Sony have released a first official synopsis for their forthcoming Total Recall remake, and despite the confirmation that Mars will not feature in this version of the story, it still doesn’t sound like much of a departure from the original.
“ Total Recall is an action thriller about reality and memory,” begins the blurb, “inspired anew by the famous short story We Can Remember It For You Wholesale by Philip K. Dick. Welcome to Rekall, the company that can turn your dreams into real memories.”
“For a factory worker named Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell), even though he’s got a beautiful wife (Kate Beckinsale) who he loves, the mind-trip sounds like the perfect vacation from his frustrating life – real memories of life as a super-spy might be just what he needs. But when the procedure goes horribly wrong, Quaid becomes a hunted man.”
“Finding himself on the run from the police – controlled by Chancellor Cohaagen (Bryan Cranston), the leader of the free world – Quaid teams up with a rebel fighter (Jessica Biel) to find the head of the underground resistance (Bill Nighy) and stop Cohaagen. The line between fantasy and reality gets blurred and the fate of his world hangs in the balance as Quaid discovers his true identity, his true love, and his true fate.”
So there you have it, then. Directed by Underworld: Evolution ’s Len Wiseman, it sounds as though this Farrell-starring version of the story will still be an entertaining sci-fi thriller. However, we can’t envisage watching it without pining for Arnie at his gurning, dialogue-mangling best.
Total Recall opens in the UK on 22 August 2012.
