Before I launch into some gleeful pointing out of this movie's plentiful plot holes, I want to say that I thoroughly enjoyed Total Recall. Possibly because it borrowed from some of my favorite movies. Not just Total Recall, but also hints of The Matrix, Fifth Element, and Mr. and Mrs. Smith found their way in, with perhaps a dash of Terminator and a sprinkle of Johnny Mnemonic, to name a few.

Also, the special effects were excellent, and the protagonist and his love interest were relentlessly appealing, not to mention almost supernaturally attractive. The final five minutes might have viewers grown weary of climatic fist fight scenes rolling their eyes, but other than that, it was well paced and extremely enjoyable.

Now, on to pointing out plot holes. Warning, spoilers ahead!

If you have the technology to send your wage slaves through the core of the Earth to build your robot army for you, you would have the technology to create radiation proof housing, with proper ventilation and tasteful decoration, to ease overcrowding. If you have the technology to create robot forces, you have the technology to create robots to make your robots, so you don't need wage slaves traveling through the core of the Earth (however cool and essential to the plot that mode of transportation might be), to make your robot army for you.

One also wonders why the only way to travel from what was once Australia to what was once Europe is through the core of the Earth. Sure, it's fast, but it was really the only way post-apocalyptic blue collar workers could commute? But then again, because it was made clear that this mode of transportation is the only mode of transportation, it really helped wrap the plot up neatly.

It also seems that humanity, while creating a robot army, a subway tunnel through the Earth, and a cellphone implant, failed to create a way to subdue a civilian population that didn't involve a troop transport of soldiers marching in, however robotic the rank and file of those soldiers might be. Of course, they wouldn't want to simply blow the civilian population up, seeing as how, for some bizarre reason, they still needed human workers.

And clearly the human workers needed subduing by the robot forces, because even though the evil overlords in Europe had the technology to completely wipe a person's memory, they must not be able to create Stepford Aussies to do their work for them.… Expand

Wow. I'm gonna give a general spoiler here: there is a little twist at the beginning that seems to set up a cool movie, and then the rest of the movie is one giant chase scene without a single moment of story. I couldn't believe how many times the heroes are backed into a corner when at the last minute they pull out their guns and start shooting and then comes the getaway. This is nearly the entire movie. A pointless experience.… Expand

meh...

WOW! WOW! WOW! Those are the only words I had when the movie ended. This movie should be the realy Summer hit following Avengers in this year. One after one of well executed action scenes will make you forget to breathe and whenever the actions stop, the plots will step in, keeping the story flowing. There may be some weaknesses in the overall storyline, but compare to the stupidity of charging all your police forces into tunnels so a handful of thugs can take over a city of 12m people, putting all of policemen in a single street so they can rush to tanks and thugs with machingus, and the total absence of American army for 3 months, the weaknesses in this movie are infinitesimal. I am going to watch it again.… Expand

Don't bother to compare this "reboot" to original. It

Doesn't hold a candle to the original, which was so full of original ideas that could be exploited here. Sure, it looks fantastic, but it's just dry and boring. It's missing the camp that I loved so much about the original. You know you're in trouble as a moviegoer when you first check your watch at about 45 minutes in.

Besides the good characters and the action thrills, this movie is an unnecessary remake to the original as what preview critics would say. Mars, memory and life were the main themes in the original movie, but this one just doesn't seem to have those good ones, not even the setting of Mars. This looks and feels like Star Wars meets Blade Runner and Minority Report.

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Strong action mixed with a loose and well-worn plot that made for an entertaining, but not necessarily good, movie. It's the same basic premise of the original movie with plenty of nods. The Blade Runner style future is nice, but the premise and world created was nonsensical. A world destroyed by chemical warfare and only Australia and the UK survive? Plus they're connected via a mass transit system that goes through the earth's core. The trip is so fast it only takes 17 min, but not so fast that the characters can't climb the exterior or stand atop the device without being crushed by g-force. The shear impossibility of the climax is only permissible in the assumption that everything we witnessed as an audience was part of Quiad's Rekall. And for that, the hint at the end, and the decent action, Total Recall gets a passing rating.… Expand

I enjoyed this movie. If you're a fan of the sci-fi genre and not too stuck on the particulars of the first film I think most will as well. There are two important things to keep in mind before seeing this movie.

1. They do not go to Mars. This movie takes place entirely on Earth.

2. It is not campy. Do not expect the movie to poke fun at itself, or have goofy characters. Keep those two points in mind and I think you'll enjoy the ride.… Expand

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I finally saw this movie, and am a little disappointed. Having seen the 1990 version of this movie, I knew that there would be changes (a reboot) to the original in this outing, and figured that I would give this movie the benefit of being able to stand on it's own. To start, the entire setting of the movie seems off, almost as though the director decided to mesh Blade Runner with the video game Mass Effect. In fact, the synthetic security force is a complete rip-off from the video game, to name only one. It's hard to write this review without picking the movie apart, and the stigma of the first movie will always be there as a critique because this movie modelled itself completely after it. It's not really a complete reboot, but it's as though someone with a better budget and technology decided to make a visually stunning film with the story of Total Recall kind of spliced into it. Things, like the three breasted woman or the fat-woman disguise, made a cameo in this film, but they were very out of place. There was a great suspension of reality in several parts of the film, but I guess in the future, people crash through windows, survive gunshot wounds without treatment, and climb ladders on trains going 500 mph through the Earth's core everyday. At times, the fight scenes and the constant chase scenes can become very tedious and boring, and the story appears to fall on the back burner to move these scenes along. There were very few memorable characters in this reboot, unlike the original movie which had more acting and less scowling from the actors and actresses; in fact, I had a hard time keeping up with Jessica Biel's and Kate Beckinsale's characters because they looked similar to each other, and their characters weren't exactly fleshed out very well. Having seen it, I can't recommend this movie to anyone just yet. I admit that I've watched it once, and that sometimes a different frame of mind may change one's interest in watching a movie. But this movie seems to lack something that you can't really put your finger on, and the design choices, once you've seen them elsewhere, are distracting and dislikeable. Do yourself a favor and see the 1990 version first, if you haven't, then youtube Mass Effect 2's videos after watching Blade Runner before you watchi this movie, and you'll see what I mean.… Expand

I love this movie. I remember the original very well and the major plot elements of this version didn't vary much from the original. That aside, everything else was different and new.. I loved the story, ceaseless action, special effects, and stunts. It's the perfect movie for any adrenalin junkie that will hold your attention from beginning to end.

I was very disappointed with this mindless and unintelligible flick. It's a total waste of time as nothing makes any sense at all and it's just an endless barrage of running and fighting and confusion.

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. If you're looking for a great example of a director destroying the story they are trying to tell, you've come to the right place. The novelty of the story has been completely butchered by a director (Len Wiseman) that doesn't seem to understand how to use perspective. If the audience is meant to question whether what they are watching is reality or implanted memories, the story has to be told from the perspective of Quaid (Colin Ferrell). Wiseman, however, frequently breaks away from the main character and shows the audience scenes that Quaid isn't even in. This destroys any illusion that the story is only taking place inside Quaid's head. How can you remember something you weren't even there for? Apart from the perspective debacle, the story is just a complete mess, with plot holes and inconsistencies waiting around every turn. The action, on the other hand, would have be great, if I hadn't already seen it in Minority Report.… Expand

have to agree with your '44' concensus. this movie was all action and cgi and precious little story/substance. how come arnold is such a so-so actor yet so watchable? glad 1) he's out of my state government and 2) back in the movie biz

Reading some of the reviews on here makes me wonder if the studios have their stooges post here. Aside from a few video effects this movie is such a piece of garbage, and it gives the original a bad name. From the stupefied plot to flat acting, is this really the best they could do with several hundred million dollars budget? Where no real actors available, or they all just tossed the retarded script in the bin? Seems so, as it ended up "starring" this Colin Whatever--an absolute zero as far as acting and looks, and Jessica Biel who was hot in the 90s playing a non-acting role, but is well pass her prime. Best skip this, watch the original, watch the Blade Runner for some dark robotic futurism. Nothing to see here other than a few very average special effects.… Expand

Paul Verhoeven's Total Recall is much much better than this remake version. I pretty enjoy this, its modern set piece but its third act is total disaster. Will always leave you bad memory.

What was Sony thinking? This is total BS. First off, who told the director to plan a remake of the 1990 original classic starring Arnold Schwarzenegger? Two, why is Colin Farrell in this movie, anyway? He's not an action star yet. I used to like him since "Phone Booth," but not anymore since the new "Total Recall"
alienated fans and critics alike. And just like that, it's a mess! I definitely like both Kate Beckinsale (Underworld) and Jessica Biel (7th Heaven) and the three-breated women part, but it wasn't meant to be well concrete. The action, however, wasn't that even good. Can't you see it's a lot different than the original version? Well, it doesn't quite match it. This is one of the worst remakes of all time and this year because I need an 70's or 80's style of a reboot, not living it up to 90's nostalgia, again. I hope Arnold should take notes because trust me, he's gonna be pissed off and I smell a lawsuit going on here.… Expand

I was hoping the critics were overthinking this and it would be worth the trip and price of admission. Unfortunately I was ready to leave after a half an hour. It's just a really soulless movie that bludgeons you with action. If you tried to analyze it, it'd be worse since much of the plot and action hinges on really implausible connections. Even by sci-fi standards it's lazy. We already live in a world that is already connected by a network. The characters in this future-set movie escape the authorities time and time again in ways that would be almost impossible even in a world of today's technology, let alone the far-off future.… Expand

I don't feel that this Total Racall is superior to the original. The first hour is incredibly fun with some great story and action thrills. After that it becomes very slow. Its got some other positives like the fact that despite reusing a few things from the original it still feels somewhat new. The script could be a lot better. Its a little fun but its more worth a rental once it is on DVD.

"But those hoping for a real head trip - a truly cerebral Dick adaptation - will have to keep waiting."

forever i'll add to this review...
This movie has nothing that reminds P.K.Dick and is not even funny as it's predecessor, basically a shame

I think what ruins this movie the most is that it's 2 hours long and there is no story what so ever. I mean there is one but there isn't. It seems that you just jump from scene to scene with no real backstory or anything, That's what makes this movie so bad. I didn't care for the action scenes either. It really just came off as The Bourne Identity (even had the main character going into a bank and finding passports and money just like bourne identity) but in a sci fi setting. The only solid things about this movie is that the acting is good and the gadgets are cool (I really loved the phone embedded in your hand gadget).… Expand

Went in with low expectations considering the critics' opinions. Got what I expected, too. Took only minor cues from the original and even those got lost in the breaking glass. Never once thought 'hmm, is this real or recall" I just thought "3 good looking stars does not a movie make." Epitome of mediocrity.

I haven't seen the original Total Recall, so I'm unable to comment on how well this one matches up to it. But what I can comment on was how insignificant this reboot was. It was bland, greatly lacking in edge and originality. The first half of the film had some purpose, but the remaining half gives way to a typical, extended chase scene with typical results. Ram-packed with so many "A" list stars its almost embarrassing to watch them try to perform in this high octane mess. And thank you Len Wiseman for crafting not only some decent visuals, but also crafting something that's as forgettable as a spec on the floor. He doesn't even attempt to go beyond the 'summer flick' mold. This was a Total Failure.… Expand

Having just seen the movie, I thought it was awesome. The constant action, the story, etc... is was very well done. Colin Farrell did a great job (which I'm tired of people bashing him for some reason, I think hes a great actor, but thats my opinion), and of course Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel did great as well, not to mention hot xD. Overall, great movie and definately worth the price of admission for it.… Expand

I thought This Movie was BADASS. I mean overall i like it better than the original. The action scenes in this film are incredible! The world in this film is so beautiful. The story was Decent but it's the action that won me over. Overall this is a really fun summer film. Watch it

I must admit; I (like many others no doubt) have never seen Arnold in the original Total Recall. Right off the first 10 minutes, director Len Wiseman showed the type of movie Total Recall was to be. The first pan of the futuristic city Wiseman had envisioned the world of Total Recall to be was reminiscent of Blade-Runner: a city so unlike our own but so detailed that it seems a perfectly logical direction for which the world would be heading towards. Often times I forgot that Total Recall was part Sci-fi, as I became so immersed in the setting that it became normal. The Colony, one of the only two mega-cities left on earth, was able to blend a heavy sci-fi theme with a sense of overpopulation, allowing it to seem technological but backwards at the same time. The first half of the film does an excellent job creating a believable world, but unfortunately the characters that inhabit the world itself fall a bit short.
A major problem with the film was its cookie-cutter characters. Colin Farrell just seemed confused most of the time, and Jessica Biel and Kate Beckinsale were just action-movie eye-candy with no really distinguishing characteristics. Going by the trailer, I had expected Total Recall to be mind-boggling; juggling reality and fantasy until it became a blur. This unfortunately was not the case, as the plot became incredibly straightforward. With such a simple plot and such simple characters, by the end there was no element of surprise or shock. For a sci-fi action movie, it ended rather dully. That is not to say; however, that the entire movie was boring, or that it wasn… Expand

I really liked it, especially the main method of transportation from the colony to the UFB, I thought it was absolutely genius and well thought out plus the scenes that make you question whether it's real or one of his memories are fake are great..it was very interesting, maybe some escape scenes were the same but I really liked it overall, especially the implanted communication device..I just wish that the movie makers didn't spoil a bunch of it with their trailers… Expand

Massive disappointment. Bland, soulless action and forgettable characters. A real pity and a waste of a good cast. Somehow everything that made the original good and fun is missing here. What's even more frustrating is that it has an interesting and intriguing set up that is so utterly let down by a never ending stream of identical fights and chases as to make any memories of story distant.