Click the Picture to learn more about Total Recall
I love the movie, Total Recall. It is quite simply one of the most violent, pulse-pounding, intriguing and mind-tripping action movies that I have ever seen. If you haven’t seen this movie before, and you like action movies, then you need to get this on NetFlix or just buy it. Total Recall is about a construction worker named Quaid, who wants to travel to Mars. But his wife doesn’t want to go to Mars because there is unrest there and she would rather visit the rings of Saturn. This is a science fiction movie. Well what happens is that Quaid decides to compromise with himself. And he ends up going to a clinic where he is able to “Rekall” a trip to Mars without really going there. The clinic attempts to implant memories into Quaid’s mind and that’s when the story really starts to get interesting. You see, the whole movie plays with the notion of what is reality. You don’t really know throughout the movie if Quaid is really experiencing life, or is he just remembering some implanted memories.
The action in Total Recall is top notch. There is hand-to-hand combat, shooting, people getting exploded due to pressure from a change in atmosphere, people getting drilled until they squirt blood everywhere and die, people getting used as human shields (always a plus), and arms getting chopped off by fast moving elevators. This movie has got it all. It is rated “R” and it originally was given an “X” rating due to its intense violence (thanks to Wikipedia for that tidbit of information). The reason why I like the action in this movie so much is because the attacks really seem to connect. It doesn’t matter if you are watching someone get hit by a punch or a gunshot. It really looks like someone got hit. I bet we can thank the director, Paul Verhoeven for the tightness of the action. He directed awesome movies like, Robocop and Starship Troopers. There is one scene where Quaid gets attacked near a concrete wall and it is awesome. At this point in the movie you have no idea that Quaid knows how to fight and he totally destroys a bunch of goons. The action is so well timed that it really feels like you are in the middle of a fight-or-die situation, where any false move could mean your demise. There is another scene where Quaid is being shot at in an airport and Quaid takes an innocent bystander that was accidentally shot by a bad guy, and uses that bystander as a human shield. It is my favorite human shield scene in an action movie of all time.
Memory Implant Machine
The settings in Total Recall are excellent. The clinic where he is about to get a memory implant is amazing looking. It looks like a futuristic clinic on the outside, but in the back room there is this huge machine that you back your head into. It is really colorful and it definitely looks like something from the future. Mars is very cool looking. There are domes everywhere and it looks dingy and there are convincing rock formations and tunnels. It never feels like the characters are on a set. They always feel like they are in the moment, and you believe what is going on. The interior of the mine at the end of the movie is amazing. There are huge pieces of technology that are supposed to heat the ice and they look like giant ancient Lego blocks. Also there are large TV Monitors in Quaid’s house back on Earth that take up the whole wall. It is cool because that is the flat-screen technology that TV’s have been moving toward for the past few years. The cars in the movie are angular and look like they’re from the future. And there is a tracking device that the bad guys use that totally looks like a modern GPS tracker – iPhone sized. It’s cool seeing how science fiction from 1990 translate into modern technology.
Even though the action and the settings in Total Recall are tremendously stupendous, the real thing that you need to see this movie for, is the trippy plot and mind-bending story. I am not going to go into detail on what the story arch is because you be mad at me for ruining it for you. But what I will do is tell you that there are plenty of twists and abrupt turns in the story that make you feel like you are on a fast-paced ride. If you are the kind of person who likes to be surprised by movies then you will probably love Total Recall. There is double-crosses, back-stabbings, girls with three breasts (no joke), and dwarfs with real attitude. At times it will get fuzzy on who Quaid really is. This is done really well so it is exciting and interesting instead of confusing. The story keeps you guessing, but it doesn’t really feel like a mystery. It is more of an action thrill-ride.
Arnold does a perfect acting job for his portrayal of Quaid. He is very believable and his physical strength makes you accept the high-power moves that he uses against his enemies. There are some classic one-liners in the film, and I personally liked them more than the one-liners in other Schwarzenegger movies like Predator. The actor who plays the main Villain Boss (Ronny Cox), is funny and detestable. Ronny Cox acts with supreme skill and really satisfies the viewer.
Total Recall is a good addition to any action movie collection because it is so good, watching it multiple times is expected. There are so many parts that stick out as awesome that you will probably watch the movie for a certain part and then end up sitting through the entire thing, even though you have most likely already watched the movie multiple times.
-Tyler