Total Recall - Extendet Director`s Cut - Blu-Ray

Movie: Director Paul Verhoeven staged a genuine cult hit in 1990 with his film adaptation of cult author Philip K. Dick`s short story We Can Remember it For You Wholesale. The Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle Total Recall was not only characterized by brutality exaggerated to the point of absurdity, but also by plenty of irony and bitter sarcasm. Although Schwarzenegger's acting and the somewhat dated effects make the film considered trashy by some today, the sci-fi hit, which was banned in uncut form in Germany until recently, is a far more profoundly fun film than it might seem on the surface. That's why the announcement that Underworld director Len Wiseman would direct a remake didn't really bode well at first.

Because Wiseman dispenses with the very elements that made Total Recall a cult: its over-the-top scenes of violence and its biting irony. The story, on the other hand, remains the same in its basic structure: after large parts of the earth have been rendered uninhabitable by the use of nuclear weapons, people live in only two places: the United Federation of Britain and in the former Australia, now just called the Colony. This is where the common workers live, transported day by day through a vast tunnel system to their jobs in what used to be England. One of these workers is Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell), who is really only saved by his love for his wife Lori (Kate Beckinsale) through the dreary daily routine. But one day Quaid makes a decision that will completely disrupt his life: he wants to join Rekall, a company that promises its customers the perfect memories, on an adventurous mind trip that brings adventure and spice into his life in a way that is actually harmless. But just before his desired memory of a life as a secret agent can be implanted, Rekall is suddenly stormed by the police - and Quaid becomes the hunted. He suddenly has abilities that are completely foreign to him, and everything that seems to be reality to him he is forced to question. But is the whole thing perhaps only a part of the mind trip. Is he perhaps still in the chair with Rekall, just reliving a real-life dream? Or is he really a key figure in a battle that could decide the fate of the entire world?

Unlike Verhoeven's film, Len Wiseman's version of Total Recall is not set on Mars, but entirely on Earth. As a result, there are no mutants here - apart from the legendary three-breasted prostitute who also makes an appearance. But those aren't the only differences Wiseman wants to use to set himself apart from the popular original. Not only does he avoid almost any form of humor, but his depiction of violence is much tamer than Verhoeven's adaptation of the short story. Of course, this robbed the film of some of its fun potential. But this 2012 version still manages to work well in its own unique way.

This is due in part, of course, to the technically first-rate visuals. Adorned with various borrowings from other genre representatives, from Verhoeven's original to Spielberg's Minority Report to Ridley Scott's Blade Runner, this gritty vision of the future consistently manages to intrigue the viewer and even evoke a little wonder here and there. Sure, the whole thing is not revolutionary. But thanks to some very original details, it's just fun to dive into this future world.

On the other hand, this reinterpretation of history also works, as Farrell makes up for the lack of irony of Schwarzenegger's role with a more crafted performance. Although effects and action dominate the proceedings, Colin Farrell doesn't let them completely upstage him, instead giving a very convincing performance as the man in search of total memory in both the physical and more dramatic moments. The real star of the film, however, is Wiseman's wife Kate Beckinsale, who delivers a performance as Quaid's hard-hitting wife that is not just visually worth watching. Beckinsale obviously had great fun playing a real villain for once, which, however, has the consequence that Jessica Biel remains completely pale next to her.

With some nice allusions to the current economic and political world politics and the then, nevertheless, slightly satirical decision to call Australia, of all places, a colony and Britain the actual ruling empire, Total Recall can then also convince in terms of content despite some rather shallow dialogues and predictable plot twists. And for all these reasons, one should try not to compare this version too much to Verhoeven's film. True, this is nearly impossible in some scenes that are clearly based on the 1990 film. But overall, Wiseman's version can please with its very own tone. If you're expecting a pure and completely over-the-top fun movie like the original, you'll definitely be disappointed. But if you just expect solid sci-fi action with high show and entertainment value, you'll be well served here. Worth seeing!

The Extendet Director`s Cut: The Blu-Ray has in addition to the theatrical version also the almost 20 minutes longer Director`s Cut to offer, which in addition to numerous new and extended moments also a minimal alternative ending and an eliminated plot line about the fact that Hauser has also changed his appearance, offers. A little more action, some additional special effects and some extended dialogue scenes definitely make this version the better version of the film, despite minor lengths.

Picture + Sound: Technically, the Blu-ray is on quite a high level. The very clean picture provides a coherent atmosphere with its colour scheme dominated by grey and green tones and also pleases with an engaging picture depth and very good detail presentation. The sound, which is available in German as a TrueHD mix, provides almost the entire film with smaller and larger sound effects and rich bass for powerful movement in the surround area. Very good!

Extras: In addition to the Director`s Cut, there are other extras included on the two Blu-ray discs. On the Film Disc there is an entertaining audio commentary by director Len Wiseman on the Director`s Cut, in which the filmmaker discusses not only the making of the film, but also very specifically the extended sequences of this version of the film. He also tells some interesting stories from his professional career, such as his time as a set designer for Men in Black 1. There is no commentary on the theatrical version, but there is a special behind-the-scenes mode. If this is selected, there is always additional information on individual scenes in the form of a picture-in-picture commentary with interviews and footage from the shooting. This extends the running time of the film in this mode to just under 137 minutes. Finally, the film disc has trailers to offer.

Continues on the bonus disc with a rather amusing gag reel (approx. 8 min.), a short documentary on the blending of science fiction and science fact (approx. 9 min.), and a brief look at the design of the elevator (approx. 3 min.). Seven other short features take a look at the action in the film (approx. 20 min.), then five pre-visualization sequences (approx. 26 min.) round out the bonus offerings on this second disc.

Conclusion: Total Recall is good sci-fi popcorn entertainment that comes across as considerably tamer, both dramaturgically and in terms of its depiction of violence, than Paul Verhoeven's 1990 film version, but makes up for this shortcoming with good special effects, fast-paced action and other show-stopping features. The Blu-Ray offers an almost 20 minutes longer director's cut, which is a bit more rounded in terms of content and is therefore preferable to the theatrical version. The technically very good implementation and the decent bonus material are other good reasons to grab this double disc. Recommendable

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp