Director: Paul Verhoeven
Writers: Ronald Shusett, Dan O’Bannon, based on a story by Philip K. Dick
Cinematography: Jost Vacano
Editor: Frank J. Urioste
Music: Jerry Goldsmith
Notable Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sharon Stone, Michael Ironside, Ronny Cox, Rachel Ticotin, Marshall Bell, Roy Brocksmith, Rosemary Dunsmore, Ray Baker, David Knell, Michael Champion, Dean Norris, Lycia Naff, Michael Gregory, Mickey Jones, Bobby Costanzo
1990 was the year I really started getting into movies as more than just a casual fan. The summer of ’89 primed me, and it was those boffo summer movies that really got my juices flowing back then. 1990 was the first year I bought Premiere Magazine’s Summer Movie Preview issue. Schwarzenegger was on the cover, giving the thumbs up while underwater. I used to LIVE for these issues to come out, so colorful and chock full of good info.
I remember Total Recall being the first movie of the 1990 summer season, early June, that I wanted to see. Not sure what came out Memorial Day that year, all I know is Total Recall was the REAL first movie of the summer. But why?
Two reasons, both hail from far overseas. The aforementioned Schwarzenegger, who was a legend by this point, especially after Predator, and Paul motherfucking Verhoeven, the genius behind one of the greatest films of all time, Robocop. That’s all it took to get me pumped. The fact it was again going to be sci-fi only amped me up further.
To say this flick delivered is an understatement. While beyond excited for the film to start when I sat down in that theatre in Queens, little did I know I’d be about to witness what would become one of my favorite sci-fi flicks of all time and an instant classic, with quotable lines galore. How fucking amazing is it when that happens in a movie theater? That shit is special.
But but but, how on Mars were the 1ST 5 Minutes?!?
1ST 5 MINUTES
First thing we see is that classic Tri-Star Pictures logo with the white horse running towards us as it grows a pair of wings to fly. Seems weird to say that one misses a faceless multi-national corporation, but here we are. I miss seeing this logo, Orion’s logo, Cannon Pictures’ logo, you name it. It’s sad when these upstarts go out of business as power is rolled up in the hands of a select few. While this Tri-Star logo brings back many memories in 2024, it meant nothing to see back in the summer of 1990.
But what happens next was meaningful, and remains so to this day. The title card for another great company that is no more, namely, Carolco Pictures. What a company. Seeing their logo in front of a film was almost always a sign of quality, especially if it was a Schwarzenegger film. Take a look at this roster of absolute stone cold classics this company produced: First Blood, Rambo, They Live, Jacob’s Ladder, Cliffhanger, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Basic Instinct, Last Action Hero, The Doors, Hamlet, L.A. Story. That is an insanely high hit rate for a company that was around for less than 20 years. Mario Kassar and Andy Vajna, I shall always tip my hat to your brilliance and utter genius in picking projects. What a run!
And accompanying the Carolco logo is not only the theme music for this film, but the music that would accompany this logo for all their films that followed. I am, of course, talking about the great Jerry Goldsmith and the insanely memorable and muscular score he composed for Total Recall. I confess to not being a Goldsmith fan, in general.
As a certified soundtrack nut, who bought many, many scores on cassette and CD in my youth, Varése Sarabande is another company that was ever present in my teenage years, as they released a bevy of film scores, and for all I know still exist to this day. The spine of their cassette cases was always that same “shit brown.” For some reason, the majority of the scores they released were terrible, so much so that if I saw Varése Sarabande as the soundtrack company I knew 9 times out of 10 the score would be some shitty background/elevator music.
When I saw this film was to be scored by Goldsmith, and released by Varése Sarabande, I thought for sure the music would be the worst aspect of this film. Very hard to be more wrong than I was. Goldsmith and Varése Sarabande broke the jinx and delivered one of the best scores for any film… ever!
The main theme Goldsmith composed is so goddamned good it easily gets stuck in one’s head after the movie is over.
After the Carolco logo, we get the main credit sequence for the film. Talk about a throwback. Most films these days have eschewed title sequences. Hell, half the time they don’t even bother with the title, let alone any other credits. Total Recall’s opening credits are iconic, the way the names slowly descend, leaving behind tall red columns alluding to the Mars based action, there’s nothing quite like it. Combined with the score, this is one of the best title sequences of the 1990’s, hands down.
Once the credits finish, we cut to a wide shot of a mountainous cliff on the red planet, Mars. Two people in space suits are walking near the edge. They stand and marvel at the Martian landscape, hold each other’s hand, and the camera pans up to reveal it is Schwarzenegger and co-star, Rachel Ticotin. They look lovingly in each other’s eyes before resuming their walk, when suddenly Arnie loses his footing and slides down the cliffside, smashes his visor on a rock, exposing him to the Martian elements, causing his fucking eyes to start popping out of his head!
YES! What a way to start a movie!
Arnie wakes up out of breath, it was all a dream! His wife, Sharon Stone (hottest she has ever looked is in this film. Some prefer her in Basic Instinct, some in Casino, I’ll take this version of Stone any day over the other two. I instantly fell in love with her here, so soft and golden), asks him if he is okay, and he says he was just dreaming about Mars again. They engage in some playful teasing as we wrap up the 1ST 5 Minutes of Total Recall.
Yes, I love Goldsmith’s score, and yes, I love the opening credits. And even though nothing happens here to make you really salivate, this is 1990, you got Schwarzenegger, you got sci-fi, you got Verhoeven, you got eyes popping out of people’s heads, and you got Prime Sharon Stone (who may or may not take her clothes off…).
Uh, that last part may have been the most important for little 15 year old me.
The rest of the flick
This is where I need to talk about what I think the reality of this film actually is. SPOILERS AHEAD, but seriously, if you haven’t seen this film yet, you deserve to have it ruined, no?
The film starts with good guy Quaid dreaming about Mars and Rachel Ticotin, which is impossible if he never met her or went to Mars. BUT, you say, maybe that is confirmation that Schwarzenegger is indeed bad guy Hauser, and this dream is proof. Not only that, Stone gives him a weird look when he leaves for work, like she’s worried or nervous. You’re meant to think she’s nervous good guy Quaid may go to Rekall for a memory implanted vacation, but if he really is bad guy Hauser, she’s worried he’ll blow his cover. And then at work, Harry gives him another one of those suspicious looks when good guy Quaid mentions Rekall. Seems Harry’s job is as Hauser/Quaid’s handler to make sure nothing goes astray, much like the wife. Or maybe he’s just concerned for his co-worker. Hard to say…
But then good guy Quaid goes to Rekall anyway, and gets the Mars secret agent Ego Trip (love that they call it the ego trip). When he requests his woman, sleazy and demure, we see a picture of Rachel Ticotin on the screen!
She’s the “imaginary” woman for the spy adventure he’s about to have implanted. How the hell would they know about her? Well, maybe they’re working for main villain Cohaagen (the great Ronny Cox)? That doesn’t work either, because it was clear Cohaagen and his minions were trying to keep good guy Quaid from going to Rekall so bad guy Hauser wouldn’t pop his memory cap. There is simply no way Rekall could know Ticotin was the girl he’d meet.
Ah, but then all this means is he really is good guy Quaid and the entire movie after he goes to Rekall is his actual Ego Trip, they show Ticotin on the screen, and she’s the girl in the vacation he just paid for. Ok, then how do you explain him dreaming of Rachel Ticotin on Mars? Why does Stone and Harry give him weird suspicious looks, especially Harry? They feel that strongly about Rekall?
Perhaps, I guess that could be explained away, but not the opening dream. Had they just started the movie with him waking up, and describing the dream, maybe, but showing the actual content of the dream can lead us to only one conclusion. He’s in the Ego Trip the entire time from opening to ending. We NEVER see Douglas Quaid’s actual life in this film, we’re in the “memory” for the whole movie.
And I don’t really think there’s any other interpretation that makes sense.
And when you think about it for a minute, let’s just go with the (wrong) interpretation that his Ego Trip starts at Rekall, but the whole opening is his real life. In the supposed Rekall ego trip, he KILLS HIS FUCKING WIFE! He blows her fucking head off.
He also snaps his co-worker Harry’s neck!
Is Quaid going to then just wake up from this trip and then GO HOME to the woman he just fucking killed? Talk about a fucking head trip! It’s established that the Rekall implant is no different than any other memory, so how the fuck is Quaid going to come to terms with this vivid memory that he killed his wife?
Who does he think this living, breathing woman who looks just like his wife is when he gets home? If this is the correct interpretation of this film, those Rekall execs are some incredibly devious bastards!
Now, for the movie itself, there is a ton of great shit here, and when I say a ton, I mean a ton. And it all starts with Schwarzenegger and that fucking accent. Every line he says is a classic, just cause of his goofy way of talking. Almost every line is a laugh line because of the accent. It’s fantastic, and one of many reasons the remake with Colin Farrell didn’t work, you can’t replace someone like Schwarzenegger.
Sure, he became a cucked shithead in his old age, but back then he was the epitome of action cinema, and it wasn’t just his body that made him so legendary, it was those goddamn line readings that elevated any film he was in.
I love the exchange he has with himself on the video monitor where Hauser says the classic, “You are not you, you are me,” and Quaid responds, “No shit.” Just the way Schwarzenegger says that simple line is hilarious. He has so many great one liners in this film.
“What are you, my fahduh?”
“C’mon, baby, ya know you’re da girl of my dreams.”
“Consider it a divorce.”
“Look who’s talking.”
“Hey Benny… SCREW YOU!!!!”
“C’mon, Cohaagen, you got what you wanted, give these people air!”
Again, in any other actor’s hands, these lines are whatever. They’re fine, but with that Austrian accent, it achieves the sublime. There’s no Total Recall without Schwarzenegger and those inimitable line readings.
But my Favorite Line in the whole movie is one he delivers after killing the second best character in the movie, Richter, played by the amazing Michael Ironside (who I always used to get confused with Kurtwood Smith back when I was a kid, probably cause of Robocop/Ronny Cox connection. Cox loves using henchmen suffering from male pattern baldness in his Verhoeven flicks).
It’s towards the end of the film, and Quaid is very close to bringing Cohaagen’s whole operation down. He’s killed lots of Cohaagen’s men and only Richter stands in Quaid’s way. They have a great fight on an ascending construction elevator that ends with Richter’s arms being severed in half, before plummeting to his death.
Quaid yells out, “See you at the party, Richter!” I love how this line is a callback to a few scenes earlier when Cohaagen and Richter talk about some hot party at Cohaagen’s house they’re all going to. It’s the little details that elevate films.
Michael Ironside is another one of those actors who is incredible in every role he’s in, no matter how small or big. We’ll just have to give him a mulligan for Highlander II: The Quickening, as no one came out of that film looking good. But any time I see Ironside in a film or TV show, you know he’s going to deliver the goods.
I love how they make Sharon Stone’s honeypot character Richter’s girlfriend, getting ribbed by his co-henchman about Schwarzenegger boinking his lady. I don’t know, I love a world where someone like Ironside, with his male pattern baldness, can pull a piece of ass like Stone. But it may be the most unbelievable thing in the whole flick, which is saying something!
And just like Richter was involved in the scene that had my Favorite Line, he is also featured in my Favorite Scene, the first subway chase between him and Quaid. Verhoeven is not given enough credit for his expert staging and blocking of action scenes. You always know where you are, no nonsense fast cutting or any of that bullshit, just a skilled filmmaker bringing it.
I love the way this scene starts, in Schwarzenegger’s apartment, “clever girl,” and then spans the entire futuristic subway station (which is actually Mexico City’s subway in real life! Wild), from the dope body scanning tech, to Schwarzenegger using some poor commuter as a human shield in what may be the best use of squibs this side of Phil Joanou’s State of Grace.
The squib work in this film is insane. All culminating with Schwarzenegger escaping on one of the trains and Ironside letting out a frustrated scream of failure. It’s fantastic.
Eventually, Quaid gets his ass to Mars, only he’s dressed as a 200 pound woman in a yellow dress to evade Cohaagen and his men.
My Favorite Shot in the whole movie occurs here. The fat lady is trying to get through customs at the same time as Richter arrives on Mars, and she begins to short circuit after the customs official asks how long she’ll be staying.
She says, “Two weeks,” and then begins to uncontrollably repeat the phrase, “Two weeks,” (which is fucking amazing) but it becomes harder and harder for her to say it, until she starts wigging out, literally. The commotion arouses the suspicion of Richter, who seems to sense something is up with this woman beyond her apparent seizure like movements.
My Favorite Shot is the quick zoom in to her freaking out. Fucking love that kind of shit. Such a great moment when the wig falls off and the face is revealed to be an advance sort of mask to hide Quaid’s identity, that ends up doubling as a bomb, “Get ready for a surprise!” So good.
Unfortunately, the movie starts to lose steam once the Mars stuff gets going. Not bad by any means, but not as thrilling as the Earth bound shit. The best thing about Mars is Cohaagen and Kuato. I know some people like the chick with three tits, and Thumbelina and all that shit, but the mutant stuff to me feels cheap, as do the underground sets. There’s just something a little too contained about Venusville and other Mars locales.
I like the stuff where there’s rooms with giant windows looking out over the Martian landscape. But the stuff with Benny the cab driver and the “resistance” or whatever the mutants call themselves, is whatever. Kinda flat.
But because this movie is great, we still get some standout scenes, like the aforementioned killing of Stone by Schwarzenegger, after they bring in Rekall’s spokesman, played by the great Roy Brocksmith in another fantastic little scene that makes us question what we’re seeing.
Brocksmith has a great monologue here. Totally nails this miniscule part and is insanely memorable for it. Love this guy. The way the scene plays out, with the sweat drip down the face being the tell, is so good. I love the headshot and the way Brocksmith’s cheeks kind of quiver as he falls back, dead. Great shit.
Same for Marshall Bell, who it is revealed is a mutant who “houses” the mutant leader, Kuato, inside his body. Kuato is an amazing creation, back when make-up, prosthetics and practical effects ruled the day.
Kuato is creepy looking as all hell, his small body jutting out of Bell’s stomach. When he speaks you’re expecting some ungodly croak but he speaks with a soft, proper, calm voice.
Favorite bit is when Quaid takes Kuato’s hands and Kuato does that little shiver.
So good.
The last great scene has nearly all our leads together, back in the memory lab or whatever, Quaid and Melina have been taken prisoner and locked into the chairs that will restore Hauser’s mind and permanently wipe Melina’s, turning her into Hauser’s honey. Cohaagen and Richter are delicious here. But Schwarzenegger as Hauser on the video monitor, when he reveals his villainy, takes the cake.
A real shame that outside of the first Terminator, Arnie never played bad guys. He is SO GOOD as Hauser in this brief clip. Real missed opportunity not having him essay more villains. And no, I’m not talking about him playing Mr. Freeze!
Some of the best gore in the film takes place in this scene after Quaid breaks loose and starts impaling the doctors with their own instruments. It’s brutal, and again, no CGI bullshit (though this film DID push the envelope for early CG use). A real lost art.
Take the scene where Quaid has to remove the sensor in his brain by yanking it through his nose. They built a lifelike full size replica of Schwarzenegger’s head and it looks fantastic!
Rob Bottin is one of the greatest artists who has ever lived, and his work on this film will stand the test of time.
The movie ends with a blue sky on Mars for the first time, just as predicted by the Rekall tech, and the film fades to white, denoting the end of the dream, or memory.
Remember, he’s been in the Rekall chair since the beginning of the film, not just when we see him go to Rekall, so this ending jives with my interpretation that the whole thing is in his head.
Such a great movie.
The One Sheet
The poster for Total Recall is not bad, but not great. You got one half of Schwarzenegger’s head dominating most of the poster, with some Mars imagery on the side and a decidedly “whatever” tagline. Nothing about this poster really tells you much about the film, but seeing Schwarzenegger in a Paul Verhoeven film is enough to whet one’s appetite.
This preview poster is nice. I like the mystery of the image, and the tagline is great. Fantastic preview poster that understands the purpose of a preview poster. Interesting that they don’t even include Arnie’s name on here. I wonder if this was created before he came on board…
These two foreign posters are interesting. Not great, but at least they’re illustrated, and the second one gives you a taste of the exploits contained therein. I’m a sucker for a good illustrated poster.
And that does it for the 1ST 5 Minutes of Total Recall, one of the best sci-fi movies to ever come out of Hollywood. It’s certainly not evidenced in those 1ST 5, but there’s enough there for you to want to keep watching, and you’re instantly rewarded as the film ramps up.
A real high water mark for Schwarzenegger’s career, which would start to falter a mere 5 years later and never recover.
But don’t worry, Arnie, we’ll always have Mars…
See you in “two weeks…”