Loosely based on Philip K. Dick’s short story, “We Can Remember it for You Wholesale”, Total Recall tells the story of Douglas Quaid (Arnold Schwarzenegger), a construction worker who dreams of taking a trip to Mars. He can’t convince his wife (Sharon Stone) to make the trip, so he does the next best thing: he visits Rekall, a company who promises to implant memories into his brain that will give him the sensation that he’s gone to Mars. For an extra charge, Quaid can also have a memory implant that will make him think he went there on a secret mission.
During the memory implantation process, something goes horribly wrong. Quaid has a seizure and begins yelling about his mission being disrupted. The Rekall technicians sedate him and, fearing that word of his episode may hurt business, wipe his memory clean of the entire incident. On his way home, a co-worker, along with several armed men, suddenly tries to kill him for “saying too much about Mars.” Quaid kills the men and races home. After he tries to convince his wife that someone tried to kill him, she attempts to kill him as well. Quaid’s life is now not that of a simple construction worker but that of a secret agent and he must try to find out who he is and why he’s continually drawn towards Mars.
Made in 1989, Total Recall is one of the better movies of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s career. Paired with director Paul Verhoeven (Robocop), Schwarzenegger gives a great performance as Quaid. (Well, relative to his other performances. This isn’t Academy Award-winning stuff.) For a change, Arnold isn’t playing a macho protagonist bent on revenge or a super soldier. His Quaid is an everyman who finds himself thrust into a situation that forces him to fight for his life.
Another of the film’s strengths is the supporting cast. Ronny Cox, who was so good in Verhoeven’s Robocop as a villainous corporate head, hams it up as Vilhos Cohaagen, the leader of the corrupt government of Mars. Michael Ironside makes a great nemesis for Schwarzenegger as Richter, Cohaagen’s right hand man. Sharon Stone, in one of her pre-Basic Instinct roles, looks great and gets to do some physical fight scenes with both Schwarzenegger and Rachel Ticotin, who plays an ally of Quaid.
Total Recall has been referred to as a “thinking man’s action film.” I’d have to agree. The possibility of the plot being either real or a dream brings an added dimension to the whole experience. And, being a Paul Verhoeven movie, it’s violent in a way that few films are any more. Thanks to some outstanding pre-digital special effects and top-notch makeup work by Rob Bottin (The Thing) the movie has aged quite well.
Aside from a few moments where the script totally ignores basic science, Total Recall is an enjoyable, if bloody and brutal, action adventure.
4.0 out of 5.0 stars
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