A remake of the 1990 Schwarzenegger star vehicle, the more contemporary telling is a high-energy, sci-fi visual feast as a dystopian future has left the Colony a source for workers and minerals for the all-powerful United Federation of Britain on the other side of the planet.
Living in the Colony with a secure job and wife Lori (Kate Beckinsale) a member of the security police, Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell) decides to indulge in an espionage adventure virtual vacation. But things go awry as unexplained events and memories are triggered. He becomes a person of interest to the security police – with an obsessed Lori leading the search for him and the headquarters of the resistance movement headed by Matthias (Bill Nighy).
Fast-paced chock full of thrills, director Len Wiseman choses not to dwell, rarely taking breath as Quaid discovers more about himself and his past as the tyrannical Chancellor Cohaagen (Bryan Cranston) makes plans to invade the Colony. It’s engaging enough as a big, loud romp – nothing more, nothing less.
Rating: 50%
Director: Len Wiseman (Live Free or Die Hard, Underworld)
Writer: Kurt Wimmer (Salt, The Recruit), Mark Bomback (Live Free or Die Hard, The Wolverine) – based on the 1990 film
Main cast: Colin Farrell (In Bruges, The Lobster), Kate Beckinsale (Underworld, Love & Friendship), Jessica Biel (Hitchcock, Elizabethtown), Bryan Cranston (Argo, Trumbo)
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