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Plot Summary
Welcome to Rekall, the company that can turn your dreams into real memories. For a factory worker named Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell), even though he's got a beautiful wife (Kate Beckinsale) who he loves, the mind-trip sounds like the perfect vacation from his frustrating life - real memories of life as a super-spy might be just what he needs. But when the procedure goes horribly wrong, Quaid becomes a hunted man. Finding himself on the run from the police – controlled by Chancellor Cohaagen (Bryan Cranston), the leader of the free world – Quaid teams up with a rebel fighter (Jessica Biel) to find the head of the underground resistance (Bill Nighy) and stop Cohaagen. The line between fantasy and reality gets blurred and the fate of his world hangs in the balance as Quaid discovers his true identity, his true love, and his true fate.
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Rotten Tomatoes Movie Reviews
TOMATOMETER
30%- Reviews Counted: 217
- Fresh: 66
- Rotten: 151
- Average Rating: 5.0/10
Top Critics' Reviews
Rotten: "Total Recall" is a toned-down, smoothed-out version of an amped-up, bug-eyed classic.
Rotten: We used to do the future so much better. Let's not forget that. Let's forget this instead.
Rotten: Recalls Ridley Scott's Blade Runner and Christopher Nolan's Inception, without, sadly being quite as distinctive as either.
Rotten: People got up, left and returned, casually, without urgency or guilt, as though passing the time between trains: it clearly did not remotely thrill them.
Customer Reviews
A DECENT, YET ENTIRELY UNNECESSARY REMAKE
No one ever asked for a remake to the 1990 sci-fi classic "Total Recall", but for some reason or another, we got one. And while it's certainly far from the disaster that it could've been, it hardly does its predecessor any justice in the long run. It's strange how director Len Wiseman could take such a brilliant concept and make it feel so generic and lifeless. Despite the fact that this remake features much better special effects and more impressive action sequences than the original, it somehow has a worse script, less interesting characters, and even cheesier dialogue. Colin Farrell delivers a mediocre performance as Douglas Quaid, the protagonist of the film. Compared to Schwarzenegger's wildly over-the-top portrayal of the character, Farrell is about as memorable and full of life as an unsharpened pencil. Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel, as beautiful as they may be, fail to make any sort of impact in the acting department either. Granted, I never expected anything from their performances in the first place, but did they have to recite their lines and perform their stunts without any hint of emotion or energy whatsoever? The only good actor in the movie is Bryan Cranston as the villain, but even his minor role is hardly able to make up for everyone else's weak efforts. But for me, the worst thing about "Total Recall" (2012) is that it always takes itself seriously, whereas the original never did. As a result, there's no fun, no sense of adventure, and certainly no creativity. If the actors weren't so depressing to watch and the script was given better writers, then maybe this remake could've worked. But unfortunately, it just didn't deliver the goods. Unless you're the kind of filmgoer who enjoys gritty, futuristic visuals and intense action scenes over competent acting and intricate storytelling, this version of "Total Recall" isn't worth your time. If you really wanna be entertained, might I suggest the original "Total Recall" starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. For any big fan of old-school sci-fi, it's one of the most enjoyable camp classics you'll ever experience.
*Is Still Laughing*
My sister and I have made it a weekly tradition to go see a movie every Sunday night; regardless of what's playing. We've been doing this for a few months, and in that time, we've seen some really great films - and we've seen some things I'd rethink calling "cinematic trash"; simply because doing so would unjustly place the films in the category of "cinema". For some films, the word "trash" itself would suffice.
"Total Recall" is of the latter sort. My sister and I knew it was going to be stupid, but we had nothing else going on, so we went to see it anyway; hoping that maybe we'd be pleasantly surprised. And, in a way, I suppose we were. The movie was hilarious, which is something we didn't expect.
Unfortunately, neither did the film-makers. From poorly-delivered dialogue (it's not supposed to be so blatantly obvious that the movie is scripted), to cheesy and irrelevant plot-points (the woman with 3 b**bs was hilariously pointless), and overly-computerized, surprisingly BORING car-chases - the movie is an absolute train-wreck that pitches itself as a thrilling action adventure. Colin's never been a very good actor, in my opinion, and neither have Biel or Beckinsale (although, the latter two make up for their lack of talent by being eye-candy ;-D). Overall, the film was boring to watch, and my sister and I truly contemplated walking out to get our money back, but I convinced her to stay simply for the laugh-factor. And believe me, there are plenty of poorly-delivered gems of cheesy dialogue that made us burst into laughter in the middle of a surprisingly-crowded theater.
In the past several months of going to the movies every Sunday night, we've seen some forgettable films, but after discussion, we both agreed that Total Recall is the only movie we actually *regret* wasting $20 on. It was a waste of 2 hours and half a gas-tank's worth of money. I don't know what sorts of films you're looking for, and I don't know what you're willing to forgive when it comes to stupid movies. But I am a film buff; I look at films as art - not simply entertainment. I look for strong acting, engaging storylines and cinematic world that I might like to step through the screen and be a part of. This movie has NONE of those attributes. To be honest, it has no redeeming qualities whatsoever. The only part of the entire film that is even slightly interesting is that "they run a lot".
Curiosity can be tempting, but I promise, you'll gain nothing by buying this movie. As the martyr who jumped in front of this cinematic bullet for you (you're welcome), I'm telling you: let it go.
Not as bad as they say....
Honestly while watching this movie I was constantly looking for "the bad" and by the end of it......I had found some,but not as much of it as I expected according to the reviews.I think the biggest turn off for viewers was the drastic change of tone in the movie.The original Total Recall was way over the top in its events,acting,and most importantly its characters,all purposely done mind you.It was a film that never really took itself seriously.While this new one definitely does.Some of the over the top (borderline silly) characters like Kuato and Benny cease to exist in this one,and the over the top events like Doug pulling the tracking device out of his nose,Doug hiding in a woman's costume,and heads ready to burst open and explode all have been completely removed or either toned down to a much more serious level.However I can understand and reason with most of this,just for the simple fact that I believe in today's movies such silliness just wouldn't hold up.At the time of the original TR it was acceptable and commonplace,but you have to remember that not just the tone of THIS action movie has changed,but the tone of all action movies in Hollywood period has changed! I mean could you imagine going to the theater and seeing some the things you saw in the original TR,but in today's time?Back then it was ok,nowadays?......It's just silly.
However,one tone change that I could've done without was the change of tone in Quaid's character.Colin Farrell's portrayal of Douglas Quaid is now more confident of himself abilities wise (not mentally),and never really fumbles throughout the whole movie,or even convinces the audience that there is a possibility that he might not make it through,quite frankly he's TOO confident.Now as far as "cheesy one liners" go,IDK what people are talking about.I hardly heard any one-liners,and of what I did hear I personally wouldn't classify them as "cheesy".Another thing that people seem to be faulting this movie for is its lack of originality (pertaining to the sci-fi genre),which I won't deny in any way,shape,or form.However,I will say that I think it's unfair.You have to keep in mind that most everything in movies (in and outside of sci-fi) has been done at this point in films,which is why we're seeing such a lack of originality in today's films.And not only that,but your gonna judge a REMAKE on originality?????I mean honestly,c'mon if your gonna judge ANY movie in today's market on originality then you must not enjoy many movies.....period.Just in case you haven't noticed,about 90% of what is released in the theaters today lacks originality,and that's not debatable.So why is it all of a sudden some big deal with this movie?And lastly,people seem to be smashing the acting,which once again (besides my already mentioned letdown of Farrell's portrayal of Quaid) I have no idea what they're talking about.No-one here is going to the Academies for these performances any century soon,however I thought everybody held their own good enough.I mean honestly it wasn't like the original TR had some "Academy worthy" performances either.
All this having been said,I have to say the MOST IMPORTANT thing I want to urge a viewer to do,is to grade this movie on its own standards.The only reason I suggest this is because they've changed a lot about this one from the first (and I'm not just talking characters and tone).So much,to the point where it's almost a different movie in some aspects,and is so unlike the first one that it can almost be judged as a stand-alone movie.If you watch this movie expecting to see the original TR,with all of its ridiculousness in 2012,and constantly mentally compare the new to the old (which I admit it's hard not to,I mean it's a remake for crying out loud!) then undoubtedly your gonna be disappointed.However if you walk into this movie just judging it as a stand alone film,and not a remake (because it's so far from the original,that it might as well not be a remake) then I can almost GUARANTEE you,you'll enjoy it a whole lot more.I know it's a lot to ask a person to act like a remake......ISN'T a remake,but that's what I'm asking you to do for enjoyment purposes.Overall it's a really fun film to watch,with great action sequences,that will undoubtedly look familiar,but still will serve up their entertainment value.Highly entertaining.
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- $12.99
- Genre: Action & Adventure
- Released: 2012
- © 2012 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All Rights Reserved.