Total Recall (2012)

A factory worker, Douglas Quaid, begins to suspect that he is a spy after visiting Recall - a company that provides its clients with implanted fake memories of a life they would like to have led - goes wrong and he finds himself on the run.

Director:

Len Wiseman

Writers:

Kurt Wimmer (screenplay by), Mark Bomback (screenplay by)

Stars:

Colin Farrell, Bokeem Woodbine, Bryan Cranston

1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Colin Farrell	...	Douglas Quaid / Hauser
Kate Beckinsale	...	Lori Quaid
Jessica Biel	...	Melina
Bryan Cranston	...	Cohaagen
Bokeem Woodbine	...	Harry
Bill Nighy	...	Matthias
John Cho	...	McClane
Will Yun Lee	...	Marek
Milton Barnes	...	Resistance Fighter
James McGowan	...	Military Adjutant
Natalie Lisinska	...	Bohemian Nurse
Michael Therriault	...	Bank Clerk
Stephen MacDonald	...	Slacker
Mishael Morgan	...	Rekall Receptionist
LinLyn Lue	...	Resistance Woman

Storyline

Originally adapted by director Paul Verhoeven in 1990, author Philip K. Dick's classic Sci-Fi short story We Can Remember It for You Wholesale returns to the big screen in this remake starring Colin Farrell, Bryan Cranston, and Kate Beckinsale, and directed by Underworld's Len Wiseman. The planet has been decimated by nuclear war in the late 21st century, leaving only two nations -- the United Federation of Britain and the Colony. Douglas Quaid (Farrell) is a factory worker with a stable job and a loving wife (Beckinsale), but upon learning that a company named Rekall could grant him the memory of the ultimate espionage adventure, he decides that a virtual vacation is better than no vacation at all. But in the midst of having the new memories implanted, something goes haywire. Still strapped to the chair as the system breaks down, he's branded a spy as the authorities close in, and quickly flees for his life. Later, Quaid discovers that he has a secret identity, and he joins forces ...

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Plot Keywords:

false memory | implanted memory | remake | based on short story | vehicle | 

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Taglines:

What is real? What is recall?

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, some sexual content, brief nudity, and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English Ukrainian

Release Date:

3 August 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

Total Recall

Filming Locations:

CFB Borden, Borden, Ontario, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$125,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$25,577,758, 5 August 2012

Gross USA:

$58,877,969

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$198,467,168

Company Credits

Production Co:

Total Recall, Original Film, Prime Focus

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min 130 min (extended director's cut)

Sound Mix:

SDDS Datasat Dolby Digital Dolby Atmos Dolby Surround 7.1

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The security check post are designed to look like giant iPhones in the mask scene. Notice the home button on the top.

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Goofs

At the beginning of the film, it's stated that "The Fall" is the only means of transport between the UFB and the Colony. So the 'invasion' would be simple to stop, but just destroying the tunnel used by the fall, i.e. blow it up.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Melina: Wake up. Wake up. Wake up.

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Alternate Versions

The scene where the three-breasted woman is topless has been re-shot for the US release due to different moral standards. The version released in European countries is unchanged.

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Connections

Featured in Projector: RoboCop (2014)

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Soundtracks

Typhoon
Written by Ebow Graham, Pavan Mukhi, Luca Gulotta and Joseph Erskine
Performed by Foreign Beggars featuring Chasing Shadows
Courtesy of Dented Records

User Reviews

I expected a semi-decent film, and that's what I got

When I heard the news that Total Recall was being remade, I was just as disappointed as most were out there. However, I never hate a film based on such a simple principle. Before the release, I was simply curious as to what direction they were going to take with this film.

I always rate a film on two scales: The technical aspects (an objective scale), and if I actually liked it (subjective scale). I'm pretty forgiving with science fiction films so I'll keep my review as objective as possible.

Pros: The futuristic world that has been imagined for this film was well designed. Visually, the film is stunning. If you're the type that reads into the quirky inventions you see on screen, this film is littered with them.

There were plenty of action sequences, and most of the time the film gave us eye candy that we haven't seen before. It seemed as though a general theme in the film (besides "questioning what's real") was constant play with gravity. This may have been influenced by inception, but the world turns upside down a few times, and it's visually interesting.

Cons: The plot. It was there, but not as deep as you would hope for a "Total Recall" remake. There were a few cool things thrown in there, but the plot was definitely not the strong point of the film.

The action sequences. There were a lot of positive aspects to all the action, but the movie seemed to rely too heavily on it. The movie came off as one giant chase scene, and it became slightly repetitive after a while. If you like a little meat on your plot's backbone, you may want to lower your expectations a little bit before seeing this one.

Conclusion: Try not to think of this film as a literal remake of the original. Think of it as analogous to a band doing a cover of someone else's song... in a very different style. It lifts the ideas from the original film, and written source material, but takes a different spin on it.

In all, I liked it. I had my quips, but it's a movie that I gave a lot of forgiveness. From what I recall, it wasn't a TOTAL mess.