "suspension of disbelief" to the breaking point).
The performances are effective. Everyone does solid work, but no one (except perhaps Ronny Cox, who is effectively despicable as Cohaagen) is Oscar-worthy. Arnold Schwarzenegger makes for an identifiable hero, and the clips of him playing Hauser are particularly good. Rachel Ticotin is effective but not spectacular as the love interest. Sharon Stone is great as Lori, Quaid's wife. And Michael Ironside is acceptably vicious as Richter, Cohaagen's attack dog.
"Total Recall" isn't the classic that some make it out to be. Frankly, it's not particularly good. There are plenty of more superior sci-fi action thrillers out there. "Minority Report," which was at one point planned to be a sequel to "Total Recall" (and is also based on a story by Philip K. Dick), is a good example. Steven Spielberg's film is an excellent mesh of action and ambiguity. This movie isn't as successful.
There are enough fun moments in this movie to make it worth recommending. If you want to watch "Total Recall," just please pick this one. Leave Len Wiseman's disaster to the dogs.
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Ronny Cox, Michael Ironside, Sharon Stone
Rated R (probably for Strong Graphic Violence, Language, and Some Sexuality/Nudity)
Probably the best way to begin a review of "Total Recall" is to compare it to Len Wiseman's bastard child of a remake. "Total Recall" has its flaws (weak writing and action scenes that are sometimes more over-the-top than necessary), but it is infinitely better than the wretched disaster that made my Bottom Ten list two years ago.
For starters, Paul Verhoeven knows what he's doing. Verhoeven has skill in crafting stories and action sequences. This is a visually kinetic movie with adrenaline-generating action scenes. Len Wiseman, on the other hand, is clueless. He's the equivalent of a 13 year old boy raised entirely on crappy anime like "Digimon" and "Dragonball Z." Wiseman's only interest is in what looks cool, which would be okay if his attention span and intelligence weren't that of a flea. The remake leeched out not only the film's brains (and its gore), but its coherence and complexity. Verhoeven's action scenes are cinematic and exciting; Wiseman's were straight out of a crappy video game that you didn't even get to play. Verhoeven knows how to direct actors; Wiseman doesn't care.
Now let's pretend Wiseman's crapfest doesn't exist and get on to the real "Total Recall."
Paul Verhoeven's sci-fi festival of bullets and gore was the second most expensive movie at the time (after "Rambo III") with a budget of $65 million (how times change). Based on a short story by beloved sci-fi writer Phillip K. Dick, it was the final result of 16 years of delays (to the point where people thought it was cursed). Enter Schwarzenegger, who handpicked Verhoeven personally after seeing "RoboCop" (which was going to have him in the title role until it was decided that he's look like the Michelin Man), and the film was made.
Doug Quaid (Schwarzenegger) is bored in the city. He hungers to visit Mars, but as his wife points out, it's boring and about to explode into a full-blown revolution. Still, Mars is calling to him. He decides to go to Rekall, where a memory of a trip to Mars as a secret agent will be implanted into his head. Something goes wrong, however, and people are out to kill him. He's stranded in a story he doesn't understand but everyone else seems to. But is this real, or is this just the memory implanted by Rekall?
The ambiguity of the film's plot is "Total Recall's" biggest selling point, but it's also the film's least successful plot. I was never wondering whether or not this was real. Still, it's an engaging story with some surprise twists (this is where the film gets ambiguous, but it also stretches the film's "suspension of disbelief" to the breaking point).
The performances are effective. Everyone does solid work, but no one (except perhaps Ronny Cox, who is effectively despicable as Cohaagen) is Oscar-worthy. Arnold Schwarzenegger makes for an identifiable hero, and the clips of him playing Hauser are particularly good. Rachel Ticotin is effective but not spectacular as the love interest. Sharon Stone is great as Lori, Quaid's wife. And Michael Ironside is acceptably vicious as Richter, Cohaagen's attack dog.
"Total Recall" isn't the classic that some make it out to be. Frankly, it's not particularly good. There are plenty of more superior sci-fi action thrillers out there. "Minority Report," which was at one point planned to be a sequel to "Total Recall" (and is also based on a story by Philip K. Dick), is a good example. Steven Spielberg's film is an excellent mesh of action and ambiguity. This movie isn't as successful.
There are enough fun moments in this movie to make it worth recommending. If you want to watch "Total Recall," just please pick this one. Leave Len Wiseman's disaster to the dogs.
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