Philip K. Dick is one of science fiction's most renowned and
prolific authors. His works have been adapted into feature films numerous times
with varying results. While it didn't exactly capture the spirit of the
original short story, "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale," Total Recall has etched its place in the
movie history as a classic action film. And so it goes that Hollywood combs its
own past successes in search of a quick buck.
The remake is set during the tail end of the 21st
century in a world ravaged by global war. The only countries left standing are
UK, now known as the United Federation of Britain, and the former Australia,
now called the Colony. Instead of Austrian powerhouse Arnold Schwarzenegger, we
have Irish bad boy Colin Farrell in the lead role of Douglas Quaid, an
unassuming factory worker from the Colony. He and hundreds of other blue collar
joes commute to and fro aboard the Fall, a massive transport system that
tunnels through the center of the Earth. Quaid is listless about his mundane
life, despite being married to the gorgeous Lori (Kate Beckinsale). One day, he
decides to visit Rekall, a company that purports to realize your deepest
fantasies through implanted memories. Just as the technicians at Rekall are
about to put Quaid through the procedure, they discover his mind is already
full of false memories. Armed gunmen burst into the building shooting everyone before
Quaid guns them down with shocking ease.
Quaid learns he may actually be an agent for the resistance
against the corrupt Federation chancellor Vilos Cohaagen (Bryan Cranston). His
"wife" Lori attempts to kill Quaid at every turn and the only one who
may be able to save him is a beautiful freedom fighter named Melina (Jessica
Biel).
Mars and mutants are no more as the remake keeps its feet
firmly planted on Earth. In place of exotic, red sands, we have a futuristic
cityscape paying homage to Blade Runner
(another Dick adaptation) and Terry Gilliam's Brazil. Due to rampant overpopulation, the Colony looks like a
dozen Hong Kongs built on top of each other. Technology has yielded innovative
devices such as a cell phone implanted into the palm of your hand and an army
of robotic police sentries. In fact, Quaid works as a riveter ironically
building the very automatons that will oppress his people. The robots serve a
secondary function as a method to sanitize the violence of its R-rated
predecessor to a palpable PG-13. Quaid rips the arms off a machine rather than
a human being and doesn't spout a witty one-liner afterwards.
Paul Verhoeven's Total
Recall was marked by gratuitous nudity and over-the-top violence. It possessed a satirical take on America's culture of consumerism and capitalism,
which was also heavily present in Robocop.
Len Wiseman's remake lacks any of the campy charm Verhoeven injected in favor
of a pedestrian actioner that could have rolled off the same assembly line as
its robot police force. Wiseman, who previously helmed the first two Underworld films as well as Live Free or Die Hard, is a decent
action director, but one without an innovative bone in his body. Two of the
major set pieces involve a flying car chase and a parkour inspired foot race
through the rooftops of the vertically stacked Colony. Neither of them offers
genuine thrills though the CGI is impressive. One sequence that could have been
unique was a zero gravity shootout that is all too brief. Wiseman even cribs
from the JJ Abrams playbook by punctuating Recall
with obtrusive lens flare.
Fans hoping for a more faithful version of the source material
will be disappointed. The screenplay was written by Kurt Wimmer (Equilibrium) and Mark Bomback (Unstoppable) with an uncredited rewrite
by James Vanderbilt (The Amazing Spider-Man). All three authors skew too closely to the first film and never
blur the line between reality and fantasy. The original Recall suffered through nearly fifty rewrites and at one point had
David Cronenberg, whose forte was mind fucking the audience, attached to
direct. While Verhoeven's Recall
merely touches upon the possibility that Arnold may still be at Rekall, the
remake never offers anything more than a straightforward narrative.
For his part, Colin Farrell gives a solid performance, but
plays it too cool at times. He's always in control of the situation and never
as befuddled as Arnold. Whether or not that was an intentional choice by the
former governor, I'll leave it up to you. Kate Beckinsale isn't as sultry as
Sharon Stone, but she's far more ruthless. Lori is Cohaagen's primary enforcer
and pursues Quaid with the dogged determination of a T-800. Jessica Biel
doesn't leave much of an impression and Bryan Cranston is rather wasted in his
scant role as the villain. The same goes for Bill Nighy as clandestine
revolutionary Matthias.
Total Recall or Total Rehash? In spite of some
significant changes, the new Total Recall
is almost step-by-step a straight remake of the original film, but without any
discernable personality. All the three-breasted hookers in the world can't help them there. If you haven't seen the original movie, you may find
the remake to be a passable action flick.
Rating: ** (*****)
