Total Recall (remake)

[abigsmurf]

The 6th day wasn't as bad as a lot of people made it out to be in my view, it was trying to evoke the spirit of stuff like Total Recall but it suffered from a restrictive certificate. A bit grittier, a bit more OTT and it would've been great. As it is, it's nothing special but mediumly enjoyable.

[Matt]

I'm just going to stay out of this thread. The original is a classic. Adore it. It's never been equaled in terms of blood squibs (whenever I'm chatting about squibs, I ALWAYS use this as my reference point). Amazing film.

So while I'm tired that yet again they're insisting on making every ****ing film a PG-13, I appreciate this will probably / hopefully be nothing like the original and have it's own story. Plus I really rate Farrell. So I'm trying to be optimistic....

[Fader209]

Hmm Robocop had some lovely blood squibs too. The first ED-209 scene springs to mind! Tasty.

[Kit]

Plus I really rate Farrell.

You?re dead to me...

[Matt]

Hmm Robocop had some lovely blood squibs too. The first ED-209 scene springs to mind! Tasty.

Absolutely. But Total Recall has more Chunks per Squib than Robocop They're big, meaty squibs. You just don't get that in films these days

[Matt]

You’re dead to me...

lol. I do seem to be in minority of people who like him, and I can't figure why. He comes across as a really likeable bloke. He got hugely lucky in Hollywood and he knows it. Earned a load of money, by all accounts ****ed around a huge amount, and had a great time. Good on him

Plus he really can act. There's a reason top directors want to work with him.

And to top it all off, he makes good script choices. He could of gone Full Star, and in his earlier Hollywood days he didn't choose the best films - but I get the impression that was more an agent / manager thing, thrusting him upon the world. Now he's a bit wiser, more confident, he makes good decisions. I think that after Alexander, he's been on a winning streak. In Bruges is great, not the kind of role a "star of his stature" would do. Total Recall remake? Fright Night? He's choosing brave films where he knows he will be in for a hammering. When directors like Malick and Mann work with him and want him back again, you know he's got the chops

[Kit]

Agree with you about the lifestyle.

Acting wise, well he?s alright I guess, but you don?t want alright you want awesome - what really put me off Farrell was his performance in Miami Vice. Though that film turned out ok so maybe Total Recall has some hope.

[Stoppy2000]

As a fan of the Miami Vice tv show I have yet to watch the movie. Probably for the best.

[Matt]

The film is brilliant! Watch the extended version And he's great in it, it's a complicated role. The short hand between him and Tubbs is really well handled. The character is distance, he lives in Undercover Cop World and has to keep his emotions in check. Often, when you do see "emotions", he's acting the part. And really, he's totally lost. The romance he has with drug chick is distant and subdued, because she is also acting the part she has made for herself in the drug world. You can't show any signs of weakness.

As you can tell, I'm a fan of the film

[Kit]

Yes, it was really well shot and the pacing was spot on - definitely one of those films that deserves a second watch.

Total Recall will benefit in the same way as Miami Vice did in regards to being more gritty. You need a strong lead though, someone to keep you glued to the screen, and I?m not convinced Farrell is the best choice.

[PaTaito]

Well i consider farrell a lot more than just alright as an actor. As matt said earlier, other than a few dodgy early choices he really delivers imo in his movies. Thought he was great in The Recruit, Phonebooth(he carried that whole film), and In Bruges...amongst others.

I know its really cliche but he really has a screen presence...an actor like him will do quad justice, he just needs to add a few lbs of muscle. Though i'd stop short of developing an austrian accent

EDIT: Just realised this will likely be a PG-13.....omg wtf??? First they ruin terminator with a frankly ridiculous rating(yes terminators that only push you around), now this classic?

If you insist on remaking films then at least have the balls to release it as a proper 15/18 certificate.

Hollywood today really does make me angry.

[Matt]

I think you can do a Total Recall film as a PG-13. I don't like the idea, but I think you can do it. Make it intelligent, thought provoking. You don't need the mega-violence [though I did think it was awesome]. That's a part of the Arnie TR movie, and you can make a very different film out of the story without going full OTT gore. Or without any blood and gore at all. I think you could pretty much strip out all the violence, increase the psychological / dream / reality stuff, and you'd have a good thing.

As for Terminator, I fully agree. It's called TERMINATOR, before they TERMINATE you. That's the whole bloody idea!

[PaTaito]

It will be texas chainsaw massacre 12a version remake, with none of the chainsaws having any fuel...so they use them to smack each other instead.

Dear oh dear. Its the most significant and depressing sign of the state of the box office. The 12a/pg13 system.

[Matt]

The original Total Recall is, for me, a great film BECAUSE of the violence. It's the culmination of the OTT action movies of the '80s; released in 1990 at Arnie's pinnacle. From that moment on, the violence in big action movies was scaled down. We got the 15 rate Die Hard 2 shortly after. The 15 rated Terminator 2 a year after Total Recall. A succession of comedy-over-action Lethal Weapon movies.

The original Total Recall is excessive, and all the better for it. It's quite bat**** insane. It exists, it always will exist, and I'll always consider it a classic film

Now, on the whole, I'm against remakes. I find it disheartening that in the world of film finance, a world in which I'm trying to find funding myself, few want to exist in [and I ****ing hate this term, so forgive me] "Original IP".

Yet there's something about the Total Recall remake that interests me. Maybe it's the fact the original movie wasn't really anything like the book We Can Remember It For You Wholesale. Maybe it's because Farrell chooses decent scripts. Maybe it's because I believe there's a different story to tell without all the violence, and the Memory aspect of it is hugely interesting. If they concentrate on that, you can make a mature, intelligent film without any of the violence. It can be something else entirely.

At which stage it's not a Remake. And I'm happy for this "Remake" to exist as long as it's not actually a, er, Remake. Ahem

[PaTaito]

The original Total Recall is, for me, a great film BECAUSE of the violence. It's the culmination of the OTT action movies of the '80s; released in 1990 at Arnie's pinnacle. From that moment on, the violence in big action movies was scaled down. We got the 15 rate Die Hard 2 shortly after. The 15 rated Terminator 2 a year after Total Recall. A succession of comedy-over-action Lethal Weapon movies.

The original Total Recall is excessive, and all the better for it. It's quite bat**** insane. It exists, it always will exist, and I'll always consider it a classic film

Now, on the whole, I'm against remakes. I find it disheartening that in the world of film finance, a world in which I'm trying to find funding myself, few want to exist in [and I ****ing hate this term, so forgive me] "Original IP".

Yet there's something about the Total Recall remake that interests me. Maybe it's the fact the original movie wasn't really anything like the book We Can Remember It For You Wholesale. Maybe it's because Farrell chooses decent scripts. Maybe it's because I believe there's a different story to tell without all the violence, and the Memory aspect of it is hugely interesting. If they concentrate on that, you can make a mature, intelligent film without any of the violence. It can be something else entirely.

At which stage it's not a Remake. And I'm happy for this "Remake" to exist as long as it's not actually a, er, Remake. Ahem

The only aspect of total recall which could be done better is as you say the memory aspect. If its a mind ****, then i'm all in.....if(as i fear from the colin farrell shot with his hands behind his head) its rather a direct remake then i deffo fear the worst.

The two aspects that have me worried are the age ratings, and len wiseman. I like farrell but i'm not too keen on the director.....while underworld was entertaining, its hardly the challenge that doing a good job on recall will be.

If nolan or soderberg, or someone of their ilk were to take the reigns...i would be entirely optimistic.