Total Recall

In a nutshell, Total Recall is a great movie. I'd even go so far as to say that after Blade Runner, it's the best film adaptation of a Dick novel, this time with a superb performance by the brilliantly perverse Paul Verhoeven. His direction is dynamic and his relish in lots of blood and violence that is typical of him is irresistible in a way. The story is properly Dick-esque, dark with an ambiguous ending and that's how it should be. The visual effects are fantastic for their time and were deservedly rewarded with an Oscar. And I must not forget to highlight Jerry Goldsmith's imaginative soundtrack, which is impossible not to listen to and which is one of the best that the Master has composed. A sci-fi gem for the connoisseurs. (09/27/2003)

I just read the sci-fi novel, “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" (Blade Runner) and all of a sudden I got the urge to brush up on some of the film adaptations of Dick’s books. However, I saw Minority Report quite recently and Paycheck not long ago too. Blade Runner is almost impossible to find these days (well, perhaps not impossible, but certainly difficult :) and Verhoeven's Total Recall seemed the only suitable candidate. I have to say, I did well because I hadn't seen it in a few years, so I was very happy. Seeing Arnold’s shooting and wisecracking again("Sue me, dickhead!" and “Consider that a divorce!" are the best) is now a balm for my soul. Then there's Sharon as the perfect (almost perfect) wife any man would want. From a story point of view, there is almost nothing to criticize, because probably no other science fiction with this kind of surfing between dream and reality has even been created. Jerry Goldsmith's music is amazingly magical, perfectly matches the overall atmosphere, and, in the end, it (might just) take a share in expressing the movie’s message. (10/03/2006)

Paul Verhoeven keeps playing the same song and it’s not out of tune even for the umpteenth time, though the basic melody is starting to become a bit tired and boring. Total Recall is a fine wild ride with lots of blood, a brilliantly clumsy main protagonist (his facial expressions in some close-up shots are adorable) and a two-digit number when it comes to the body count. But the similarly styled music and distinctive visual signature (which doesn't always mean high quality) didn't really touch my heart in any special way. The Martian setting is overly exhibitionistic, just like the rebel leader, the woman with three breasts, the mutants, the face explosions, and similar things. The director is too over-the-top sometimes, and it's not always my cup of tea. Nevertheless, the well-executed action scenes are cool. (04/13/2007)

Today I felt like watching something from the work of my long-time favorite director, and when I realized that I hadn't yet written a review for the movie that, along with RoboCop and James Cameron's Terminator series, completely captivated me at the beginning of the nineties. I was obsessed with action movies back then, and this quartet repeatedly brought me joy. I admit that this classic has noticeably aged (but compared to me, it still looks great), so the action sequences and special effects fell short of today's standards, to the point of being hilarious at times. Still, it didn't spoil the experience for me in any way. Paul Verhoeven's style of filmmaking resonates with me, so his cerebral excursion combined with an interplanetary trip still entertained me after thirty years. If I changed my original rating, I would be a hypocrite because I still really liked it today, I had fun, and I could reminisce about some exciting (and wild) times. When I compare it, for example, to a movie like Tenet... / Lesson learned: More of a reflection this time: Is it possible that the Recall company actually exists? There has been a strange increase in cases of women who remember what happened five, ten, or twenty years ago. It makes you wonder. (06/17/2023)

Sometimes, all a successful sci-fi movie needs is to set up the scenery and intensify the music. Verhoeven takes a somewhat questionable approach, unleashing his twisted taste and giving Arnie the feeling that he is playing a cleverly packaged game against all the evil members of society. No, this is not the way. Blood fits in Robocop, and dealing with an unconventional marital crisis fits in a more open satire. (07/02/2005)