The characters are the same, as is the basic concept, but there are some differences that make it entertaining for old fans, as well as a new generation.
In the future when the world has become a wasteland due to war, earth is divided into two territories, The Colony and The United Federation of Britain.
Colony worker Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell) is questioning his life and visits virtual vacation provider Rekall for some excitement. He gets more than he bargained for when memories of another life as a spy start to surface, is it recall or just Rekall?
The 2012 remake has wiped the outer-space world of Mars from the original; instead, The Colony is a tongue-in-cheek reference to former Australia. Wiseman has also given Quaid’s wife Lori (Kate Beckinsale) the modern girl-power role of hunting him down.
Unfortunately Beckinsale doesn’t do bad-guy well; instead she flounces around like a stroppy Brit, flicking her long hair while yelling cheesy lines at Farrell and at the mostly useless Jessica Biel.
Total Recall has in-jokes that pay homage to the original film (the girl with three boobs makes an appearance) and the action is enough to make it entertaining. Just don’t expect it to blow Arnie’s classic out of the stratosphere.
Good for: Turning off your memory and watching things explode.
Verdict: 3 stars
