Total recall (2012)

Spent a whole hot,summer day lounging around and moving from bed to sofa,sleeping,reading and drinking cool drinks. 

Than in the evening got idea to leave the house - suffocating inside - and decided to walk some 30 minutes to first local cinema which turned out to be Arena Imax - huge shopping mall with a cinema - the walk was actually more pleasurable than choice of the movies offered there,usual obnoxious blockbusters for adolescents so what to do,what to do, but see new version of "Total recall".

I clearly remember seeing the movie poster somewhere (London? Amsterdam?) and thinking "this is something bombastic,definitely not my kind of movie" and sure I was right. more than ever now i am sure this is not the type of movies I should waste any time on since I am not enjoying them at all. Its probably best described as hi-energy Sci-Fi movie with lots of special effects,car races, explosions, characters swept away in something resembling the story and one is leaving the cinema completely empty and uninspired. I mean, there is nothing to think about on your way home the way good movies inspire you to think about them and fantasize about yourself in a movie - this is just one huge special effect,visually impressive yes but it does makes me wonder where are we going and whatever happened to real art of cinema with good script and acting that shakes you deep into the bone?

I don't really remember the first "Total recall" with Schwarzenegger and its very possibly I have not seen that one as he would not be my choice of actors whose work I need to see. Here the story is newly refurnished with current special effects and current movie stars - Colin Farrel (good guy) and Kate Beckinsale (bad girl) with surprising turn of really good actor (Bill Nighy) in a usual 3 minute cameo (and probably highly paid). It's all apocalyptic and set in the grey future where lowly workers travel from one side of the world in another in specially designed tunnels and the main character (Farrel) have occasional nightmares about his other life that turns out to have been reality - he was highly skilled special agent who can help the world and save the humanity no less,if only he can remember who he was. Its all one huge special effect after the other and sure there are some adolescents who find this very exciting but I am too old for this kind of entertainment and have seen way too many movies so its nothing new for me - besides occasional good visual gimmick like unusual panoramic overview of apocalyptic city here - at the end its all one big explosion (what a surprise!) and fire everywhere, it really saddens me that this is what movie directors are doing these days and worse of all,this is what audience obviously wants. It really makes me wonder are Farrel and Beckinsale proud of the work they are doing? Its a movie equivalent of fast food and equally forgettable. I mean people,come on, check out something like "Nights of Cabiria" from 1954. that would stir up your brain and make you feel for the main characters, something you will actually remember.