I’m kind of funny when it comes to remakes. In a lot of cases, most of them really, I’m of the opinion that they’re unnecessary, and that they can only come off worse for the comparison to the original. But even when I think a remake may be worth watching, I’m deeply reluctant to watch it before I’ve seen the original. So although I’ve seen the trailer for 2012′s new Total Recall starring Colin Farrell, and it’s actually looking pretty good, there was a chance that I would skip its theatrical release simply by virtue of not yet having seen the original version with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Fortunately, when the new Total Recall hits theatres, I won’t have to make the choice on that basis, as cable TV obliged me by offering up the original for viewing last night.
Total Recall is yet another Hollywood film adapted from a story by science fiction author Philip K. Dick; in this case, “We Can Recall It For You Wholesale” (which I’ll have to get my hands on and read at some point for the sake of curiosity). Schwarzenegger stars as Douglas Quaid, a construction worker who is haunted every night by nightmares of a strange adventure on Mars (at this point a colony of Earth). This growing obsession causes him to try and convince his wife Lori (Sharon Stone) to take a trip with him to Mars, but she isn’t interested. And then he learns about the company Rekall. Continue reading
