Sony Pictures has released the official synopsis for its upcoming re-adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s We Can Remember it for You Wholesale.
As you may recall, We Can Remember it for You Wholesale served as the inspiration for the first Total Recall film which starred Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sharon Stone.
To keep the audience in line, the new film is retaining the more recent title, but that’s about it, really.
Otherwise, as the synopsis indicates, the movie seems to have gone back to the original story for its inspiration.
“Total Recall is an action thriller about reality and memory, 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.”
This actually sounds a lot more like the original Dick story. And yes, the plot points themselves could be confused for a jacket synopsis of the original tale. Notably missing is any mention of going anywhere near Mars or having anything to do with aliens and terra-forming or whatever the end of the original Schwarzenegger film was supposed to be about.
Then again, the PR engine is just warning up for this one. Expect lots of posters and such to hit soon, and the first teasers and trailers to drop over the next couple weeks.
Total Recall, which stars Collin Farrel in the lead, plus Kate Beckinsale, Jessica Biel, Bryan Cranston, John Cho and Bill Nighy, will hit theaters August 3, 2012.
