Total Recall (UK)

Douglas Quaid keeps having nightmares about journeys to Mars and eventually decides to visit Rekall, a company which specialise in virtual holidays. Quaid pays for a 2 week holiday to Mars. Unfortunately, something goes wrong in the programming and he now believes that he is a secret agent who is on the run from Vilos Cohaagen, who controls Mars.
Quaid decides to visit Mars and meets up with his former lover, Melina. With the help of a bunch of rebellious mutants, they attempt to end Cohaagen`s rule and unlock the secrets deep inside the planet`s core.

Total Recall is one of the best sci-fi action films ever and has hardly dated after 11 years. Although the plot can be confusing at times. it is still great fun.

The film is presented in its original 1.85:1 ratio and it looks great. Reds are handled extremly well and there are no digital artifacts and minimal grain or sparkle. However, flesh tones do look a little dull but that`s probably due to the film`s age.

The sound is Dolby Digital 5.1 and its pretty good. Most of the sound is front orientated but there are occasional surround effects. Gunfire, explosions and rumbles all come across very well. Could have had a DTS mix though.

The extras are an improvement on previous releases but not by much. There is the teaser trailer which is presented in fullscreen and lasts 59 seconds. The picture quality is not very good. The main trailer is presented in widescreen and lasts 2 minutes. The picture is better than the teaser trailer.
We also get a 7 minute making of featurette which has some interviews, behind the scenes footage and concept artwork.
It could have been longer though. Finally, there is also a mini easter egg. Highlight the trailer and press left. You will then see a small TV screen. Click on it and you will get the full Rekall ad from the film. This lasts 49 seconds.

The menus are excellent. They have video clips from the film and Jerry Goldsmith`s score in the background. The sub-menus are also animated and are good too. In fact, the sound bursts into life whenever you make a choice.

Overall, this is a fantasic film which everyone should see. The disc is pretty good and does justice to the film. However, more extras could have been included. A longer featurette exists which was released on video and lasted 23 minutes. To be fair though, the featurette on the disc has material not on the longer version including concept art, some behind the scenes footage and an interview with Ron Shusett who also co-wrote Alien. A commentary from Paul Verhoeven would have been nice as well as a photo gallery or even some raw behind the scenes footage. Still, the DVD is good value for money and this is the best version currently available.

a favorite film with loads of action and story. arnold plays a man who can`t remember so goes back to the planet to see if he can remember who he is. a bit dificult to folow but it keeps me watching. quit good efects

not a lot else to watch on this dvd