Total Recall = Not your regular Total Reboot
First of all, if you've seen the original Total Recall but haven't yet had a chance to see this one... Beware, thar be spoilers ahead matey. I'm going to highlight a few of the differences between the original and the remake, so I will more than likely end up including a spoiler or five.
So, onward, upward, and outward!
Outward, because I'm going to start with the most basic difference: Setting.
Original Total Recall: Earth has colonized Mars, and the Governor of Mars "Vilos Cohaagen" is engaged in an on-going conflict with another faction and there's a rumor of some Alien Artifact in the mines. The original film shifts between Earth and Mars.
New Total Recall: After a long biochemical war, almost all of Earth in uninhabitable being labeled the "No-Zone". The only places on Earth that are safe for human existence are The United Federation of Britain (Great Britain), and The Colony (Australia). The only travel between the two is a large vessel that drops through a huge hole in the ground, circles the Earth's core, reverses gravity internally, and resurfaces. This vessel is called 'The Fall' and transports workers from The Colony to the United Federation of Britain to work in the factories there. Like in the original 'Recall, one location is fairly safe but mostly populated by the wealthy and powerful (UFB) and the other is more like a giant slum (The Colony). The buildings in the colony don't just go up, the go OUT as well to accommodate more people.
Next Major difference: The Villians and Heroes, and DEAR GOD WHYYYY??? (Plot).
Original 'Recall: The main baddie is Vilos Cohaagen, Governor of Mars, and Richter - the husband of the woman pretending to be Quaid's wife and Cohaagen's right-hand man. The "Good Guys" are a resistance faction of "Mutants". Cohaagen wants to control the Alien Artifact, meanwhile the "Resistance" wants to improve life on Mars for everyone.
New 'Recall: The main baddie is still Vilos Cohaagen, but this time his right-hand-man is actually a woman. This time it's the woman posing as Quaid's wife. The plot to this one is a lot different, no alien artifacts, no colonization of Mars. Just plain 'ol human overpopulation. With the No-Zone being unsafe for humans, the UFB is running out of space so Chancellor Cohaagen of the UFB wants to take over the Colony to fix that problem.
Now, I could go on and on and on with the other differences, but the point here is to review the film, not give you a play-by-play. Though the setting looks like it was ripped right out of Blade Runner (understandably in my opinion as like Blade Runner, Total Recall is an adaptation of a Phillip K. Dick short and technology can only go in so many directions), the new 'Recall relies a bit too heavy on special effects and action sequences rather than being as much as a twisting, turning mindfuck that the original 'Recall managed. The original had some pretty damn impressive visuals for it's time, but also relied more on the actual story and used effect to enhance the storytelling -- not replace it.
That said, the Reboot of Recall is still a pretty damn good film. Ignore a lot of the negative reviews and press it's gotten, that's most likely due to the original having been a pretty solid Sci-Fi film of it's time. If the original hadn't been made, I guarantee the remake would have received far better press.
-Yearrghsworth
So, onward, upward, and outward!
Outward, because I'm going to start with the most basic difference: Setting.
Original Total Recall: Earth has colonized Mars, and the Governor of Mars "Vilos Cohaagen" is engaged in an on-going conflict with another faction and there's a rumor of some Alien Artifact in the mines. The original film shifts between Earth and Mars.
New Total Recall: After a long biochemical war, almost all of Earth in uninhabitable being labeled the "No-Zone". The only places on Earth that are safe for human existence are The United Federation of Britain (Great Britain), and The Colony (Australia). The only travel between the two is a large vessel that drops through a huge hole in the ground, circles the Earth's core, reverses gravity internally, and resurfaces. This vessel is called 'The Fall' and transports workers from The Colony to the United Federation of Britain to work in the factories there. Like in the original 'Recall, one location is fairly safe but mostly populated by the wealthy and powerful (UFB) and the other is more like a giant slum (The Colony). The buildings in the colony don't just go up, the go OUT as well to accommodate more people.
Next Major difference: The Villians and Heroes, and DEAR GOD WHYYYY??? (Plot).
Original 'Recall: The main baddie is Vilos Cohaagen, Governor of Mars, and Richter - the husband of the woman pretending to be Quaid's wife and Cohaagen's right-hand man. The "Good Guys" are a resistance faction of "Mutants". Cohaagen wants to control the Alien Artifact, meanwhile the "Resistance" wants to improve life on Mars for everyone.
New 'Recall: The main baddie is still Vilos Cohaagen, but this time his right-hand-man is actually a woman. This time it's the woman posing as Quaid's wife. The plot to this one is a lot different, no alien artifacts, no colonization of Mars. Just plain 'ol human overpopulation. With the No-Zone being unsafe for humans, the UFB is running out of space so Chancellor Cohaagen of the UFB wants to take over the Colony to fix that problem.
Now, I could go on and on and on with the other differences, but the point here is to review the film, not give you a play-by-play. Though the setting looks like it was ripped right out of Blade Runner (understandably in my opinion as like Blade Runner, Total Recall is an adaptation of a Phillip K. Dick short and technology can only go in so many directions), the new 'Recall relies a bit too heavy on special effects and action sequences rather than being as much as a twisting, turning mindfuck that the original 'Recall managed. The original had some pretty damn impressive visuals for it's time, but also relied more on the actual story and used effect to enhance the storytelling -- not replace it.
That said, the Reboot of Recall is still a pretty damn good film. Ignore a lot of the negative reviews and press it's gotten, that's most likely due to the original having been a pretty solid Sci-Fi film of it's time. If the original hadn't been made, I guarantee the remake would have received far better press.
-Yearrghsworth