Total Recall

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I figured I'd start 90's Action Month with one of the first of the decade. 'Total Recall' is a hard film to overlook in several categories, ranging from action to sci-fi, and from fantasy to thriller. It covers so much ground, and it has its place in the cinematic history books as an action epic that is widely considered one of Arnold Schwarzenegger's best (which is saying a lot, 'cause there are so many awesome Schwarzenegger films out there).

'Total Recall',based on the Phillip K. Dick short story, 'We Can Remember It for You Wholesale', profiles Douglas Quaid (Schwarzenegger) - an Earthbound construction worker. He has constant dreams of Mars, and a mysterious woman, and it's kinda getting in the way of life. He decides to check out a place called "Rekall", who implant fake memories of great experiences, such as vacations to Mars.

During the experience, something goes wrong, and he suddenly remembers fighting as a secret agent, against Mars administrator, Cohaagen (Ronny Cox). Quaid soon finds that his entire life until this point may very well be a false memory, and that the people who implanted it, lead by a man named Richter (Michael Ironside), are now on the hunt for him. With the help of the lovely Milena (Rachel Ticotin), a plethora of Mars-dwelling, mutants and some unexpected characters, Quaid fights to thwart Cohaagen's dark plans, and figure out who he really is along the way.

As I mentioned before, the film stands out as a multi-genre hit, mostly leaning towards sci-fi action. This makes it a hell of a lot of fun for the whole ride, as they even give us some mild horror and comedy elements. Some of the practical effects here are downright uncomfortable (pulling out a tracking beacon from a nostril, gasping for oxygen with your eyes and tongue bulging out), but they're downright memorable. They're just another example of the practical outdoing CGI. It might look silly and fake, but dammit, you just would't get that creepy, Muppet-like terror face from Arnold if this was CG. Also, who could possibly forget the ever-famous three-boobed mutant prostitute, Mary (Lycia Naff)?

I also mentioned comedy elements, but I do use that somewhat loosely. There are a few mild jokes here and there, sure, but the humor really comes from the overall fun of the movie. There's a lot here we can look back on and laugh at as memorable moments, not the least of which is the struggling Arnold face, which is used quite frequently here. It's also a good one for a few of his famous one-liners, perhaps the best being "screw you!". I won't tell you why it's probably the best, but in context, you'll roll your eyes, but you'll know.

I believe that this was the launch of a mild stereotype of Schwarzenegger movies - him trying to figure out his identity. 'MadTV' did a whole thing on it. The only difference being that here, we can see it as being an original concept, at least as far as Arnold playing the lead. He was a little older for movies like 'Eraser' and 'The 6th Day', so this one also takes place during his hayday, which, for my money, ranges from 'Conan the Barbarian' ('82) to 'True Lies' ('94). After that, we got 'Junior', and he started to wane quite significantly. But we still loved him.

I'd have to say, as far as recommending this as a good Schwarzenegger film, this would probably at least make my Top 5. It'd be high on the list, too. Even aside from Arnold, there's so much fun going on here. We get awesome practical effects, a great variety of characters, an interesting concept overall, and an ending that is still a personal favorite as far as open-ended endings go. Not everyone likes that, but I admit that I do like to decide for myself how things turn out. Regardless, this is one I'd consider (and I know I'm not alone on this) a staple of Schwarzenegger action films - a must see, if you're going back to check out what he was all about in his prime.

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