This is a good movie! One compication after another! A well-written story and great special effects (they're ten years old, and they still look really good.)

Agreed. Now for the nits. The way they handle decompression in this film is wrong, as discussed on other boards.

I heard that Marc Alaimo is in this movie. Can anyone confirm it. It's been a while since I have seen it.

He plays Captain Everett. Another nugget from IMDB, Robert Picardo is the voice of JohnnyCab.

Since the whole thing is a dream anyway (or an implanted memory, anyway), most of the nits can be attributed to that.

Okay, since I started the ball rolling, I might as well bring up the question...


WAS it really a dream? One of the best aspects of the movie, I think, is that they don't specifically answer the question...

REASONS WHY IT MIGHT BE A DREAM:
-The doctor (played by Roy Brocksmith) predicts exactly what will happen if he dies and the dream continues
-The doctor at Rekall says "Blue Sky on Mars; huh, that's a new one...", referring to the memory tape that they feed Quaid. This ties into the end of the movie, of course, when they give Mars oxygen...
-The science is somewhat twitchy throughout the film (okay, this is just nitpicking, but anyway...)
-Melina is the same woman featured on the Rekall display screen before he goes into unconsciousness.


REASONS WHY IT MIGHT NOT BE A DREAM:
-Quaid dreams about Melina before he goes to Rekall
-Harry gives Quaid a suspicious look after their Rekall discussion
-We see scenes outside Quaid's p.o.v. when the "dream" (if there is one) begins. [i.e. the Rekall doctors, Richter and Cohagen talking]
-Why is the Doctor sweating when he tries to convince Quaid it's a dream?

There must be a major fault with Johnny Cab if he bursts into flames just by crashing into a wall. (It's a while since I've seen this & I can't remember the scene clearly). Was the SFX team's bloodlust so high by this point that they just had to have a few explosions & flames?

I believe it was not a dream for the following reason:
The vast majority of reasons to think it is a dream are dependant upon the technology behind the *filmmaking* (i.e. effects of Mars atmosphere, etc)
While it's faily common knowledge for sci-fi writers that there are a lot of incorrect or inaccurate representations in the movie, it does not *require* that this knowledge be used when telling a story or making a movie.
I find it easy to believe that when storyboarding / designing the movie, the production staff might well intentionally throw in stuff which is not authentically scientific, just to keep the debate open on whether it's a dream or not. The audience would (and many of us have) attributed these inaccuracies to the character's imagination in the 'dream'. This is because we assume that since we know the effects of depressurization (for example) then it would be accurately portrayed in a sci-fi movie.
Here the assumption falls apart. The foundation for the dream/reality debate is cheese-factor of the effects!

Once I discounted this, and suspended as much disbelief as I could, it looked to me like this was not a dream.

One other little tidbit: there's a short period of time when Quaid is unconsious (I believe it's in front of the elevator). He could not dream of himself being unconscious, ao I deduce that it's not a dream.

Why couldn't he dream of being unconscious? I've dreamed of dreaming.

Frankly Chewwie I think you're giving the folks behind a film like Total Recall way too much credit. I doubt they have a clue about the real effects of no atmosphere on the human body.

Well, I had heard that this was a science fiction movie that any fan of the genre should see. My goodness, what a horrible movie! The only bits I liked were the references to the Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy. However, it seemed like they weren't suffering from decompression at the end, but from the radiation that was mentioned earlier in the film when talking about the various mutations. It was this that made me abandon all hope of liking this movie. Usually, I can enjoy a movie despite all the nits. However, when the movie was ending, I yelled at the screen, "If you take away the source of the radiation, the poisoning and terrible disfigurement JUST GO AWAY?!!?!?"

I am a rabid Hitchhiker's fan, and have also seen Total Recall a plethora of times... yet I cannot recall any Hitchhiker's references in the film. Did I miss something, or are you seeing something that isn't there?

As for your complaints about the ending... What are you talking about?

If you're talking about Quaid and Melina's going all bug-eyed and big-tounged, that was indeed supposed to be from decompression, not radiation. Yes, it is not at all scientifically accurate. One could argue, I suppose, extreme poetic licence was taken. And once things were re-pressurized, in this magical Total Recall world, they were all better.

It was definitely not the radiation. That was something that happened to the original colinists over the course of a few generations before sufficient shielding was installed to keep the radiation out.

I think I'm with you, Merat. I almost liked the first half of the film, but the moment Quaid sets foot on Mars the whole thing becomes a total cheese fest.

I am a rabid Hitchhiker's fan, and have also seen Total Recall a plethora of times... yet I cannot recall any Hitchhiker's references in the film.

imdb.comReferences to "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" include the annoyingly polite robot (Johnnycab), wrapping a towel around your head to avoid being found, and the triple-breasted whore.

This isn't a profound thought, but I love the midget hooker in the Martian Cafe. Thumbelina is adorable!

Yeah but she's always sticking her nose into other peoples biznaz. Id rather do the triple play lady.

Thumbelina looked totally hot when she was up on the table firing that machine gun!

anonshorty: "Id rather do the triple play lady."

Luigi Novi: Her hair was nicer when she played Sonya Mendez in "Q Who(TNG)". (Course she wasn't wearing her fake breast prosthesis, though. )

Either way she looked hot. And Although I usually go for bigger girls with guns I gotta agree that thumbelina would be one to keep happy. Dont ever forget her birthday cause remember where glasse guy took the knife when the fight began?

Usually Arnie gets kicked in the crown jewels in his action flicks too!

A surprising coincidence. A couple of years ago, I watched "Total Recall" on Encore. The next day while watching an old "Love Connection" rerun on the Game Show Network, I spotted a familiar face: the large lady (who Arnie is "disguied" as) from Total Recall. She was one of the contestants (or daters) on the show. Her date went successfully, and she seemed like a very sweet lady!

Meg: I heard that Marc Alaimo is in this movie.
ScottN: He plays Captain Everett.
If you're still around Meg, I don't beleive the captain was mentioned by name but it's the guy on Mars Richter was talking to at the customs area while Quaid was dressing in drag. Also during that scene we see the police/guards with little control pads on their wrists; they are acutally TI scientific calculators.

RD: There must be a major fault with Johnny Cab if he bursts into flames just by crashing into a wall.
He sort of short circuited after he found out that Doug wasn't going to pay him so maybe they're programed to destruct when somebody stiffs them on the bill, hoping to kill the client perhaps.

How can that hologram wristwatch-thing project an image through walls? This isn't uncommon until somewhat recently but those guns certainly held a lot of bullets.

A remake, directed by Len Wiseman, with Colin Farrell playing Quaid/Hauser, and Kate Beckinsale (Mrs. Wiseman) playing Lori, will be released on August 3, 2012. IMHO, it's already wimping out by its PG-13 rating. Betcha it won't even have the original's best line - Quaid's "Consider that a divorce".

The remake wasn't a total loss IMO, but I find it ironic that the production company for this movie, Original Films produced one of the most unoriginal films I can, um... recall

This movie was a bit of I, Robot mixed with Blade Runner in a style of just about every Michael Bay movie (more effects than substance). There was also a little Bourne Identity as well. SPOILERS to follow:

The overall story has been tweaked, making it a tad more realistic, but the plot remains pretty much the same. I wasn't too disappointed to see the whole mutant/alien thing go away but I'd buy that over the Fall transport that travels through the planet.

Near the beginning, at the robot factory, Quaid is showing a new employee where to place his hand when spot-welding, but after the conversation he puts his hand in the wrong spot again. Am I wrong or was the secret subway to the Resistence's hidout the same as in the Matrix when Neo was fighting the Agent?

What I don't quite understand is why does Cohagen(?) want to wipe out the Colony when they're all pretty much slaves as it is? There were several instances where the robot soldiers should've killed Quaid/Hauser, either physically or with a gun, but didn't; particularly during the lift/elevator getaway scene. Aside from the main character, the issue of guns not running out of bullets still remains, especially since many of the handguns are just modified revolvers.

Despite the addition of Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel, who I think are unbelievably gorgeous, I still prefer the original; though there were many lines and scene homages that the two movies shared. However, I still enjoyed it for what it was, a remake of a mediocre flick.

The Agony Booth's Dr. Winston O'Boogie (ain't that a nom-de-plume for the ages?) has a comparison of the short (17 pages) story to the movies. It can be viewed here.

Very interesting Adam, thank you for that. I knew of the short story but I haven't read it nor did I know it was only 17 pages long. I was not aware; however, that Minority Report was suppose to be a sequel to this story, instead of the version we got a few years ago.

Not really related but early in the newest TR, when we are introduced to the Fall, we see Quaid reading The Spy Who Loved Me, by Ian Flemming of course

The Agony Booth has posted yet another video dissection of this film, and this time they include the 2012 remake. That one can be viewed here.

Another case in which the original movie (made in 1990) leaves the remake (made in 2012) in the dust, IMO.

Watched this again last night, and again I was struck by how inconvenient it was that they chose "Quaid" as Ahnuld's name...its a difficult word to pronounce, especially for an Austrian whose diction is horrible anyway. Every time Ahnuld tried to say, "Quaid" (and he says it a lot) I had to suppress a snicker.

So, point being, since they could have made that character name literally ANYthing they wanted, why choose a name that's so difficult for Ahnuld to pronounce?

Still, this is better than the rubbish remake.

A remake that no one wanted or asked for.

I was struck by how inconvenient it was that they chose "Quaid" as Ahnuld's name...its a difficult word to pronounce.

Not for Dennis Quaid, his brother Randy or Dennis' son Jack. "Ahnuld" was cast no doubt as insurance. He was the number one box office star at the time, and I'm sure the producers wanted their big budget movie ($60 million, lots of money for a movie then) to be a huge hit.

Thirty-two years ago, now, this film came out.

One item that dates this pic is the use of CRT screens all over. Everything in the real world has gone to flat panel screens. Then again, CRTs could make a comeback. Like vinyl records and turntables seem to be at the moment.

"Get your ahhss to Mahhss!"

You binge watching old Ah-nold movies?

Not really. BBC America (which runs very little BBC programming) ran both this pic and The Terminator consecutively yesterday. I caught the two dated items (one in each) as I was making a sandwich, and preparing to go out (one eye on the TV, one on the rest. )

Sounds like BBC America should change it's name.

Yes they should. BBC America is owned by AMC Holdings. The company also owns the channels WE, Sundance and (of course) AMC. My guess is that they just license the BBC name. A few weeks ago, all three channels simultaneously ran the premiere of The Walking Dead - The Ones Who Live. Which is as un-BBC as you can get.

Another case of network decay.