Movie Reviewed: Total Recall (2012)

So this is a remake of a Schwarzenegger movie that's based off of a short story by Philip K. Dick. So either way, if you're looking to protest the lack of original movies going around Hollywood lately, avoid this movie like the plague.

In A Nutshell:
So Colin Farrel plays Douglas Quaid, a guy in the depressing as hell dystopian future, has a pretty gorgeous wife (Kate Beckinsale), and works a crappy job on an assembly line. He's supposed to be the embodiment of stressed out workers (let me put it this way: if he wasn't going to recall, he'd be going to fight club). But then he does go to recall to have fake memories put in place as a bit of stress relief, and after that he winds up on the run from the evil government (headed by Walter "Heisenberg" White/ Hal Wilkerson(?)/ that racist jackass from Red Tails) as it becomes increasingly apparent that he's a spy, like when he takes out ten armed men without flinching and then his wife starts trying to kill him. From that point on, it's a pretty nonstop ride, in which he has to team up with Jessica Biel (see, you're life is good man!). But is it real, or is it all just the fake memories recall put in his head?

The Good:
I went into this expecting an intense action movie, and that is what I got. And then some. I mean every single action sequence is perfectly choreographed and shot and it is awesome. The movie starts off as about twenty or so minutes of set-up, in which you're kind of waiting for stuff to start hitting the fan, and when it does, it's a near-nonstop ride to the finish. Some the scenes were wicked intense, and that really helped with the kick-ass, perfectly shot action, which is the bulk of the movie. I also give mad props to the director, Len Wiseman, the cinematographers, and the special effects crew for creating this great futuristic visual, full of top-notch effects and intensity. If nothing else, you can say that this movie is amazing to look at. The acting here was also great; Colin Farrel, who I haven't seen much of before, proves he's got the chops by being both badass and exasperated at the same time. Everyone else does a good job with what they're given.

The Bad:
I haven's seen the Arnie version, nor have I read the short story (but I want to do both now), so I'm not doing a comparison. I think the biggest problem I had with the movie is that it sort of goes for style over substance. They have an awesome premise here, that is never really explored or fleshed out as much as it feels like it should be, and as a result a lot of people will probably mistake this for another mindless actioner. I feel like it would've been better had it been 15-20 minutes longer. Pretty much everyone in this movie besides Colin Farrel is kind of a plot catalyst, whose characters are mostly there to get him from point A to point B. No one did a bad job acting-wise, but no one else really felt important. Also, if you've seen the trailers, you kind of know that this movie's gonna end one of two ways, so that's a bit kill-joy.

Bottom Line:
This is a badass action movie with great acting and awesome special effects and acting that you will have a good time with so long as you don't expect too much.

Final Rating: 85%


So, which Total Recall do you think is better? Comment below, let me know!