Total Recall - C

Rated PG-13, 121 minutes

Outside of impressive visuals, "Total Recall" isn't that memorable

Colin Farrell

Some people say I look like Colin Farrell. I had to start with that attention grabber for Farrell's new movie, "Total Recall," the remake of the 1990 Arnold Schwarzenegger science fiction film given how weak the new film is. The sublime visuals are the best thing about an otherwise vacuous, insipid film that takes itself far more seriously, lacking the wry originality and distinctiveness of the 1990 film. Based on the 1966 short story "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale," it's set in 2084 following World War III when Earth is divided into two superpowers, powerful The United Federation of Britain (UFB) and the lowly but strong The Colony (i.e. the resistance), who are locked in a battle for Earth. Colony resident Doug Quaid (Farrell) is a factory worker suffering from violent nightmares. To learn more about these nightmares, Quaid visits Rekall, a corporation that provides its clients with implanted artificial memories of desired lives. In the process he discovers his life isn't what it truly is and he could be a secret agent. He is now on the run from the UFB and the lady (Kate Beckinsale) he thought was his wife. He joins forces with resistance leader Melina (Jessica Biel) while he tries to unravel the secrets of his own mind while preventing UFB special forces led by the ruthless Vilos Cohaagen (Bryan Cranston) in taking over The Colony. "Total Recall" is a fast-paced, entertaining film filled with some stunning visuals but with a murky, predictable storyline that lacks the ingenuity of the 1990 Schwarzenegger film. The earnest, heavy-handed plotting has far more political overtones with an East-vs.-West/bourgeois-vs.-proletariat message, making this version quite different than the earlier film. "Total Recall" stumbles in large due to the fact that director Len Wiseman, who's handled the "Underworld" films with wife Beckinsale, is likely the wrong person for this project. His visual flair is evident in the colorful production design and special effects but the characters and story lack development, though as usual, Beckinsale is totally hot in a vastly underwritten role. She and character actor Cranston, of TV's "Breaking Bad," are much more interesting than the bland leads in Farrell and Biel, who do very little outside of shoot and run; the film stumbles especially in its final, predictable act, when explosions take center stage and you have an idea of how it'll end. While forgettable, enjoyable entertainment, "Total Recall" is a late-summer, big-budget disappointment.