Total Recall: Gofobo Goes To The Press Junket
"I wanted to evaluate the concept of original and what it meant to me while doing this. I think (the word) original more and more is the presentation, rather than the thing itself. Being a remake doesn't automatically make a film bad. I'm sorry it just doesn't. It's impossible. I have done films that lack the originality that's in this remake and they were actual original films."
When you hear Colin Farrell speak about his latest role in Total Recall, you realize that he's not being defensive towards questions that compare and contrast this incarnation with the 1990 Paul Verhoeven classic. Perhaps it's the raspy yet keen Irish accent dictating his words that allows for such a statement to stand out more than others. But despite his rapid-fire delivery, he's really just being honest. Out this Friday, the Len Wiseman ('Underworld', 'Live Free or Die Hard') directed film leans closer to the 1966 Philip K. Dick short story, "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale," than the campy yet beloved version starring a young Arnold Schwarzenegger. Wiseman's version is built upon a darker tone, in a much larger scale with characters that ditch the notable one-liners and aim for answers only to be met with more confusion. The movie also unravels in a world that's far enough in the future to visually impress, with an array of enviable gadgets and modes of transportation.
Douglas Quaid (Farrell) is living a comfortable blue-collar life with his beautiful wife Lori (Kate Beckinsale) and modest accommodations. Haunted by nightmares of a life more dangerous but seemingly more exciting than his own, he's introduced to a company that promises happiness and fulfillment through the implementation of artificial memories. When Quaid finally decides to give Rekall a try, enormous secrets from his past become uncovered, leaving reality and fantasy violently intertwined. Now on the run from those he once trusted as well as the police - led by the corrupt chancellor Cohaagen (Bryan Cranston) - Quaid teams with a mysterious but familiar rebel named Melina (Jessica Biel) to rediscover the truth that lies within himself, his actions and the importance of his relationship with her.
"I had absolutely no intention of replacing Arnold," confessed Wiseman. "The script had a completely different direction, tone and a chance to do a very different kind of Quaid." The immediate change came with the casting of Colin Farrell, whom Wiseman not only respected as an actor, but felt symbolized the everyman theme that was prevalent in the short story, but not necessarily in the original film. While Schwarzenegger’s presence in the original immediately cemented the possibility of strength and adventure, Farrell's well-sculpted physique is counterbalanced with complex layers of his character's confusion and vulnerability. With such an extensive body of work in both independent and big budget films, the actor found himself attached to the remake out of pure appreciation for the script. "With Fright Night I had a whole ego thing. 'Remake? Oh that's so uncool. I loved the original'. Then I read (the script) and that was really different and good," Farrell laughed. "Then (with Total Recall) thought, 'Oh two remakes. Oh Jesus, uncool squared. But then I read the script and the same thing happened".
The casting of Wiseman's wife, Kate Beckinsale, also allowed for the director's physical expectations to be immediately met. When scheduling for the last Underworld film got pushed, it allowed Beckinsale just a few days to transition from playing a hero slaying werewolves to inhabiting a hunter on the wrong side of the law. Despite spending the better part of the last decade filming her fair share of action sequences, Beckinsale insists she's not as comfortable as people always assume. "I still feel like the person that shouldn't be doing this and everyone is acting around me as if I'm a bad ass all the time!" she joked. The actress also expressed excitement about her character's duality throughout the movie. "All the most twisted people feel justified and it is fun to open up the crazy," she said. "I think it's also mandatory for English people to play a villain in an American movie".
On the opposing corner of Beckinsale's turn as loving-wife-turned-ruthless-killer, Wiseman cast Jessica Biel to help Quaid find his way back to their shared reality. While more than capable of holding her own against Beckinsale culminating in an intense elevator showdown, she found the on-screen chemistry with Farrell to be worth the re-examining of Total Recall. "Len cares about characters, relationships and this love story that we try to infuse on this wild ride," she explained. "(Quaid) doesn't remember that they love each other, that they are passionately connected. That's what interested me".
Rounding out the extremely attractive cast is Breaking Bad's Bryan Cranston. For the 3-time Emmy Award winner, accepting the role of the crooked antagonist Cohaagen was simple. "It's always about the writing first," he passionately explained. "Story first, then the character. Then I look at the people involved, how passionate are they? Then we have a fighting chance to make a good production."
As the story twists, turns and makes you question the idea of memories, don't be alarmed if you're having a difficult time distinguishing truth from fiction as it plays out on screen. Even one of its stars admitted to a misunderstanding or two during production.
"Are we confusing everybody? We were confused constantly," confessed Jessica Biel. "Luckily Len figured it all out."
Total Recall will be unleashed Friday, August 3rd.
When you hear Colin Farrell speak about his latest role in Total Recall, you realize that he's not being defensive towards questions that compare and contrast this incarnation with the 1990 Paul Verhoeven classic. Perhaps it's the raspy yet keen Irish accent dictating his words that allows for such a statement to stand out more than others. But despite his rapid-fire delivery, he's really just being honest. Out this Friday, the Len Wiseman ('Underworld', 'Live Free or Die Hard') directed film leans closer to the 1966 Philip K. Dick short story, "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale," than the campy yet beloved version starring a young Arnold Schwarzenegger. Wiseman's version is built upon a darker tone, in a much larger scale with characters that ditch the notable one-liners and aim for answers only to be met with more confusion. The movie also unravels in a world that's far enough in the future to visually impress, with an array of enviable gadgets and modes of transportation.
Douglas Quaid (Farrell) is living a comfortable blue-collar life with his beautiful wife Lori (Kate Beckinsale) and modest accommodations. Haunted by nightmares of a life more dangerous but seemingly more exciting than his own, he's introduced to a company that promises happiness and fulfillment through the implementation of artificial memories. When Quaid finally decides to give Rekall a try, enormous secrets from his past become uncovered, leaving reality and fantasy violently intertwined. Now on the run from those he once trusted as well as the police - led by the corrupt chancellor Cohaagen (Bryan Cranston) - Quaid teams with a mysterious but familiar rebel named Melina (Jessica Biel) to rediscover the truth that lies within himself, his actions and the importance of his relationship with her.
"I had absolutely no intention of replacing Arnold," confessed Wiseman. "The script had a completely different direction, tone and a chance to do a very different kind of Quaid." The immediate change came with the casting of Colin Farrell, whom Wiseman not only respected as an actor, but felt symbolized the everyman theme that was prevalent in the short story, but not necessarily in the original film. While Schwarzenegger’s presence in the original immediately cemented the possibility of strength and adventure, Farrell's well-sculpted physique is counterbalanced with complex layers of his character's confusion and vulnerability. With such an extensive body of work in both independent and big budget films, the actor found himself attached to the remake out of pure appreciation for the script. "With Fright Night I had a whole ego thing. 'Remake? Oh that's so uncool. I loved the original'. Then I read (the script) and that was really different and good," Farrell laughed. "Then (with Total Recall) thought, 'Oh two remakes. Oh Jesus, uncool squared. But then I read the script and the same thing happened".
The casting of Wiseman's wife, Kate Beckinsale, also allowed for the director's physical expectations to be immediately met. When scheduling for the last Underworld film got pushed, it allowed Beckinsale just a few days to transition from playing a hero slaying werewolves to inhabiting a hunter on the wrong side of the law. Despite spending the better part of the last decade filming her fair share of action sequences, Beckinsale insists she's not as comfortable as people always assume. "I still feel like the person that shouldn't be doing this and everyone is acting around me as if I'm a bad ass all the time!" she joked. The actress also expressed excitement about her character's duality throughout the movie. "All the most twisted people feel justified and it is fun to open up the crazy," she said. "I think it's also mandatory for English people to play a villain in an American movie".
On the opposing corner of Beckinsale's turn as loving-wife-turned-ruthless-killer, Wiseman cast Jessica Biel to help Quaid find his way back to their shared reality. While more than capable of holding her own against Beckinsale culminating in an intense elevator showdown, she found the on-screen chemistry with Farrell to be worth the re-examining of Total Recall. "Len cares about characters, relationships and this love story that we try to infuse on this wild ride," she explained. "(Quaid) doesn't remember that they love each other, that they are passionately connected. That's what interested me".
Rounding out the extremely attractive cast is Breaking Bad's Bryan Cranston. For the 3-time Emmy Award winner, accepting the role of the crooked antagonist Cohaagen was simple. "It's always about the writing first," he passionately explained. "Story first, then the character. Then I look at the people involved, how passionate are they? Then we have a fighting chance to make a good production."
As the story twists, turns and makes you question the idea of memories, don't be alarmed if you're having a difficult time distinguishing truth from fiction as it plays out on screen. Even one of its stars admitted to a misunderstanding or two during production.
"Are we confusing everybody? We were confused constantly," confessed Jessica Biel. "Luckily Len figured it all out."
Total Recall will be unleashed Friday, August 3rd.
Feed Source:
Gofobo Staff
Author:
Tristen Gacoscos
Date:
Array on
movie: Total Recall 2012