Total Recall

R

Released Jun 1, 1990

1 hr. 49 min.

Sci-Fi

Action

List

82%

76 Reviews

Tomatometer

79%

100,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Douglas Quaid (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is a bored construction worker in the year 2084 who dreams of visiting the colonized Mars. He visits "Rekall," a company that plants false memories into people's brains, in order to experience the thrill of Mars without having to travel there. But something goes wrong during the procedure; Quaid discovers that his entire life is actually a false memory and that the people who implanted it in his head now want him dead.

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Critics Consensus

Under Paul Verhoeven's frenetic direction, Total Recall is a fast-paced rush of violence, gore, and humor that never slacks.

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Vladimir D

A timeless classic. It's not perfect as far as Arnold goes, that goes to flicks like Terminator 2 and the like.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

04/11/24

Full Review

Miroljub D

Thriller sci-fi done right. Still a romp decades later.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

04/11/24

Full Review

Audience Member

Arnold shines again in this creative, fun sci-fi, action flick along with some humor and cool one-liners the filmmakers put together a complex plot that actually makes Mars look habitable there is always a catch when living in the future though there's so many numerous story twists and even cramming in wacky special effects and of course it lays very thick on the blood and violence Stone's cool, Ironside is cool and the pacing is relentless the whole way through it's pretty good especially for the genre itself

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

04/04/24

Full Review

Arliss F

An all-time fiction classic. Incredible effects for the time, we're talking about 1990. I don't understand anyone criticizing the film.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/12/24

Full Review

Ben S

A fun sci-fi with coming of age visuals, and a twisty story, I'd say it's alright, it's popular amongst gen x and maybe gen y, so you might want to check it out.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/03/24

Full Review

Alec C

Prepare yourself for an extroadinary mission to Mars, or is this all just a dream? Douglas Quaid attempts to have memories implanted in his mind, only to learn that his reality is a fiction that was created to stop him from saving Mars, or is it? This film manages to give us pulpy action while keeping us in the dark if everything that's happening is realty or fiction!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/27/24

Full Review

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Paul Verhoeven

Director

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Douglas Quaid

Rachel Ticotin

Melina

Sharon Stone

Lori

Ronny Cox

Vilos Cohaagen

Michael Ironside

Richter

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Kevin Maher

Times (UK)

Forget about the disposable Colin Farrell remake from 2012.

Rated: 5/5

Nov 20, 2020

Full Review

David Robinson

Times (UK)

The film's visual invention is offset by its visceral nastiness. Schwarzenegger's self-deprecatory good humour prevails none the less.

Jun 23, 2020

Full Review

Nigel Andrews

Financial Times

Suffice it that machines crackle, futureworlds whirl and beings human and animal metamorphose before our eyes. Sci-fl addicts, see and enjoy. Everyone else may await, though not over-eagerly, the video.

Jun 23, 2020

Full Review

Terry Francis

Southern Voice (Atlanta)

Undoubtedly the film will make millions, but Schwarzenegger still can't act worth a damn and neither he nor anyone associated with the film can ever buy what they don't have -- it's called class.

Rated: 1/4

May 9, 2023

Full Review

Rene Jordan

El Nuevo Herald (Miami)

There is no need to dress it up in order to have fun. [Full review in Spanish]

Oct 28, 2022

Full Review

Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

A joyful contradiction to be embraced for its raw sensory energy and momentum, but savored for its unpredictably complicated Dickian themes exploring the nature of identity, fantasies, and reality.

Rated: 4/4

Oct 3, 2022

Full Review

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Synopsis

Douglas Quaid (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is a bored construction worker in the year 2084 who dreams of visiting the colonized Mars. He visits "Rekall," a company that plants false memories into people's brains, in order to experience the thrill of Mars without having to travel there. But something goes wrong during the procedure; Quaid discovers that his entire life is actually a false memory and that the people who implanted it in his head now want him dead.

Director: Paul Verhoeven
Executive Producer: Andrew G. Vajna, Mario Kassar
Screenwriter: Ronald Shusett, Dan O'Bannon, Philip K. Dick, Jon Povill, Gary Goldman
Distributor: Image Entertainment Inc., Live Video, TriStar Pictures, Artisan Entertainment
Production Co: TriStar Pictures, Carolco Pictures Inc.
Rating: R
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 1, 1990, Original
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Oct 10, 2020
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 26, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $117.8M
Sound Mix: Surround, Magnetic Stereo 6 Track, Dolby SR, Stereo
Aspect Ratio: 35mm

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