I'm glad CZcams recommended you to me - these are great reviews. I was actually recommended to your 2001 review (which was also excellent) and thought I'd check if you'd done Total Recall. If you get the chance, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the Fifth Element 4k - I feel like it may not be the greatest 4k release, but I'd love to hear what you think. Thanks for doing these reviews!
Funnily enough Matthew I've been thinking about finally purchasing the 4K of The Fifth Element. That should make for a good review because... well, guess who has a 35mm print of that film? John.
John, I am running out of your videos to watch, having gone through almost all of them in two days. :-) How incredible that Total Recall was nearly a dud. The studio was not getting the word out and Arnold gave them a good talking-to, resulting in a much higher advertising budget, which resulted in a huge opening weekend. I was there and remember it like it was yesterday. The vibe was hot and when the film had not started on time a guy in the middle of the theater stood up and yelled out, "Let's start the ****ing movie!" The crowd roared with laughter and cheers and about one minute later the lights dipped and the film began. And what a film it was! Easily one of the most enjoyable sci-fi action films of all time, it will be remembered many more decades from now. The same cannot be said for the jaw droppingly bad remake. Like the terrible Robocop remake, it has been instantly forgotten. The 4K steelbook arrived a few days ago and it will be one of the first I view when I decide upon which 4K set to purchase later this month.
It's a cracking 4K. Might be one of the best but one or two scenes that fell foul of videos ability to deal with red I think. Probably shouldn't happen these days but the overall quality of that disc for around £25 to £30 is exceptional. Years ago something looking that good would have cost hundreds.
This movie is thought provoking and from the era when Arnold ruled the box office! Sci fi well done! Another one to add to the 4k list to buy. Thanks John and always look forward to your work!
Bear in mind there is one flaw that I spotted but didn't mention Gilbert. It's so minor I didn't think it was worth focusing on because I know how people can pick up on something and try to make a fuss. It's when the spaceship is landing on Mars - the red colours are so all-enveloping in that scene that it seems even 4K UHD can't cope with it (video has always struggled with reds) and if you look for it you will see some digital blocking. Other than that, it's like having the film on film. What a treat after all these years! We can now see why we liked the film so much back in 1990. John.
@@gilbertrios5283 I got The Shallows in the HMV 3 for £30 offer a while back and I was surprised how good it was. The best shark film since Jaws I think. I do actually mention it towards the end of one of my videos but don't ask me which cos' I'm getting old! John.
Could not agree with you more, Jerry Goldsmith was a brilliant, brilliant composer. Recently watched the original "Planet of the Apes" and his use of dissonance, percussion and orchestra is astonishing. He should have won an Oscar for that revolutionary score. Michael - SA
I think he only ever got two academy awards which seems hard to believe given his body of work. That chap John Williams must have kept getting in his way.
Goldsmith only won one Academy Award, for The Omen, very well deserved, but I agree, Planet of the Apes, Star Trek-The Motion Picture and Poltergeist were deserving of Oscar wins as well.
Another great 15 minutes John. I can remember seeing this when it was first released and I was stunned by the visuals and the Goldsmith score. The remake is a remake in name only!! Looking forward to the next one already.
Funnily enough Ged I have deliberately avoided the remake as I can't see how it would be possible to remake something that is of its time and so unbelievably good.
It wasn't unbearable, it was just grey and very mediocre. A shame considering the director debuted with the surprisingly good Underworld (vampires vs werewolves).
Yeah, the main hints that it may be all a dream are when he's at Recall, he chooses the secret agent dream and his choice of love interest looks Just like his the main female character and someone mentions "blue sky on Mars" which comes true at the end. Then someone later tells him he's still at Recall and by the end, even Arnie questions if it's real.. also at the very end of the credits, the sound effect of the technology is used, which people reckon might indicate that he's waking up. But it's completely open to interpretation.
You've read the film well which not everyone does. The fact that the camera fades to white at the end confirms to me he's waking up but for others it indicates he's having a schizoid embolism. As you say, open to interpretation which is something I tend to like at the conclusion to an entertaining film. John.
Absolutely love your channel and your in depth tech info- also loving the history behind the films and references to other films at the end we may be interested in too- brilliant stuff. Just fyi, Eagle Pictures in Italy have a collection of 4K titles called the 4kult Collection and have released several UK (StudioCanal) releases with better encodes with higher HDR bitrates- some people say they look a little better than the UK releases. Keep up the great work!
Thank you WestHam66. I hadn't heard of Eagle Pictures so I'll have to look them up. Strange that they're re-mastering and re-authoring discs because that will add a lot of time and money to an already finalized product but there must be a good reason for them to undertake all the extra work. Very interesting. John.
I believe the whole movie is indeed his spy vacation. If you look closely,when at the Recall clinic, he selects exactly the same woman that later is his love interest and he chooses a plot that involves 1 million year old alien artifact even showing a picture that is the same terraforming/atmosphere generation machine that later we get to see near the end of the movie.The assistant even says "that's a new one, blue skies on Mars". But it's really cool that's open to interpretation.
I had never really watched the film too closely prior to this 4K disc release and I spotted all that you've said when watching it for this review. I'd always thought it strange that he didn't wake up at the end of it so this time I was waiting for the ending to fade to white which it does. That can be interpreted as him waking up or the 'schizoid embolism' he's warned about within his dream. John.
I am a new subscriber to your channel. I don't think I have seen another channel like yours. I love your reviews and your love for the films really shows. Keep up the great work.
Thank you Kevin, it's good to have you with me. Film has been a part of my life for so long and it's been amazing to see this channel explode over the past few weeks. Nice to know so many people like the approach I've taken. John.
Visual effects for Total Recall were done primarily by Dream Quest Images. With additional shots done by ILM. All miniature photography, and live action plates where photographed in VistaVision.
I saw TR in the cinema in August 1990, it's the only old cinema ticket I retain today and the price was '£1.90'. It certainly was an impressive film, and to me it was a bit of an end of an era movie.
I didn't keep my admission ticket which is a shame as it was the Hammersmith Odeon but shortly thereafter I started to save them all. Maybe Total Recall was the beginning of an era freeatlast1963 because the following year was Terminator 2: Judgment Day and then a whole plethora of big budget action films. The Arnie era had truly arrived.
Funnily enough Tom, I had this set out yesterday as I wasn't to watch the extra feature on Carolco again. It's a beautiful steelbook and it might still be available. John.
Great, so far I have all the films you have reviewed, only trouble is all DVD, it would cost me thousands to update to 4K, I had previously updated about 50 to Blueray and prior to that about 30 I had on HD DVD. Cheers John.
Understand completely Geoff. Wait until something breaks or just needs replacing and take it gradually. It's really amazing that we are able to collect and watch these films on all these formats in the home. And DVD is often excellent quality anyway. John.
@@moviecollector5920 thanks for the quick reply John, I must add that my film collecting started around 80-81 ish, I jumped on the Sony Betamax bandwagon, then a decade later VHS and later still SVHS, broke my heart taking all my video cassettes to the charity shops, but space is always at a premium.
I Haven't seen this since I first saw it on the cinema in Florida back on july 1990, after seeing your review makes me want to watch it again, can't believe it's 31 years old already. Wow mind blowing
And I think it's even better today than it was in 1990. Possibly because the special effects are so otherwordly and we don't have creations like that today, just boring computer images for the most part. I think we have similar taste in films sin gin as we seem to be agreeing on just about all the films we discuss. John.
@@moviecollector5920 Yes, only subscribed the other day and getting through quite a few of your video's, I think what I like about them is you know so much background on what you're reviewing. Keep up yhe great work.
I love that you run your Reel Projector while viewing digital formats. Great review. I too have the Steelbook as I have the soundtrack on CD. Gonna be a while before I can watch 4K as I still have a Pioneer Kuro set up. When you compare the BD to the UHD, do they both go in the same player or do you have a 2K and 4K Rigg? Otherwise the 4K player or your display will upscale the 2K so you won't get a true BD representation. Likewise I'm glad you popped up in my feed. I watched your Alien 4K review last night, then had to watch the film.
Thank you Trevor. I did a video early on that compared 2K (i.e. Blu-ray) to 4K and you'll see on the thumbnail for that that I had two players sat one on top of the other. One is a standard Blu-ray player and the other is a UHD player. It didn't seem to make a perceptible difference to the final image on the screen. Perhaps that illustrates just how good Blu-ray discs really are. I certainly under appreciated them and it was only once I really started to take 4K seriously for this channel that I began to question what I was looking at so thoroughly. Even some of the DVDs taken from the new 4K masters are exceptional and I mention that in my recent review of J.J. Abrams best film 'Super 8'. But what makes the difference with 4K HD Blu-ray discs is the addition of HDR. It's HDR that is responsible for the perceptible superior image quality. It's not quite always the case but when it is it makes gives a video the more saturated filmic look that I've always dreamed of but never thought I'd see. Some of these 4K discs are just like watching a 35mm print and I can say that with some authority because I've directly compared them as in the Alien review you watched but even more so in The Fifth Element review. John.
@@moviecollector5920 Ah cool. I will sift through your videos when I get the time? 2 questions. If you have a 4K capable projector, unless it's set not to, I think it will upscale any image it receives to 4K. Otherwise you would get a small image in the middle of your screen. So even if you feed it a BD image from a BD player it will still get up scaled. I used to work in BD manufacturing as a QC tester. (Never did any 4K though) The only true way to do a 2K Vs 4K comparison, is on a true 2K and separate 4K set up. That will be why even DVDS of 4K master look so good. The information is all there. Just more compressed than the BD and UHD. Does that make sense?
@@trevorearis7512 That's a good reminder Trevor. Fortunately my Optoma UHD550X has a 4K input and a 2K input so I connected each player up respectively for that very reason. My opinion is that our tiny home screens mean that the difference between 2K and 4K is all but imperceptible and if it weren't for HDR there would be no point. And that's probably why they introduced HDR just on the newer 4K home movie format. John.
@@moviecollector5920 oh that's a cool option on your projector. Yes on my 50" TV, if I set my BD player to source direct, then there is a big wow difference from DVD 576i to BD 1080p. But I always say to people you only get the true benefits of 1080 resolution 50" and above. So 4K would more likely be 100" and above. So yes, that's why you won't see a perceivable difference. Also if the BD has the 4K mastered version on it you definitely won't get a perceivable as you are looking at the same content. So was the BD an original 2k and the UHD a new 4k? What size is your screen if you don't mind me asking?
@@trevorearis7512 First thing to say Trevor is that I've never really understood the diagonal measurements of televisions. I know it was to make people think they were buying something bigger than they really were years ago but I don't see the point of that any longer. I'm a film person so I just measure the width and in that regard the screen (which is actually the wall) is about seven feet wide. I do have a ten foot by six foot screen that we've had for 30 years but I only use that for film nowadays. That may change soon but we'll have to wait and see. I have blown 4K video up to see if an oversized image will show a perceptible difference to 2K but alas, zippo! I think we need to be thinking in terms of 20 feet wide to really compare and possibly even bigger than that. If this channel helps me to resurrect the British Film Collectors Conventions then we'll be able to test the theory on the convention's 24 foot wide 'Scope screen. If half the cinemas in the UK are getting away with 2K projectors then it's going to have to be a big screen to illustrate a definite difference. I don't think there's a telly that exists that could do it. John.
2:57 That's a problem they avoided when making the very first Star Wars film. But, shooting in Vista Vision was a very expensive process, and time consuming as you said. The ILM effects team who worked on Star Wars, were able to buy up Vista Vision cameras very cheaply from studios in the mid 1970s. They were happy to off load old cameras to young guys who looked foolish, in their opinion. But by the early '80s those cameras were like collector's items and most effects houses just could not justify the costs of buying them and all their periphals; 65mm editing machines, processing, etc. Meanwhile, ILM could afford to have Vista Vision cameras custom built for the Star Wars sequels in the '80s! I saw Total Recall at a Canon Cinema (formerly ABC) back in 1990 and still have the souvenier mag and copy of Cinefex I bought after. It is one of the last great "analogue" effects blockbuster movies to come out before Terminator 2 arrived in 1991. In terms of VFX, that movie changed everything!
@@moviecollector5920 BTW, I bought Total Recall on a bare bones DVD almost 20 years ago. Then a few years after Amazon was selling the US region 1 Special Edition in a round tin which looked like Mars. So I had to have that too! On that DVD is a great commentary with Arnie and Paul Verhoven. Is it included on the 4K version?
@@bobrew461 You've done it now Bob - yes it has got that commentary track which is accessed through the 'Extras' option of the menu. I had to put it on to check and now that it's on I'm going to have to bloody well watch it! Thank you! John.
just watched this movie today but only on blu ray,i was never a big fan of this title but i still think its entertaing and has a great music score. I really like your reviews and hope you will continue to make these great videos,hopefully one day in 4k.
The 4K of Total Recall is rather special Benjamin but I can't remember the Blu-ray in the pack. As for making review videos in 4K, there is nothing to be gained from that unless you're watching them on a cinema sized screen. I put a couple of them up in 4K recently and one of them was the BFI IMAX projection booth video. Finishing a video in 4K does necessitate approximately four times the quality and four times the time to compile and upload so it's not really viable to do them all. Most people don't understand any of this side of it but look at some 4K uploads and you'll see the quality is often crap compared to HD uploads and that comes down to the compilation Mb/s rate and the fact that most just use a phone or something similarly cheap to shoot with. Use a professional camcorder or cinecam and then you get HD quality far in excess of phone uploads. John.
@@moviecollector5920 well i watch your videos on a 65 oled and i think the videos on youtube do look best this way, but i didnt know it was more time consuming to upload it this way,anyway your videoes are much appreciated john.
@@benjaminjensen7834 They look better if they're uploaded in higher quality but the default that all video editors use is 10,000mb/s which is at best three times lower than required. But to look better in the first place they have to be shot on good kit and I suppose there are some capable phones out there but in general it's a waste of time doing anything 4K from a phone. If you can spot superior image quality on any of my uploads in 4K then it's just as likely to be the 40,000mb/s render as much as the increased resolution. Very little chance of spotting that on a telly without having two identical sets running identical compilations of the videos concurrently in both HD and 4K. I think the 4K upload of the IMAX TENET video is slightly better but if I'd have compiled an HD version at 40,000mb/s then I'm not sure that wouldn't look identical. There's a lot to it but no point in wasting time rendering and uploading in 4K if there's no perceptible difference. Let's face it a Blu-ray mastered from the same 4K master as a UHD disc has not perceptible difference other than HDR almost 100% of the time so that tells us everything we need to know. John.
I love total recall. I bought every disc release of this move, the dvd, the blue ray, the reissued 2nd edition blue ray with the re worked color, and the ultra HD blu ray, which I feel they finally got it right. The first blu ray was horrible, it looked just like the dvd. They finally got it right
It's a film that would have sold well on Super 8 Khalif if it could have been done. Maybe it's one I should look out for on 35mm but that would likely be prohibitively expensive nowadays. John.
@@darealestwon That's very kind of you to say so Khalif. I'm working on the next video right now and this one will be the recent 4K of Silent Running. So you can expect a little more Super 8 in that one too. John.
Great review I just got the US laserdisc release of this hoping to give it a spin soon he hopes. This has been on my radar to pick up. Glad to see it worth it.
Great video as always! From what I heard the Italian 4k-release of 'Total Recall' by '4Kult" has a better encoding with way more sharpness. If you ever get hold of this one please consider doing a comparison video.
The version we have available here is amazing itself and it's not particularly likely much more could be squeezed out of a 35mm negative but I'll be happy to be proved wrong. A fabulous disc and I can't quite believe I'm able to watch it in such great quality from a video. Amazing. John.
@@moviecollector5920 Just for the record: Here are three comparison screenshots (www.screenshotcomparison.com/comparison/11191/picture:0). I found the link in the blu-ray.com forum. From my point of view the Italian release does look sharper. But I guess that's only for the boys with the really big screens (like you ;-)) I am really out of the game with my 55 inch TV... Keep up the good work! Chris
@@The_Jazzman My screen (wall!) isn't actually that big Lanark - only seven feet and a couple of inches perhaps. I do have a ten foot roll down screen in the living room that we've had about thirty years but I've only ever used that for Super 8. It was made ten feet wide because the room it was originally built for was 10 feet 3 inches wide. It is quite impressive though. What I think I really need is at least 13 feet but preferably bigger then it would be easier to tell the difference between all these discs. The ten foot screen made Super 8 reviews for the magazines easy back in the day. I've just looked at the video on my smart TV and bear in mind the skewed trailer shots are the 35mm trailer so compare that to your 4K disc because it looks just about identical on my video projector. Could it be that HDR is not working as well on some displays? The Blu-ray was colourless by comparison on my setup. John.
Hello John, finally picked up Total Recall on 4K, arriving tomorrow, I remember well seeing it opening weekend at the Odeon in Darlington County Durham, the Cinema recently closed, it's a shame, lot's of fond childhood memories, even bought the soundtrack on cassette, also getting Red Heat on 4K, heard rave reviews on the transfer, watched the new 2022 restoration of Raw Deal the other day, granted it's not Schwarzenegger's best but it's a great transfer, for a film made in '86 it's got a 70's vibe.
I still have Raw Deal on VHS but have to admit that the film was never particularly good even if I watched it rather a lot back in those early VHS days. I have Red Heat on LaserDisc and I should really take another look at that as I can't actually recall how good the image quality is on it. But if the new 4K is good that's usually an indication that the original 35mm shoot was a good looker and therefore the subsequent video releases all would be too, particularly LaserDisc at the time. I've had the Total Recall VHS since very early on. It's actually a rental copy that was sold off in a bucket shop on Tottenham Court Road and it had survived the rental process really well. I got the DVD years later but even though I don't usually purchase the same film over and over again, I really liked Total Recall and couldn't resist getting a 4K copy when it was first announced. Some reviewers were overly critical of one sequence where you can spot a big of digital blocking but it wasn't particularly noticeable via our video projector and could only really be spotted on a telly. If that's the only problem with a video disc costing a few pounds then it's a darned fine video disc as far as I'm concerned. Some people will pick fault with anything. John.
@@jamessiddle7389 I saw it at the Hammersmith Odeon back then James. It was sold out across the West End for the first couple of weeks and my brother lived not far from the Hammersmith Odeon at the time so he suggested we all went there. It was strange to be seeing a film in the venue of so many great rock concerts. I didn't actually realize they still had film facilities there. So watching it at home here isn't quite the same as seeing it at the Hammersmith Odeon but it may actually be a little better. John.
I can't believe it's taken 30 years to get a good picture of Total Recall i've got 2 vhs copies, a dvd copy a 2 disc dvd steelbook and the blu ray i got 5 years ago but the 4k release is excellent and is one of my favourite films since i watched it at the cinema and i hope the keep it up because i had the same problem with the movie Predator but it looks much better also, great review.
Predator is another film I've had on Super 8 for about 30 years and it's one of the best prints that was ever struck. Total Recall never got a Super 8 outing so it's wonderful to have it in this quality on a video. John.
@@moviecollector5920 true. .. though he always seemed so full of energy. looking forward to your basic instinct 4k review when it comes out next year. btw, just subscribed. do die hard/alien/predator/labyrinth/matrix/skyfall/red sparrow 4k reviews, please. your tech talk about formats and old school filming and projection systems is fantastic, esp. cinemascope. stay safe.
I hope you like it Mr. Serrano. Mondo Chelloveck Movies recommended it and because I know he's a big Jaws fan I took the plunge(!!!) and was pleasantly surprised. John.
Another nice review. I picked this up myself to replace my old DVD steelbook. While the audio is a bit weak, the picture is superb, and like you say the steelbook is lovely. A great film given the physical release it deserves.
The audio is amazingly good through my system James so that's a little odd. Maybe the latest Atmos conversion wasn't too successful but in 5.1 it's reproducing better. Verrrrry strange.
Another great Phillip K Dick adaptation 'We Can Remember It for You Wholesale' being the title of the short story Happy to have found your reviews Thank you for your thoughts on all these great films 😊
Ah, someone else with the Mars edition, very cool! I actually had this one on VHS just after it came out, then the Mars DVD, then Blu-ray a few years back, and now the new 4K combo pack (which allowed me to pass on the Blu-ray to a friend). I am planning to keep my old Mars tin edition, though!
A shame they’ve never dug up the long lost footage of this one as they did with Robocop. The violence was apparently chopped down considerably for the “R” rating and has never been restored.
It's possible that to change it would spoil it Michael. Usually a film is cut to work best and quite often that means taking it out of the hands of the director at the last who has usually become too attached to it. I think it's a terrific film as it is but it would be interesting to see the excised scenes as outtakes. John.
per my previous comments, please also do a 4K review of Angel Heart (picture quality and bonus items), esp. please discuss/confirm the UK censored scenes. your site is special, as you talk about the filming techniques (camera systems/lenses) and exhibition formats, plus anecdotes about theaters, etc. i love the discussions on widescreen or cinemascope formats etc. this site reminds me of the friendly local cinema and its knowledgeable kind projectionist/film lover. more, please. as stated, just subbed.
I agree about the steelbook, it does look fabulous! Do you think you would be getting the Lord of the Rings or Hobbit sets? I preordered them as they were at the very top of my most wanted on uhd list, and Wow they look and sound absolutely outstanding, you can tell a huge amount of care and attention has gone into remastering them, they're a real treat to watch!
I did see 'Lord of the Rings' but didn't like it. That was at the Leicester Square Odeon but by then the excellent image quality we had been enjoying for years was declining. I didn't know why at the time but now we know it's down to all the low quality computer work. Hopefully they've gone back and re-rendered it all now so it looks better. But it did look very drab and a bit boring so I never saw any of the others. I did collect the trailers on Super 8 though and they look spectacular so one day maybe I'll get to view the complete films. We watched the 4K of 'Prince of Darkness' last night and finally a 4K that blows the Blu-ray away. I was very excited when the opening [daylight] sequences came on and it looked so damned good.
@@moviecollector5920 It does look vastly better than even the blu-rays, Weta/Wingnut and Peter Jackson went back to the original vfx film outputs and camera negatives and remastered them at 4K and tidied up the 2K CGI. The creature CGI does still look waxy and artificial in the earlier films compared to today's state-of-the-art but like all films the VFX are a product of their time and I think they don't detract from the films, I love them, Peter Jackson in an interview said that he has now regraded the entire 6 film collection so the Dolby Vision/HDR is consistent right through the six films, I think what they have accomplished is marvellous :) I haven't ever seen Prince of Darkness, or actually many of John Carpenters films except The Thing, Big Trouble, and Escape From New York, I will have to look out for it! :)
@@nick1635 The trailers on Super 8 in 'Scope look fabulous but because the first film was such a bore I don't think I'm going to be rushing to watch any of the sequels. Never say never though. If I do ever get to see them I may actually like them. But John Carpenter's films are from a different era and films you like as a youngster tend to have a lasting effect and what happened to me with Halloween, Escape From New York, The Thing and Starman was probably similar to your own experience with the Rings films. It's good to know the director has gone back to correct many of the failings of the films which should mean they look a lot less drab than the poor picture quality of first release which is an incentive I'll bear in mind.
@@moviecollector5920 I think the problem with the LOTR films may be the long CGI-heavy action scenes, which are now a staple of modern blockbusters, and which I find quite boring. I haven't seen LOTR for years, but I did watch the much-maligned Hobbit films recently and quite enjoyed them - except for the long gratuitous action scenes.
@@ThreadBomb I'm beginning to think that when or if the Rings films come down to a more affordable asking price I may give them a try. You are probably right about the long CGI sequences being the main reason I found the first film boring (never saw the other two as a result) because those 'Scope trailers on Super 8 are the complete opposite and make the films look really exciting. However, once bitten and all that so that's why I've never seen them.
Hi John, Great review, This has always been a brightly lit and good looking film on any format. I saw this film on release and being a big sci-fi fan really wanted to love it, unfortunately too much of the cheesy humour got in the way (yes I know it's Paul Verhoven). That said, the practical effects are brilliant and what better way to see them than on 4k. It's still miles better than the dreadful Farrell remake, Best line? "Consider that a divorce."
I wanted to use that 'Consider that a divorce' line in the review because it's on the Super 8 trailer but I thought I might be pushing the boundaries of what is permitted a little too far. I stuck with 'We hope you enjoyed the ride' in the end but whether or not I'll get copyright warned on that remains to be seen. An historic film in my opinion.
I had the 2012 blu ray for this. I saw this rerelease and it took me ages to find out what the blu ray quality was like in comparison to the 2012 version. All reviews were for the UHD. Anyway the blu ray is much better than the 2012 blu ray so very happy I got it. That steelbook looks great.
Yep, the Blu-ray is fabulous quality too. I'm so happy to be able to own this movie in such exceptional quality. It is how I used to feel when I'd spend hundreds of pounds on a new Super 8 feature that was fantastic quality... only this Total Recall steelbook didn't make me completely skint for months like a Super 8 feature always did. John.
There is one scene which others have stated is a bit dodgy and that's when the spaceship delivering Schwarzenegger's character arrives on Mars. There is some digital blocking here which I saw on my television but not on my video projector. Darker settings on the projector methinks. Other than that there's noticeable film grain in darker scenes and during optical effects but that's probably an accurate representation of how it was screened in 1990. When I watch 'Us' again in the future I think I'll enjoy it even more. Very scary for that first hour. 'Split' turned out to be another interesting film and last night it was the 4K of 'Prince of Darkness' which finally illustrated a substantial improvement on the 4K compared to the Blu-ray. An immediate, perceptible difference on that one.
@@moviecollector5920 I saw Total Recall at the cinema when it came out and have owned it in various formats. It's never been a film that I would have called out for optical excellence. Just a fun movie. No more or less.
@@Celestialrob That's a good summary Robert. All the reds caused a lot of colour bleed on VHS and probably laserdisc too but I never saw the laserdisc.
Movie scores are my primary go-to for music and have been since I was 10 years old and bought the score for "Jaws". Goldsmith is a genius and greatly missed.
Lately we've been playing the new ABBA album a lot but I too have a lot of LPs and CDs of movie soundtracks. Even have a few on cassette including the 1978 Halloween. There are many Jerry Goldsmith scores in my soundtrack collection but I never purchased Jaws and I wish I had have done even if just for the LP cover alone. John.
Great review. I just found your channel so will be subscribing. I'm curious, did you know any colour grading issues with the film? I noticed in some clips there is a distinct green hue in some scenes.
I didn't notice them on this one but it's funny that you mention it because I found 'Cliffhanger' to have too much of a bias towards green so I'll keep a closer look out next time I give Total Recall a spin. Whatever though, a great 4K disc and I'm so pleased to have that film in my collection in such wonderful quality. John.
I'm working on a 4K 'Spartacus' review at the moment Scott. Super Technirama 70 was the filming format/gauge and that's why it looks so good. COMING SOON!
@@moviecollector5920 love your Termonator retrospective and Dark Fate Review can't ever remember laser disc though did the format not last too long was it after VHS but before DVD? I've heard of it just can't actually remember it.
@@scott32396 Laserdisc really took off in the early 90s but had been around as 'Laser Vision' from the late 70's. Pioneer took it on after inventor Philips had lost interest and that is when we started getting some great releases in the UK. CD-I was an early 90s attempt to introduce film on disc to the masses but basically, it was crap! Video CD was the next generation and that took off in the Far East but nowhere else as far as I know. A lot of us liked the idea of CD-I but given the image quality was only comparable with VHS we looked at LaserDisc and liked the quality it offered at the time. It was always going to be second best to Super 8 for true home cinema enthusiasts but it did mean DVD had to at least match LaserDisc which is why we have enjoyed all the extra features and commentaries over all these intervening years because it all started on LaserDisc. Not great on modern equipment but great on old style CRT televisions and some later equipment with analogue video inputs. In other words, it doesn't really work so well with HDMI in my opinion. John.
I really enjoy watching your reviews. You don't rush through what you have to say. It's really more like sitting down with a friend and having a conversation about a hobby that one loves and sharing ones likes and dislikes. I first fell in love with movies at quite a young age. A local station out of Atlanta (WSB-TV) used to run a movie after the noon news during the week day. It was called Armchair Playhouse. That's where I first watched those classic Frankenstein, and Dracula, and Wolf Man movies though they scared the bejesus out of me at the time (LOL). Also all those great Tarzan movies with Johnny Weismuller and westerns galore. It was a great alternative to all those banal soap operas that were so popular with housewives back then. Of course we only had a black and white TV set back in those days and there was a lot of static on the picture (we were 50 miles from Atlanta) and sometimes the picture would role but I still enjoyed watching those old movies at such a tender age. Kids today don't know how good they have it. Till next time. Daniel.
Very nice of you to say Daniel. And I agree completely about how youngsters today don't appreciate what they have. Watching films on a telephone doesn't really appeal to me but I suppose my portable DVD player was jolly handy on a regular long train journey 20 years ago so not that different. I used to keep a record of all the films I saw and sometimes at the weekend there would be four films entered in a single day. That would mainly be television broadcasts but also quite a few Super 8 cut downs and mini-features and the odd trip to the local cinema. I drove through Atlanta a few years ago on the way to Road Atlanta. One of the best circuits in the USA. That was for a classic race meeting known as The Mitty and my wife and I were there to complete a documentary about a successful works race manager who found success with Triumph and then took Nissan to the top. It was a great trip. John.
@@moviecollector5920 I'm glad you and the wife enjoyed your trip here. I've always fancied a trip to England where my ancestors hailed from. A lovely country with nice people but my age and health restrictions and finances won't allow me now. Still, thanks to modern technology one can make new friends all over the world. I have a Facebook friend in Ghana. I suppose my ancestry being British explains why I have a love for rain? LOL. Daniel.
@@danielparker3842 Funnily enough I lived in Ghana for a while as a child. I'd like to visit again one day but I'd better leave that for a while given the present situation. There are some good videos of my favourite place in England on CZcams. Watched Walker and Urban Walking Experience are two chaps whe will take you on a pleasant stroll around the West End of London. Leicester Square is the place where the top cinemas are so see if you can pick out the Empire (my favourite ever cinema) and the Odeon Leicester Square. What history there is in just those two theatres. Lots of their West End walks take detours through Leicester Square and they can be very relaxing and enjoyable. I lived just up the road from there for most of my life.
@@benjaminjensen7834 Yes, Whitechapel Benjamin. That is part of the East End but just a little further over than the City of London which is the world's major financial hub. It's not quite the place it was when the killer (or killers) were stalking the streets for what are known as the 'Jack The Ripper' murders. The East End was heavily bombed by the German Luftwaffe during the second World War and right over to the edge of it is where my father lived. The house had the roof blown off one night and on another occasion a mine was dropped and came down in the garden but fortunately didn't go off otherwise I wouldn't be here typing this right now. John.
One of my favorites with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Unfortunately they don't make this kind of great movies anymore. In my opinion the best movies were made between 1965 - 2000.
Ad Astra is pretty good mirvmn2 so if you haven't seen that one yet, I think you'll like it. Well, I did anyway and as we have the same taste in movies... John.
Great review . I don’t think I’ve ever seen Total Recall. Are you a fan of The Terminator John? I think that’s Arnie’s best. That would be great in 4K , hopefully soon.
The Terminator is one of my very favourite films Danny. We have a first run Super 8 feature print which is extremely good so I won't be getting a copy on video any time soon. But I do know the Blu-ray quality is outstanding cos' I've seen a clip.
Well I hope you like The Shallows. I wasn't expecting much and was surprised so maybe you will be expecting more now that I've said it's good. We did get it for a tenner from HMV so a veritable bargain.
I seem to have missed this comment Stephen - sorry about that. If Robocop does go through an original negative scan at 4K resolution let's hope the end result is about as good as this Total Recall release. Amazing what is being done with some of these 35mm films for the home video market. It's a wonder there's any time for sleep because we could be watching films 24 hours a day now! John.
The 1080p suffered from overblown contrast and whites blooming which made colours appear washed out and skin tones pale. Although the 1080p was no slouch for the time as an earlier blu ray release, its the 4k's HDR and black levels that appear most accurate and all the contrast issues are resolved here. I own this 4k steelbook. Check out the 4k steelbook of The Fifth Element if you will, which also is very impressive :)
I'll get to the Fifth Element eventually Ethan. I'll get hold of a 35mm copy of it to compare it against but I know even that won't look as good as how I saw it at the Empire Leicester Square. I will never forget that operatic scene with the planet in the background on that massive screen which will never look as good on anything ever again, not even a general 35mm print. That's because the Empire had a premiere print which - if I'm not talking out my backside - was struck direct from the original camera negative. Nothing will ever compare with that process. Total Recall was a great release. I know some people are complaining about some digital blocking in one or two of the excessively red scenes but reds have always been a problem for video. I really didn't find them bothersome because the clarity and colour is so damned good that I can forgive the odd imperfection. John.
@@moviecollector5920 I couldnt see the digital blocking in motion John. I had to freeze frame the point in question and go very close to detect it. Its a very minor squibble to an otherwise excellent transfer. Same was said on 4k copy of Star Wars Empire Strikes back.. in a few scenes on Hoth there was some digital blocking and some frozen grain, although I didnt notice then in motion sat 6 feet away from a 65' screen. Maybe these flaws are inhanced on a projector screen though I still think these would be nit pics.. thanks John. I have only today subscribed to your channel..I find the history and your experiences of film fascinating so I look forward to more content.
@@ethanberry9846 You and I are in complete agreement about the minor digital blocking flaws Ethan. I think some of us just like to complain about things a little too much. Thank you for taking the time to comment and for subscribing of course. Don't know what I'll be reviewing next but I have Ad Astra and 1917 here waiting to be looked at. John.
@@moviecollector5920 Ad Astra... I was torn between this being a classic slow burn to an average space yarn. This is going to be either an instant classic for some or a load of old tosh for others. I didnt mind it though it dosent call out for a second viewing any time soon. As for the 4k it looked pretty good to my eyes but nothing worth an upgrade from the 1080p in my opinion.. i would be very intrigued to hear your thoughts on this one Ethan
@@ethanberry9846 I find that too often there is little or no perceptible difference between the Blu-ray and the 4K. But I enjoy a good ol' science fiction bit of escapism so as long as some of the space scenes look good I expect I'll like it. Thank you for your thoughts though which are a help to play down my expectations and that is often a good thing when going into a film for the first time.
Very interested to see this video John 🤔 heard some things about the transfers that didn't sound to great! 🥴 lovely steelbook though 👌 so how would you rate it next to other titles John? Yeah The Shallows is a really solid movie I think! 🦈🤔👍 many thanks for the mention 🤩🤩🤩👍👍👍
It is a very good image overall John but there is one spot with digital blocking that I initially thought was just my system not coping. It only showed up on the television and not perceptible upon projection but next time I look I think I'll spot it. I think I have the picture setup a bit darker than most would in my attempts to make video look as close to film quality as possible and this maybe hides some deficiencies that others would pick up owing to brightness levels. I'm rather excited to have Total Recall in such high quality and the best ever steelbook I've seen is the icing on the cake. Hope the drilling next door is finished now! John.
Hi there. I really enjoyed your review and I'm really looking forward to hearing your thoughts on John Carpenter's Prince of Darkness. I own Prince of Darkness on 4k and I think it's the best its looked to date. I also own Total Recall on 4k too, I purchased the boxset but I was tempted for the Steelbook because of the artwork. However, I couldn't justify both and I wanted the cds and book etc. I have to say that I did think the 4k image on Recall is for the most part excellent, but... I was very disappointed (like Shane over at Sparechange on CZcams) with the macroblocking that appears when the shuttle lands on Mars. It doesn't last for long but it appears over the red sky. The bit rate drops very low during that sequence and apparently the bluray has a higher bitrate at that location!! I think it's an encoding error by Studiocanal. I tweeted them and they replied that their technicians haven't found any issues. I find that strange because I'm not the only one to notice the issue. It might be down to disc space? There are extras on the 4k disc, I'd rather they leave them off or put them on a separate disc and leave the bluray out or keep the bluray in with the original extras on. For 4k, I prefer as high a bit rate as possible for picture and sound. The extras take up space and require the film to be compressed more. Did you spot any macroblocking during the scene I'm referring to? Thank you and keep up the great videos. 👍
I did see digital banding at that point but only when I was looking on my television from a higher vantage point. Looking straight on to both my systems [which are set up to resemble film as closely as possible] I didn't notice but now others have cited the problem I expect it's there. It wasn't noticeable in the home cinema, in fact, I commented how good that sequence actually looked. Next time I run it I'll probably think it looks like crap! I see others have cited the film grain as being a problem but I think that's more due to a lack of understanding of how film works. Blow the image up to a massive scale and I think film grain will be less obvious in the darker sequences and optical effects shots. I have other 4K discs where digital banding is much more prevalent but it could be an issue between my player and the video projector on those specific discs rather than a definite mastering fault. All our systems vary.
@@moviecollector5920 --:Thank you for your reply, I appreciate it. The grain doesn't bother me to be honest, I accept that it is part of being shot on film stock and inherently in the negative. Thanks again and thanks for the videos.
@@MarkTallen The grain also seems to be more apparent on these discs than it is on any 35mm print I have. But I need to check that before I make any categoric statements in a future video. Film is random grain by its very nature whereas once a print is transferred to video it's fixed. I know that's obvious but it may have a bearing.
i maintain that if Showgirls had been released in the modern era it would have hardly been as critically panned and may even have been acclaimed as a feminist film. verhoeven is such an excellent satirist
@@Ariel_emerald There is indeed a movement to reclaim Showgirls as a successful satire rather than a failed drama. But satire is always more difficult for an audience. Indeed, I must confess I misunderstood Verhoeven's Starship Troopers when I first saw it.
And even more so with this exceptional 4K release Stephen. To be able to reproduce such reds on video is astounding even if there are one or two glitches that can be picked out if you want to be picky. Nothing that detracts from the film as far as I'm concerned. John.
True Lies is probably the Arnie movie that would be most popular Greengrass. Commando was released full length on Super 8 in about 1992 and it looked absolutely fabulous so that almost guarantees that a 4K disc release would be great. John.
Hello, possible to tell me if there is French audio on the blu-ray 4k should put the blu-ray 4k in the player is not marked on the flyers thank you in advance
I've just checked it and French is actually the default. I think I included a shot of the first menu screen that displays and the top of the four options in French. There are also French sub-titles so you're good to purchase.
I have Karlazune. It's the Home Cinema Tour video. I didn't state in that video that the video projector is an Optoma UHD550X - I didn't think people would be particularly interested in that but it turns out that they are. John.
@@moviecollector5920 thanks, I am using the CZcams app on the fire stick and it doesn’t show things up on a channel as well as my computer. Will have a look. Have a good day
I watched your home theater tour video. I don't think you said which projector you have. I'm sorry if I missed it. But, that's my question. What projector do you have?
Optoma UHD550X is the video projector. Elmo GS1200's for Super 8, Ging Gan Shan 'Spectra' 35mm, Bell & Howell 16mm and a bunch of others of all manner of gauges.
To upgrade my system into Dolby Atmos would be in excess of £5K. As it is, the Pioneer/Kef THX Ultra I have is too big for the room so it can wait. When you've enjoyed THX for almost 20 years you can understand why I don't want to mess it up with cheaper speakers and a budget amplifier. But one day when I have a bigger home cinema I'll enjoy throwing even more money on an even better system. By then though something else will have come along - Datasat perhaps. John.
I'm happy that i got the box,it was a bit expensive but its one of my all time favorite films so its worth it! i still have my steelbook dvd that's a round box with the surface of mars hehe
It's certainly a very nice package. The steelbook isn't quite so appealing in terms of what you get within it, but the artwork styling is possibly the best I've seen. It's a thing of beauty. Maybe if they come down in price sometime it might be worth you snapping one of those up too... but only if it's really cheap. John.
@@moviecollector5920 yes i agree the artwork on steelbook is truly amazing. for me paying extra for the box set was worth it with everything that was included. they released the score on vinyl as well for the first time a couple of months ago but i missed out on that and its now sold out and the vinyl goes for crazy money on ebay. but i hope that one day i will be able to get it as i also collect scores/soundtracks on vinyl :) cheers John!
No, I haven't but I must get a copy of that film and then I can listen to the score and enjoy the movie at the same time. I love that film... particularly when Bruce Dern's character falls off the roof! John.
@@moviecollector5920 there is an upload of the deluxe edition here on CZcams. I've got the varese limited edition, and recently it was put out by waxwork records on vinyl!
I too thought the HDR was excellent although someone out there did a review to say it was somewhat poor. Apparently the digital blocking that is vaguely visible during the Mars landing sequence upset the reviewer. It was there on both my systems but deep reds on video have always been problematic so just that one minor problem on an otherwise flawless 4K disc was fine with me. John.
@@moviecollector5920 Are you going to be doing a Lord of the Rings 4k review John ? Be interesting to hear your thoughts. I know some have not been happy with the presentation
@@russell22w I'm not planning on it Russell as I saw the first film at the Odeon Leicester Square and while it would be unfair to say that I thought it was awful, I think the poor image quality had a lot to do with it. I didn't know about the low quality computer work that was done at the time and that was probably why it came across as such a dull film. I didn't see the sequels as a result but I did purchase the 'Scope trailers on Super 8 and they are fabulous. So I'm sure I'll enjoy them when I do get to see them but as I'm not currently the best person to do an extensive video on these much loved films I've been working on Keith at Euphoria Pictures to do it as he has a wonderful Lord of the Rings collection. He's the man for the job! John.
I didn't see Frank Zappa Bob. But I saw just about everyone else! Most amazing experience there was Status Quo when they played 'Roll Over Lay Down' (second track after 'Caroline' way back then) and I was on the balcony which was moving up and down about 18 inches because everyone on there was jumping to the beat. Bloody frightening I can tell you. It's amazing it didn't collapse. John.
@@jimcameron1234 'Ad Astra' arrived yesterday - yippee! And today I'll be working on the 'Superman' review which is proving interesting. It's like two different transfers: a rather poor first 35 minutes and then a stunner. John.
Oh dear, I though Ad Astra was poor. Plot holes, and got quite silly as it went on. But it is nice to see big-looking science fiction films still being made. EDIT: I'd recommend the George Clooney/Steven Soderbergh film Solaris as doing a similar thing but better. There are rumours of a 4K release of Solaris but nothing is out yet.
@@moviecollector5920 had an Arnold double feature, after Total Recall watched Running Man, a German 4K Digibook. If you like the movie an excellent transfer.
@@garyharper2943 I do like The Running Man. I still have it on VHS and it's a lot of fun. "I'll be back!" "Only in a re-run!" Classic! Directed by Paul Michael Glaser after the original director was dismissed I believe. John.
I really like your videos and this is meant as some constructive feedback, but this is like a history of Total Recall rather than a 4k blu ray review. Perhaps do a bit more reviewing of the 4k?
Fair point. But it is the history of the film that's interesting and a major reason why we've come to be able to enjoy it in 4K. The steelbook is worth the investment alone irrespective thinking about it now. And I don't usually care for steelbooks much at all. John.
Color grading looks really odd on that remaster. I prefer how it looked on the 2012 remaster. Also, no mention on how Studio Canal did a poor job regarding compression? Just watch the landing shot on Mars on the bottom right and the very final shot on top right, just plain ugly and annoying.
Turn the brightness down on your picture because it only just shows up on both of my systems. Apart from that one minor issu, the Total Recall release is excellent. Amazing to have it in filmic quality after all these years.
@@BeberDag130482 I am so happy to have this film in the quality that has been transferred to this 4K disc that there is no way I'm going to bother purchasing it ever again (unless the disc gets nicked or suffers laser rot or something). What we are looking at with this Studio Canal video is near 35mm quality. That is amazing to me and was unimaginable less than 20 years ago. Things have come a long way in a short time. John.
Is there a feature copy available on Super 8 at the moment Marko? I gave away my original 400ft Super 8 Ken Films selected scenes reel 1 but I do still have the second reel in 'Scope as well as two copies of the Derann feature release. Neither copy is brilliant but a colleague has the original review print and that is a bit better so it wasn't too bad originally. John.
There has been a Blu-ray release in Europe somewhere but I think it was a transfer from a 35mm print so it won't be as good as it can be. Looks fabulous on PAL LaserDisc though so maybe that Blu-ray would be quite surprising. John.
Wasn't that a shame? I really like Cutthroat Island even though it's a complete load of tosh really. Such good fun and fabulous to look at. It also helps that the PAL LaserDisc is one of the best ever image quality LaserDiscs and in a beautiful gatefold to boot. John.
John, i liked that line where the geezer with the hideously deformed moosh (face) says to him: "You gotta` lotta` nerve showing your face around here", and he says back to the geezer: "Look whos talking". Truly hilarious. And bit where the geezer says to the bird: "You're gonna' be submissive, compliant, appreciative, passive, and ALWAYS sexually available", i had such a lot of fantasys about Rachel Ticotin where she always possessed those 5 key character traits, that slag was gorgeous, even tastier than Sharon Stone. BTW John, i still think the ludicrously under-rated 2012 remake is a marginally better movie, there are 5 or 6 truly outstanding chase sequences in that film that are all quite amazing, combine that with the stunning beauty and desirability of Jessica Biel and Kate Beckinsale and you`ve got yet another criminally under-rated science fiction classic.
@@moviecollector5920 Yeah, admittedly the bird did have an incredible boat-race in 1989 at the time of principal photography when she was 31. I haven't actually seen any really recent pictures of the bird but if you say she's still a tasty bird at the age of 64 i'll take your word for it.
@@wernerherzog3502 She appears in the extras made recently for the 4K of Basic Instinct. She seems to be a genuinely nice lady and as far as I'm concerned she looks lovely and even more attractive than she did when making Total Recall and Basic Instinct. Could just be that I'm getting old of course and my taste has changed from sexy young ladies to more mature gals. John.
Great review. I really like that you dig out the previous home video releases and share your history with the film. Please keep them coming.
That's the plan Matthew! Thank you for your kind words.
I'm glad CZcams recommended you to me - these are great reviews. I was actually recommended to your 2001 review (which was also excellent) and thought I'd check if you'd done Total Recall. If you get the chance, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the Fifth Element 4k - I feel like it may not be the greatest 4k release, but I'd love to hear what you think. Thanks for doing these reviews!
Funnily enough Matthew I've been thinking about finally purchasing the 4K of The Fifth Element. That should make for a good review because... well, guess who has a 35mm print of that film?
John.
John, I am running out of your videos to watch, having gone through almost all of them in two days. :-) How incredible that Total Recall was nearly a dud. The studio was not getting the word out and Arnold gave them a good talking-to, resulting in a much higher advertising budget, which resulted in a huge opening weekend. I was there and remember it like it was yesterday. The vibe was hot and when the film had not started on time a guy in the middle of the theater stood up and yelled out, "Let's start the ****ing movie!" The crowd roared with laughter and cheers and about one minute later the lights dipped and the film began.
And what a film it was! Easily one of the most enjoyable sci-fi action films of all time, it will be remembered many more decades from now. The same cannot be said for the jaw droppingly bad remake. Like the terrible Robocop remake, it has been instantly forgotten.
The 4K steelbook arrived a few days ago and it will be one of the first I view when I decide upon which 4K set to purchase later this month.
It's a cracking 4K. Might be one of the best but one or two scenes that fell foul of videos ability to deal with red I think. Probably shouldn't happen these days but the overall quality of that disc for around £25 to £30 is exceptional. Years ago something looking that good would have cost hundreds.
@@moviecollector5920 I have now watched the 4K up to the point where they get to Mars. Incredible. This really does feel like a brand new 35mm print.
@@ItsTimePictures Agreed. Imagine how it would have looked if it had have been a 65mm production. But it's still among the best 4K discs I've seen.
This movie is thought provoking and from the era when Arnold ruled the box office! Sci fi well done! Another one to add to the 4k list to buy. Thanks John and always look forward to your work!
Bear in mind there is one flaw that I spotted but didn't mention Gilbert. It's so minor I didn't think it was worth focusing on because I know how people can pick up on something and try to make a fuss. It's when the spaceship is landing on Mars - the red colours are so all-enveloping in that scene that it seems even 4K UHD can't cope with it (video has always struggled with reds) and if you look for it you will see some digital blocking. Other than that, it's like having the film on film. What a treat after all these years! We can now see why we liked the film so much back in 1990.
John.
@@moviecollector5920 Thank you John I'll keep that in mind! BTW, "The Shallows" is an edge of your seat thriller and the 4k version is stunning!
@@gilbertrios5283 I got The Shallows in the HMV 3 for £30 offer a while back and I was surprised how good it was. The best shark film since Jaws I think. I do actually mention it towards the end of one of my videos but don't ask me which cos' I'm getting old! John.
@@moviecollector5920LOL... You mentioned it near the end of this video, I was just reaffirming with you the 4k quality and how good" The Shallows" is.
@@gilbertrios5283 I told you I was getting old!
Could not agree with you more, Jerry Goldsmith was a brilliant, brilliant composer. Recently watched the original "Planet of the Apes" and his use of dissonance, percussion and orchestra is astonishing. He should have won an Oscar for that revolutionary score. Michael - SA
I think he only ever got two academy awards which seems hard to believe given his body of work. That chap John Williams must have kept getting in his way.
Goldsmith only won one Academy Award, for The Omen, very well deserved, but I agree, Planet of the Apes, Star Trek-The Motion Picture and Poltergeist were deserving of Oscar wins as well.
Another great 15 minutes John. I can remember seeing this when it was first released and I was stunned by the visuals and the Goldsmith score. The remake is a remake in name only!! Looking forward to the next one already.
Funnily enough Ged I have deliberately avoided the remake as I can't see how it would be possible to remake something that is of its time and so unbelievably good.
I stopped watching the remake half way through it was that bad.
It wasn't unbearable, it was just grey and very mediocre. A shame considering the director debuted with the surprisingly good Underworld (vampires vs werewolves).
Yeah, the main hints that it may be all a dream are when he's at Recall, he chooses the secret agent dream and his choice of love interest looks Just like his the main female character and someone mentions "blue sky on Mars" which comes true at the end.
Then someone later tells him he's still at Recall and by the end, even Arnie questions if it's real.. also at the very end of the credits, the sound effect of the technology is used, which people reckon might indicate that he's waking up.
But it's completely open to interpretation.
You've read the film well which not everyone does. The fact that the camera fades to white at the end confirms to me he's waking up but for others it indicates he's having a schizoid embolism. As you say, open to interpretation which is something I tend to like at the conclusion to an entertaining film.
John.
Absolutely love your channel and your in depth tech info- also loving the history behind the films and references to other films at the end we may be interested in too- brilliant stuff. Just fyi, Eagle Pictures in Italy have a collection of 4K titles called the 4kult Collection and have released several UK (StudioCanal) releases with better encodes with higher HDR bitrates- some people say they look a little better than the UK releases. Keep up the great work!
Thank you WestHam66. I hadn't heard of Eagle Pictures so I'll have to look them up. Strange that they're re-mastering and re-authoring discs because that will add a lot of time and money to an already finalized product but there must be a good reason for them to undertake all the extra work. Very interesting.
John.
I believe the whole movie is indeed his spy vacation. If you look closely,when at the Recall clinic, he selects exactly the same woman that later is his love interest and he chooses a plot that involves 1 million year old alien artifact even showing a picture that is the same terraforming/atmosphere generation machine that later we get to see near the end of the movie.The assistant even says "that's a new one, blue skies on Mars". But it's really cool that's open to interpretation.
I had never really watched the film too closely prior to this 4K disc release and I spotted all that you've said when watching it for this review. I'd always thought it strange that he didn't wake up at the end of it so this time I was waiting for the ending to fade to white which it does. That can be interpreted as him waking up or the 'schizoid embolism' he's warned about within his dream.
John.
Another great video. Looks like it's worth upgrading from my old DVD in the Mars shaped tin.
Thanks Stevenandnicola. If you do get the new version I "hope you enjoy the ride!"
I am a new subscriber to your channel. I don't think I have seen another channel like yours. I love your reviews and your love for the films really shows. Keep up the great work.
Thank you Kevin, it's good to have you with me. Film has been a part of my life for so long and it's been amazing to see this channel explode over the past few weeks. Nice to know so many people like the approach I've taken.
John.
Visual effects for Total Recall were done primarily by Dream Quest Images. With additional shots done by ILM. All miniature photography, and live action plates where photographed in VistaVision.
That explains why they look so good... for the most part. That Rob Bottin fellow did a pretty good job too of course.
John.
I saw TR in the cinema in August 1990, it's the only old cinema ticket I retain today and the price was '£1.90'.
It certainly was an impressive film, and to me it was a bit of an end of an era movie.
I didn't keep my admission ticket which is a shame as it was the Hammersmith Odeon but shortly thereafter I started to save them all. Maybe Total Recall was the beginning of an era freeatlast1963 because the following year was Terminator 2: Judgment Day and then a whole plethora of big budget action films. The Arnie era had truly arrived.
Good day John! I received Total Recall as a Christmas gift, but haven’t seen it yet! After your zealous review, the anticipation is growing!
I hope you like it as much as I did Charles. I think it's a cracking 4K disc.
John.
Lovely looking set, 3 discs as well. Makes me wish I had three hands!
Funnily enough Tom, I had this set out yesterday as I wasn't to watch the extra feature on Carolco again. It's a beautiful steelbook and it might still be available. John.
I‘ve seen the remastered FullHD Version and it‘s also amazing.
It's great that they've made this available to us in such wonderful clarity for us to enjoy at home. I hope it brings them lots of money!
You are on the ball about Jerry goldsmith. Psycho 2 is one of my very favorites.
He was a master, no doubt about it. And he always came across as likeable in any interviews he gave. John.
Great, so far I have all the films you have reviewed, only trouble is all DVD, it would cost me thousands to update to 4K, I had previously updated about 50 to Blueray and prior to that about 30 I had on HD DVD. Cheers John.
Understand completely Geoff. Wait until something breaks or just needs replacing and take it gradually. It's really amazing that we are able to collect and watch these films on all these formats in the home. And DVD is often excellent quality anyway.
John.
@@moviecollector5920 thanks for the quick reply John, I must add that my film collecting started around 80-81 ish, I jumped on the Sony Betamax bandwagon, then a decade later VHS and later still SVHS, broke my heart taking all my video cassettes to the charity shops, but space is always at a premium.
My tip is the used market, I have picked up lots of great Blu-ray's for a pound or two as no-one wants them now.
I Haven't seen this since I first saw it on the cinema in Florida back on july 1990, after seeing your review makes me want to watch it again, can't believe it's 31 years old already. Wow mind blowing
And I think it's even better today than it was in 1990. Possibly because the special effects are so otherwordly and we don't have creations like that today, just boring computer images for the most part.
I think we have similar taste in films sin gin as we seem to be agreeing on just about all the films we discuss. John.
@@moviecollector5920 Yes, only subscribed the other day and getting through quite a few of your video's, I think what I like about them is you know so much background on what you're reviewing. Keep up yhe great work.
I love that you run your Reel Projector while viewing digital formats. Great review. I too have the Steelbook as I have the soundtrack on CD. Gonna be a while before I can watch 4K as I still have a Pioneer Kuro set up.
When you compare the BD to the UHD, do they both go in the same player or do you have a 2K and 4K Rigg? Otherwise the 4K player or your display will upscale the 2K so you won't get a true BD representation.
Likewise I'm glad you popped up in my feed. I watched your Alien 4K review last night, then had to watch the film.
Thank you Trevor. I did a video early on that compared 2K (i.e. Blu-ray) to 4K and you'll see on the thumbnail for that that I had two players sat one on top of the other. One is a standard Blu-ray player and the other is a UHD player. It didn't seem to make a perceptible difference to the final image on the screen. Perhaps that illustrates just how good Blu-ray discs really are. I certainly under appreciated them and it was only once I really started to take 4K seriously for this channel that I began to question what I was looking at so thoroughly. Even some of the DVDs taken from the new 4K masters are exceptional and I mention that in my recent review of J.J. Abrams best film 'Super 8'. But what makes the difference with 4K HD Blu-ray discs is the addition of HDR. It's HDR that is responsible for the perceptible superior image quality. It's not quite always the case but when it is it makes gives a video the more saturated filmic look that I've always dreamed of but never thought I'd see. Some of these 4K discs are just like watching a 35mm print and I can say that with some authority because I've directly compared them as in the Alien review you watched but even more so in The Fifth Element review.
John.
@@moviecollector5920 Ah cool. I will sift through your videos when I get the time? 2 questions.
If you have a 4K capable projector, unless it's set not to, I think it will upscale any image it receives to 4K. Otherwise you would get a small image in the middle of your screen. So even if you feed it a BD image from a BD player it will still get up scaled. I used to work in BD manufacturing as a QC tester. (Never did any 4K though)
The only true way to do a 2K Vs 4K comparison, is on a true 2K and separate 4K set up. That will be why even DVDS of 4K master look so good. The information is all there. Just more compressed than the BD and UHD.
Does that make sense?
@@trevorearis7512 That's a good reminder Trevor. Fortunately my Optoma UHD550X has a 4K input and a 2K input so I connected each player up respectively for that very reason. My opinion is that our tiny home screens mean that the difference between 2K and 4K is all but imperceptible and if it weren't for HDR there would be no point. And that's probably why they introduced HDR just on the newer 4K home movie format. John.
@@moviecollector5920 oh that's a cool option on your projector.
Yes on my 50" TV, if I set my BD player to source direct, then there is a big wow difference from DVD 576i to BD 1080p.
But I always say to people you only get the true benefits of 1080 resolution 50" and above. So 4K would more likely be 100" and above.
So yes, that's why you won't see a perceivable difference. Also if the BD has the 4K mastered version on it you definitely won't get a perceivable as you are looking at the same content.
So was the BD an original 2k and the UHD a new 4k?
What size is your screen if you don't mind me asking?
@@trevorearis7512 First thing to say Trevor is that I've never really understood the diagonal measurements of televisions. I know it was to make people think they were buying something bigger than they really were years ago but I don't see the point of that any longer. I'm a film person so I just measure the width and in that regard the screen (which is actually the wall) is about seven feet wide. I do have a ten foot by six foot screen that we've had for 30 years but I only use that for film nowadays. That may change soon but we'll have to wait and see. I have blown 4K video up to see if an oversized image will show a perceptible difference to 2K but alas, zippo! I think we need to be thinking in terms of 20 feet wide to really compare and possibly even bigger than that. If this channel helps me to resurrect the British Film Collectors Conventions then we'll be able to test the theory on the convention's 24 foot wide 'Scope screen. If half the cinemas in the UK are getting away with 2K projectors then it's going to have to be a big screen to illustrate a definite difference. I don't think there's a telly that exists that could do it.
John.
2:57
That's a problem they avoided when making the very first Star Wars film. But, shooting in Vista Vision was a very expensive process, and time consuming as you said. The ILM effects team who worked on Star Wars, were able to buy up Vista Vision cameras very cheaply from studios in the mid 1970s. They were happy to off load old cameras to young guys who looked foolish, in their opinion. But by the early '80s those cameras were like collector's items and most effects houses just could not justify the costs of buying them and all their periphals; 65mm editing machines, processing, etc. Meanwhile, ILM could afford to have Vista Vision cameras custom built for the Star Wars sequels in the '80s!
I saw Total Recall at a Canon Cinema (formerly ABC) back in 1990 and still have the souvenier mag and copy of Cinefex I bought after. It is one of the last great "analogue" effects blockbuster movies to come out before Terminator 2 arrived in 1991. In terms of VFX, that movie changed everything!
Great information Bob. Thank you.
John.
@@moviecollector5920
BTW,
I bought Total Recall on a bare bones DVD almost 20 years ago. Then a few years after Amazon was selling the US region 1 Special Edition in a round tin which looked like Mars. So I had to have that too! On that DVD is a great commentary with Arnie and Paul Verhoven. Is it included on the 4K version?
@@bobrew461 You've done it now Bob - yes it has got that commentary track which is accessed through the 'Extras' option of the menu. I had to put it on to check and now that it's on I'm going to have to bloody well watch it! Thank you!
John.
@@moviecollector5920
:-0
just watched this movie today but only on blu ray,i was never a big fan of this title but i still think its entertaing and has a great music score. I really like your reviews and hope you will continue to make these great videos,hopefully one day in 4k.
The 4K of Total Recall is rather special Benjamin but I can't remember the Blu-ray in the pack. As for making review videos in 4K, there is nothing to be gained from that unless you're watching them on a cinema sized screen. I put a couple of them up in 4K recently and one of them was the BFI IMAX projection booth video. Finishing a video in 4K does necessitate approximately four times the quality and four times the time to compile and upload so it's not really viable to do them all. Most people don't understand any of this side of it but look at some 4K uploads and you'll see the quality is often crap compared to HD uploads and that comes down to the compilation Mb/s rate and the fact that most just use a phone or something similarly cheap to shoot with. Use a professional camcorder or cinecam and then you get HD quality far in excess of phone uploads. John.
@@moviecollector5920 well i watch your videos on a 65 oled and i think the videos on youtube do look best this way, but i didnt know it was more time consuming to upload it this way,anyway your videoes are much appreciated john.
@@benjaminjensen7834 They look better if they're uploaded in higher quality but the default that all video editors use is 10,000mb/s which is at best three times lower than required. But to look better in the first place they have to be shot on good kit and I suppose there are some capable phones out there but in general it's a waste of time doing anything 4K from a phone. If you can spot superior image quality on any of my uploads in 4K then it's just as likely to be the 40,000mb/s render as much as the increased resolution. Very little chance of spotting that on a telly without having two identical sets running identical compilations of the videos concurrently in both HD and 4K. I think the 4K upload of the IMAX TENET video is slightly better but if I'd have compiled an HD version at 40,000mb/s then I'm not sure that wouldn't look identical. There's a lot to it but no point in wasting time rendering and uploading in 4K if there's no perceptible difference. Let's face it a Blu-ray mastered from the same 4K master as a UHD disc has not perceptible difference other than HDR almost 100% of the time so that tells us everything we need to know.
John.
@@moviecollector5920 ok thanks john.
I love total recall. I bought every disc release of this move, the dvd, the blue ray, the reissued 2nd edition blue ray with the re worked color, and the ultra HD blu ray, which I feel they finally got it right. The first blu ray was horrible, it looked just like the dvd. They finally got it right
It's a film that would have sold well on Super 8 Khalif if it could have been done. Maybe it's one I should look out for on 35mm but that would likely be prohibitively expensive nowadays. John.
@@moviecollector5920 I absolutely love your channel and reviews I’d like to say. I love how you talk about the history of the different formats.
@@darealestwon That's very kind of you to say so Khalif. I'm working on the next video right now and this one will be the recent 4K of Silent Running. So you can expect a little more Super 8 in that one too. John.
Great review I just got the US laserdisc release of this hoping to give it a spin soon he hopes. This has been on my radar to pick up. Glad to see it worth it.
Great video as always!
From what I heard the Italian 4k-release of 'Total Recall' by '4Kult" has a better encoding with way more sharpness. If you ever get hold of this one please consider doing a comparison video.
The version we have available here is amazing itself and it's not particularly likely much more could be squeezed out of a 35mm negative but I'll be happy to be proved wrong. A fabulous disc and I can't quite believe I'm able to watch it in such great quality from a video. Amazing.
John.
@@moviecollector5920 Just for the record: Here are three comparison screenshots (www.screenshotcomparison.com/comparison/11191/picture:0).
I found the link in the blu-ray.com forum. From my point of view the Italian release does look sharper. But I guess that's only for the boys with the really big screens (like you ;-)) I am really out of the game with my 55 inch TV...
Keep up the good work!
Chris
@@The_Jazzman My screen (wall!) isn't actually that big Lanark - only seven feet and a couple of inches perhaps. I do have a ten foot roll down screen in the living room that we've had about thirty years but I've only ever used that for Super 8. It was made ten feet wide because the room it was originally built for was 10 feet 3 inches wide. It is quite impressive though. What I think I really need is at least 13 feet but preferably bigger then it would be easier to tell the difference between all these discs. The ten foot screen made Super 8 reviews for the magazines easy back in the day.
I've just looked at the video on my smart TV and bear in mind the skewed trailer shots are the 35mm trailer so compare that to your 4K disc because it looks just about identical on my video projector. Could it be that HDR is not working as well on some displays? The Blu-ray was colourless by comparison on my setup.
John.
Hello John, finally picked up Total Recall on 4K, arriving tomorrow, I remember well seeing it opening weekend at the Odeon in Darlington County Durham, the Cinema recently closed, it's a shame, lot's of fond childhood memories, even bought the soundtrack on cassette, also getting Red Heat on 4K, heard rave reviews on the transfer, watched the new 2022 restoration of Raw Deal the other day, granted it's not Schwarzenegger's best but it's a great transfer, for a film made in '86 it's got a 70's vibe.
I still have Raw Deal on VHS but have to admit that the film was never particularly good even if I watched it rather a lot back in those early VHS days. I have Red Heat on LaserDisc and I should really take another look at that as I can't actually recall how good the image quality is on it. But if the new 4K is good that's usually an indication that the original 35mm shoot was a good looker and therefore the subsequent video releases all would be too, particularly LaserDisc at the time. I've had the Total Recall VHS since very early on. It's actually a rental copy that was sold off in a bucket shop on Tottenham Court Road and it had survived the rental process really well. I got the DVD years later but even though I don't usually purchase the same film over and over again, I really liked Total Recall and couldn't resist getting a 4K copy when it was first announced. Some reviewers were overly critical of one sequence where you can spot a big of digital blocking but it wasn't particularly noticeable via our video projector and could only really be spotted on a telly. If that's the only problem with a video disc costing a few pounds then it's a darned fine video disc as far as I'm concerned. Some people will pick fault with anything. John.
@@moviecollector5920 Just watched Total Recall John, like watching it back in 1990.
@@jamessiddle7389 I saw it at the Hammersmith Odeon back then James. It was sold out across the West End for the first couple of weeks and my brother lived not far from the Hammersmith Odeon at the time so he suggested we all went there. It was strange to be seeing a film in the venue of so many great rock concerts. I didn't actually realize they still had film facilities there. So watching it at home here isn't quite the same as seeing it at the Hammersmith Odeon but it may actually be a little better. John.
One of the things that stood out about this release to me was how clear the sound was. So clear you can hear Arnie breathing throughout the movie.
I thought it was a Darth Vader sound effect!
I can't believe it's taken 30 years to get a good picture of Total Recall i've got 2 vhs copies, a dvd copy a 2 disc dvd steelbook and the blu ray i got 5 years ago but the 4k release is excellent and is one of my favourite films since i watched it at the cinema and i hope the keep it up because i had the same problem with the movie Predator but it looks much better also, great review.
Predator is another film I've had on Super 8 for about 30 years and it's one of the best prints that was ever struck. Total Recall never got a Super 8 outing so it's wonderful to have it in this quality on a video. John.
paul verhoeven should still be making movies. basic instinct should look exquisite on 4K (restored).
Agreed. Maybe at the age of 82 he's had enough of the stress of it all. He made some great films during his time though.
@@moviecollector5920 true. .. though he always seemed so full of energy. looking forward to your basic instinct 4k review when it comes out next year. btw, just subscribed. do die hard/alien/predator/labyrinth/matrix/skyfall/red sparrow 4k reviews, please. your tech talk about formats and old school filming and projection systems is fantastic, esp. cinemascope. stay safe.
Another excellent review, thanks for taking the time. I think I’ll pick up The Shallows on your recommendation, I’ve been on the fence about that one.
I hope you like it Mr. Serrano. Mondo Chelloveck Movies recommended it and because I know he's a big Jaws fan I took the plunge(!!!) and was pleasantly surprised.
John.
Another nice review. I picked this up myself to replace my old DVD steelbook. While the audio is a bit weak, the picture is superb, and like you say the steelbook is lovely. A great film given the physical release it deserves.
The audio is amazingly good through my system James so that's a little odd. Maybe the latest Atmos conversion wasn't too successful but in 5.1 it's reproducing better. Verrrrry strange.
Another great Phillip K Dick adaptation
'We Can Remember It for You Wholesale' being the title of the short story
Happy to have found your reviews
Thank you for your thoughts on all these great films 😊
Thank you ReLapse. Good to have you here. John.
Great review. Time for me to upgrade from my 1990 Steel round Mars DVD to 4k.
And I hope you like it as much as I did. A cracking 4K release.
John.
Ah, someone else with the Mars edition, very cool! I actually had this one on VHS just after it came out, then the Mars DVD, then Blu-ray a few years back, and now the new 4K combo pack (which allowed me to pass on the Blu-ray to a friend). I am planning to keep my old Mars tin edition, though!
I have the digitally restaurated 30 th anniversary br version. Really great movie then.
I believe that Blu-ray was changing hands for quite big sums before this 4K release Ulf.
John.
A shame they’ve never dug up the long lost footage of this one as they did with Robocop. The violence was apparently chopped down considerably for the “R” rating and has never been restored.
It's possible that to change it would spoil it Michael. Usually a film is cut to work best and quite often that means taking it out of the hands of the director at the last who has usually become too attached to it. I think it's a terrific film as it is but it would be interesting to see the excised scenes as outtakes. John.
per my previous comments, please also do a 4K review of Angel Heart (picture quality and bonus items), esp. please discuss/confirm the UK censored scenes. your site is special, as you talk about the filming techniques (camera systems/lenses) and exhibition formats, plus anecdotes about theaters, etc. i love the discussions on widescreen or cinemascope formats etc. this site reminds me of the friendly local cinema and its knowledgeable kind projectionist/film lover. more, please. as stated, just subbed.
Where I have the information nistel you can be sure I will impart it. Keep this a secret though - I've never actually seen Angel Heart!
I agree about the steelbook, it does look fabulous!
Do you think you would be getting the Lord of the Rings or Hobbit sets? I preordered them as they were at the very top of my most wanted on uhd list, and Wow they look and sound absolutely outstanding, you can tell a huge amount of care and attention has gone into remastering them, they're a real treat to watch!
I did see 'Lord of the Rings' but didn't like it. That was at the Leicester Square Odeon but by then the excellent image quality we had been enjoying for years was declining. I didn't know why at the time but now we know it's down to all the low quality computer work. Hopefully they've gone back and re-rendered it all now so it looks better. But it did look very drab and a bit boring so I never saw any of the others. I did collect the trailers on Super 8 though and they look spectacular so one day maybe I'll get to view the complete films.
We watched the 4K of 'Prince of Darkness' last night and finally a 4K that blows the Blu-ray away. I was very excited when the opening [daylight] sequences came on and it looked so damned good.
@@moviecollector5920 It does look vastly better than even the blu-rays, Weta/Wingnut and Peter Jackson went back to the original vfx film outputs and camera negatives and remastered them at 4K and tidied up the 2K CGI. The creature CGI does still look waxy and artificial in the earlier films compared to today's state-of-the-art but like all films the VFX are a product of their time and I think they don't detract from the films, I love them, Peter Jackson in an interview said that he has now regraded the entire 6 film collection so the Dolby Vision/HDR is consistent right through the six films, I think what they have accomplished is marvellous :)
I haven't ever seen Prince of Darkness, or actually many of John Carpenters films except The Thing, Big Trouble, and Escape From New York, I will have to look out for it! :)
@@nick1635 The trailers on Super 8 in 'Scope look fabulous but because the first film was such a bore I don't think I'm going to be rushing to watch any of the sequels. Never say never though. If I do ever get to see them I may actually like them. But John Carpenter's films are from a different era and films you like as a youngster tend to have a lasting effect and what happened to me with Halloween, Escape From New York, The Thing and Starman was probably similar to your own experience with the Rings films. It's good to know the director has gone back to correct many of the failings of the films which should mean they look a lot less drab than the poor picture quality of first release which is an incentive I'll bear in mind.
@@moviecollector5920 I think the problem with the LOTR films may be the long CGI-heavy action scenes, which are now a staple of modern blockbusters, and which I find quite boring. I haven't seen LOTR for years, but I did watch the much-maligned Hobbit films recently and quite enjoyed them - except for the long gratuitous action scenes.
@@ThreadBomb I'm beginning to think that when or if the Rings films come down to a more affordable asking price I may give them a try. You are probably right about the long CGI sequences being the main reason I found the first film boring (never saw the other two as a result) because those 'Scope trailers on Super 8 are the complete opposite and make the films look really exciting. However, once bitten and all that so that's why I've never seen them.
Hi John, Great review, This has always been a brightly lit and good looking film on any format. I saw this film on release and being a big sci-fi fan really wanted to love it, unfortunately too much of the cheesy humour got in the way (yes I know it's Paul Verhoven). That said, the practical effects are brilliant and what better way to see them than on 4k. It's still miles better than the dreadful Farrell remake, Best line? "Consider that a divorce."
I wanted to use that 'Consider that a divorce' line in the review because it's on the Super 8 trailer but I thought I might be pushing the boundaries of what is permitted a little too far. I stuck with 'We hope you enjoyed the ride' in the end but whether or not I'll get copyright warned on that remains to be seen. An historic film in my opinion.
I had the 2012 blu ray for this. I saw this rerelease and it took me ages to find out what the blu ray quality was like in comparison to the 2012 version. All reviews were for the UHD. Anyway the blu ray is much better than the 2012 blu ray so very happy I got it. That steelbook looks great.
Yep, the Blu-ray is fabulous quality too. I'm so happy to be able to own this movie in such exceptional quality. It is how I used to feel when I'd spend hundreds of pounds on a new Super 8 feature that was fantastic quality... only this Total Recall steelbook didn't make me completely skint for months like a Super 8 feature always did.
John.
Thanks John, I’m now in for Total Recall. Glad you got to see Us. Shallows rocks.
There is one scene which others have stated is a bit dodgy and that's when the spaceship delivering Schwarzenegger's character arrives on Mars. There is some digital blocking here which I saw on my television but not on my video projector. Darker settings on the projector methinks. Other than that there's noticeable film grain in darker scenes and during optical effects but that's probably an accurate representation of how it was screened in 1990.
When I watch 'Us' again in the future I think I'll enjoy it even more. Very scary for that first hour. 'Split' turned out to be another interesting film and last night it was the 4K of 'Prince of Darkness' which finally illustrated a substantial improvement on the 4K compared to the Blu-ray. An immediate, perceptible difference on that one.
@@moviecollector5920 I saw Total Recall at the cinema when it came out and have owned it in various formats. It's never been a film that I would have called out for optical excellence. Just a fun movie. No more or less.
@@Celestialrob That's a good summary Robert. All the reds caused a lot of colour bleed on VHS and probably laserdisc too but I never saw the laserdisc.
Movie scores are my primary go-to for music and have been since I was 10 years old and bought the score for "Jaws". Goldsmith is a genius and greatly missed.
Lately we've been playing the new ABBA album a lot but I too have a lot of LPs and CDs of movie soundtracks. Even have a few on cassette including the 1978 Halloween. There are many Jerry Goldsmith scores in my soundtrack collection but I never purchased Jaws and I wish I had have done even if just for the LP cover alone. John.
Great review. I just found your channel so will be subscribing. I'm curious, did you know any colour grading issues with the film? I noticed in some clips there is a distinct green hue in some scenes.
I didn't notice them on this one but it's funny that you mention it because I found 'Cliffhanger' to have too much of a bias towards green so I'll keep a closer look out next time I give Total Recall a spin. Whatever though, a great 4K disc and I'm so pleased to have that film in my collection in such wonderful quality.
John.
Merci beaucoup
Vous êtes les bienvenus.
English subtitle: You're welcome.
Your channel is a joy.
Thank you babyshambler. Next review will be Back to the Future. John.
Great review just subscribed keep up the great reviews 👍
I'm working on a 4K 'Spartacus' review at the moment Scott. Super Technirama 70 was the filming format/gauge and that's why it looks so good. COMING SOON!
@@moviecollector5920 love your Termonator retrospective and Dark Fate Review can't ever remember laser disc though did the format not last too long was it after VHS but before DVD? I've heard of it just can't actually remember it.
@@scott32396 Laserdisc really took off in the early 90s but had been around as 'Laser Vision' from the late 70's. Pioneer took it on after inventor Philips had lost interest and that is when we started getting some great releases in the UK. CD-I was an early 90s attempt to introduce film on disc to the masses but basically, it was crap! Video CD was the next generation and that took off in the Far East but nowhere else as far as I know. A lot of us liked the idea of CD-I but given the image quality was only comparable with VHS we looked at LaserDisc and liked the quality it offered at the time. It was always going to be second best to Super 8 for true home cinema enthusiasts but it did mean DVD had to at least match LaserDisc which is why we have enjoyed all the extra features and commentaries over all these intervening years because it all started on LaserDisc. Not great on modern equipment but great on old style CRT televisions and some later equipment with analogue video inputs. In other words, it doesn't really work so well with HDMI in my opinion.
John.
@@moviecollector5920 thanks for the information really informative you really know your stuff!
I really enjoy watching your reviews. You don't rush through what you have to say. It's really more like sitting down with a friend and having a conversation about a hobby that one loves and sharing ones likes and dislikes. I first fell in love with movies at quite a young age. A local station out of Atlanta (WSB-TV) used to run a movie after the noon news during the week day. It was called Armchair Playhouse. That's where I first watched those classic Frankenstein, and Dracula, and Wolf Man movies though they scared the bejesus out of me at the time (LOL). Also all those great Tarzan movies with Johnny Weismuller and westerns galore. It was a great alternative to all those banal soap operas that were so popular with housewives back then. Of course we only had a black and white TV set back in those days and there was a lot of static on the picture (we were 50 miles from Atlanta) and sometimes the picture would role but I still enjoyed watching those old movies at such a tender age. Kids today don't know how good they have it. Till next time. Daniel.
Very nice of you to say Daniel. And I agree completely about how youngsters today don't appreciate what they have. Watching films on a telephone doesn't really appeal to me but I suppose my portable DVD player was jolly handy on a regular long train journey 20 years ago so not that different.
I used to keep a record of all the films I saw and sometimes at the weekend there would be four films entered in a single day. That would mainly be television broadcasts but also quite a few Super 8 cut downs and mini-features and the odd trip to the local cinema.
I drove through Atlanta a few years ago on the way to Road Atlanta. One of the best circuits in the USA. That was for a classic race meeting known as The Mitty and my wife and I were there to complete a documentary about a successful works race manager who found success with Triumph and then took Nissan to the top. It was a great trip.
John.
@@moviecollector5920 I'm glad you and the wife enjoyed your trip here. I've always fancied a trip to England where my ancestors hailed from. A lovely country with nice people but my age and health restrictions and finances won't allow me now. Still, thanks to modern technology one can make new friends all over the world. I have a Facebook friend in Ghana. I suppose my ancestry being British explains why I have a love for rain? LOL. Daniel.
@@danielparker3842 Funnily enough I lived in Ghana for a while as a child. I'd like to visit again one day but I'd better leave that for a while given the present situation.
There are some good videos of my favourite place in England on CZcams. Watched Walker and Urban Walking Experience are two chaps whe will take you on a pleasant stroll around the West End of London. Leicester Square is the place where the top cinemas are so see if you can pick out the Empire (my favourite ever cinema) and the Odeon Leicester Square. What history there is in just those two theatres. Lots of their West End walks take detours through Leicester Square and they can be very relaxing and enjoyable. I lived just up the road from there for most of my life.
@@moviecollector5920 the east end of london is that where jack the ripper was.
@@benjaminjensen7834 Yes, Whitechapel Benjamin. That is part of the East End but just a little further over than the City of London which is the world's major financial hub. It's not quite the place it was when the killer (or killers) were stalking the streets for what are known as the 'Jack The Ripper' murders. The East End was heavily bombed by the German Luftwaffe during the second World War and right over to the edge of it is where my father lived. The house had the roof blown off one night and on another occasion a mine was dropped and came down in the garden but fortunately didn't go off otherwise I wouldn't be here typing this right now.
John.
One of my favorites with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Unfortunately they don't make this kind of great movies anymore. In my opinion the best movies were made between 1965 - 2000.
Ad Astra is pretty good mirvmn2 so if you haven't seen that one yet, I think you'll like it. Well, I did anyway and as we have the same taste in movies...
John.
@@moviecollector5920 I've seen Ad Astra and yes it was pretty good :)
Love your channel and great comments! Thank you for your work!
Thank you. Good to have you on here. John.
Great review . I don’t think I’ve ever seen Total Recall. Are you a fan of The Terminator John? I think that’s Arnie’s best. That would be great in 4K , hopefully soon.
The Terminator is one of my very favourite films Danny. We have a first run Super 8 feature print which is extremely good so I won't be getting a copy on video any time soon. But I do know the Blu-ray quality is outstanding cos' I've seen a clip.
If you like Arnie, you should see Total Recall. I think it ranks with his iconic films like Terminator, Predator and Conan (the first one).
Great review as always. Got the dvd will be buying 4k. I also have the shallows on 4k but nit watched yet.
Well I hope you like The Shallows. I wasn't expecting much and was surprised so maybe you will be expecting more now that I've said it's good. We did get it for a tenner from HMV so a veritable bargain.
@@moviecollector5920 it's ok, I got It cheap too. Just not get round to watching.
Good review, I'm very impressed with my 4K copy. Hope RoboCop gets a 4K restoration.
I seem to have missed this comment Stephen - sorry about that. If Robocop does go through an original negative scan at 4K resolution let's hope the end result is about as good as this Total Recall release. Amazing what is being done with some of these 35mm films for the home video market. It's a wonder there's any time for sleep because we could be watching films 24 hours a day now!
John.
@@moviecollector5920 now that would be good 😃
“See you at the party, Richter!”
"You've got a nerve showing your face around here!"
Arnie: "Look who's talking!"
The 1080p suffered from overblown contrast and whites blooming which made colours appear washed out and skin tones pale. Although the 1080p was no slouch for the time as an earlier blu ray release, its the 4k's HDR and black levels that appear most accurate and all the contrast issues are resolved here. I own this 4k steelbook. Check out the 4k steelbook of The Fifth Element if you will, which also is very impressive :)
I'll get to the Fifth Element eventually Ethan. I'll get hold of a 35mm copy of it to compare it against but I know even that won't look as good as how I saw it at the Empire Leicester Square. I will never forget that operatic scene with the planet in the background on that massive screen which will never look as good on anything ever again, not even a general 35mm print. That's because the Empire had a premiere print which - if I'm not talking out my backside - was struck direct from the original camera negative. Nothing will ever compare with that process.
Total Recall was a great release. I know some people are complaining about some digital blocking in one or two of the excessively red scenes but reds have always been a problem for video. I really didn't find them bothersome because the clarity and colour is so damned good that I can forgive the odd imperfection.
John.
@@moviecollector5920 I couldnt see the digital blocking in motion John. I had to freeze frame the point in question and go very close to detect it. Its a very minor squibble to an otherwise excellent transfer. Same was said on 4k copy of Star Wars Empire Strikes back.. in a few scenes on Hoth there was some digital blocking and some frozen grain, although I didnt notice then in motion sat 6 feet away from a 65' screen. Maybe these flaws are inhanced on a projector screen though I still think these would be nit pics.. thanks John. I have only today subscribed to your channel..I find the history and your experiences of film fascinating so I look forward to more content.
@@ethanberry9846 You and I are in complete agreement about the minor digital blocking flaws Ethan. I think some of us just like to complain about things a little too much. Thank you for taking the time to comment and for subscribing of course. Don't know what I'll be reviewing next but I have Ad Astra and 1917 here waiting to be looked at.
John.
@@moviecollector5920 Ad Astra... I was torn between this being a classic slow burn to an average space yarn. This is going to be either an instant classic for some or a load of old tosh for others. I didnt mind it though it dosent call out for a second viewing any time soon. As for the 4k it looked pretty good to my eyes but nothing worth an upgrade from the 1080p in my opinion.. i would be very intrigued to hear your thoughts on this one
Ethan
@@ethanberry9846 I find that too often there is little or no perceptible difference between the Blu-ray and the 4K. But I enjoy a good ol' science fiction bit of escapism so as long as some of the space scenes look good I expect I'll like it. Thank you for your thoughts though which are a help to play down my expectations and that is often a good thing when going into a film for the first time.
just saw it recently. worth it for scifi or action fans.
I think just about everyone saw it back in 1990. It was massive at the time... or at least, it seemed that way to me. John.
Very interested to see this video John 🤔 heard some things about the transfers that didn't sound to great! 🥴 lovely steelbook though 👌 so how would you rate it next to other titles John? Yeah The Shallows is a really solid movie I think! 🦈🤔👍 many thanks for the mention 🤩🤩🤩👍👍👍
It is a very good image overall John but there is one spot with digital blocking that I initially thought was just my system not coping. It only showed up on the television and not perceptible upon projection but next time I look I think I'll spot it. I think I have the picture setup a bit darker than most would in my attempts to make video look as close to film quality as possible and this maybe hides some deficiencies that others would pick up owing to brightness levels. I'm rather excited to have Total Recall in such high quality and the best ever steelbook I've seen is the icing on the cake.
Hope the drilling next door is finished now!
John.
Hi there. I really enjoyed your review and I'm really looking forward to hearing your thoughts on John Carpenter's Prince of Darkness. I own Prince of Darkness on 4k and I think it's the best its looked to date. I also own Total Recall on 4k too, I purchased the boxset but I was tempted for the Steelbook because of the artwork. However, I couldn't justify both and I wanted the cds and book etc. I have to say that I did think the 4k image on Recall is for the most part excellent, but... I was very disappointed (like Shane over at Sparechange on CZcams) with the macroblocking that appears when the shuttle lands on Mars. It doesn't last for long but it appears over the red sky. The bit rate drops very low during that sequence and apparently the bluray has a higher bitrate at that location!! I think it's an encoding error by Studiocanal. I tweeted them and they replied that their technicians haven't found any issues. I find that strange because I'm not the only one to notice the issue. It might be down to disc space? There are extras on the 4k disc, I'd rather they leave them off or put them on a separate disc and leave the bluray out or keep the bluray in with the original extras on. For 4k, I prefer as high a bit rate as possible for picture and sound. The extras take up space and require the film to be compressed more. Did you spot any macroblocking during the scene I'm referring to? Thank you and keep up the great videos. 👍
I did see digital banding at that point but only when I was looking on my television from a higher vantage point. Looking straight on to both my systems [which are set up to resemble film as closely as possible] I didn't notice but now others have cited the problem I expect it's there. It wasn't noticeable in the home cinema, in fact, I commented how good that sequence actually looked. Next time I run it I'll probably think it looks like crap! I see others have cited the film grain as being a problem but I think that's more due to a lack of understanding of how film works. Blow the image up to a massive scale and I think film grain will be less obvious in the darker sequences and optical effects shots.
I have other 4K discs where digital banding is much more prevalent but it could be an issue between my player and the video projector on those specific discs rather than a definite mastering fault. All our systems vary.
@@moviecollector5920 --:Thank you for your reply, I appreciate it. The grain doesn't bother me to be honest, I accept that it is part of being shot on film stock and inherently in the negative. Thanks again and thanks for the videos.
@@MarkTallen The grain also seems to be more apparent on these discs than it is on any 35mm print I have. But I need to check that before I make any categoric statements in a future video. Film is random grain by its very nature whereas once a print is transferred to video it's fixed. I know that's obvious but it may have a bearing.
Paul Verhoeven is such a good action film director. It's a shame his sense of humour isn't appreciated properly.
I suspect both you and I appreciate it winsomehax!
John.
i maintain that if Showgirls had been released in the modern era it would have hardly been as critically panned and may even have been acclaimed as a feminist film. verhoeven is such an excellent satirist
@@Ariel_emerald There is indeed a movement to reclaim Showgirls as a successful satire rather than a failed drama. But satire is always more difficult for an audience. Indeed, I must confess I misunderstood Verhoeven's Starship Troopers when I first saw it.
Fantastic review, it is a thoroughly entertaining movie.
And even more so with this exceptional 4K release Stephen. To be able to reproduce such reds on video is astounding even if there are one or two glitches that can be picked out if you want to be picky. Nothing that detracts from the film as far as I'm concerned.
John.
Hoping for a 4k of Conan and Commando
True Lies is probably the Arnie movie that would be most popular Greengrass. Commando was released full length on Super 8 in about 1992 and it looked absolutely fabulous so that almost guarantees that a 4K disc release would be great.
John.
Hello, possible to tell me if there is French audio on the blu-ray 4k should put the blu-ray 4k in the player is not marked on the flyers thank you in advance
I've just checked it and French is actually the default. I think I included a shot of the first menu screen that displays and the top of the four options in French. There are also French sub-titles so you're good to purchase.
Hi John, have you done a video on the room you have set up? I think it would be really good to see it. Keep up the good work
I have Karlazune. It's the Home Cinema Tour video. I didn't state in that video that the video projector is an Optoma UHD550X - I didn't think people would be particularly interested in that but it turns out that they are.
John.
@@moviecollector5920 thanks, I am using the CZcams app on the fire stick and it doesn’t show things up on a channel as well as my computer. Will have a look. Have a good day
@@Karlazune This should take you straight in: czcams.com/video/jQ7uxYv3zbY/video.html
@@moviecollector5920 I watched it. Brilliant stuff. I hope you are detached with a big Thx system like that!
I watched your home theater tour video. I don't think you said which projector you have. I'm sorry if I missed it. But, that's my question. What projector do you have?
Optoma UHD550X is the video projector. Elmo GS1200's for Super 8, Ging Gan Shan 'Spectra' 35mm, Bell & Howell 16mm and a bunch of others of all manner of gauges.
@@moviecollector5920 thank you very much. I like you set up and your honesty.
Hate to say; Dolby Atmos and standard 5.1 aren't the same thing
To upgrade my system into Dolby Atmos would be in excess of £5K. As it is, the Pioneer/Kef THX Ultra I have is too big for the room so it can wait. When you've enjoyed THX for almost 20 years you can understand why I don't want to mess it up with cheaper speakers and a budget amplifier. But one day when I have a bigger home cinema I'll enjoy throwing even more money on an even better system. By then though something else will have come along - Datasat perhaps. John.
I'm happy that i got the box,it was a bit expensive but its one of my all time favorite films so its worth it! i still have my steelbook dvd that's a round box with the surface of mars hehe
It's certainly a very nice package. The steelbook isn't quite so appealing in terms of what you get within it, but the artwork styling is possibly the best I've seen. It's a thing of beauty. Maybe if they come down in price sometime it might be worth you snapping one of those up too... but only if it's really cheap. John.
@@moviecollector5920 yes i agree the artwork on steelbook is truly amazing. for me paying extra for the box set was worth it with everything that was included. they released the score on vinyl as well for the first time a couple of months ago but i missed out on that and its now sold out and the vinyl goes for crazy money on ebay. but i hope that one day i will be able to get it as i also collect scores/soundtracks on vinyl :) cheers John!
@@funkmachine9094 If I'd have known the soundtrack was released on vinyl, I'd have snapped up a copy. Damn it!
Great review John 👌👍👌
Thanks as always Roy.
Have you ever listened to the score to Joe dantes 'the burbs'? Some of goldsmiths finest work.
No, I haven't but I must get a copy of that film and then I can listen to the score and enjoy the movie at the same time. I love that film... particularly when Bruce Dern's character falls off the roof!
John.
@@moviecollector5920 there is an upload of the deluxe edition here on CZcams. I've got the varese limited edition, and recently it was put out by waxwork records on vinyl!
@@tbip2001 I shall have a look for that CZcams upload and have a listen. Thank you for telling me.
NC-17. What kit have you got?
Lots of it but I see I have one or two other comments from you so let me get to those first. John.
Great video!
Thank you.
John.
I thought Studio canal did a great job with this. The HDR on my tv looked stunning. I doubt this will ever be bettered now
I too thought the HDR was excellent although someone out there did a review to say it was somewhat poor. Apparently the digital blocking that is vaguely visible during the Mars landing sequence upset the reviewer. It was there on both my systems but deep reds on video have always been problematic so just that one minor problem on an otherwise flawless 4K disc was fine with me. John.
@@moviecollector5920 Are you going to be doing a Lord of the Rings 4k review John ? Be interesting to hear your thoughts. I know some have not been happy with the presentation
@@russell22w I'm not planning on it Russell as I saw the first film at the Odeon Leicester Square and while it would be unfair to say that I thought it was awful, I think the poor image quality had a lot to do with it. I didn't know about the low quality computer work that was done at the time and that was probably why it came across as such a dull film. I didn't see the sequels as a result but I did purchase the 'Scope trailers on Super 8 and they are fabulous. So I'm sure I'll enjoy them when I do get to see them but as I'm not currently the best person to do an extensive video on these much loved films I've been working on Keith at Euphoria Pictures to do it as he has a wonderful Lord of the Rings collection. He's the man for the job! John.
No Atmos setup?
Nope! Not room for it given this is THX Ultra.
Did you get to see Frank Zappa at Hammersmith Odeon?
I didn't see Frank Zappa Bob. But I saw just about everyone else! Most amazing experience there was Status Quo when they played 'Roll Over Lay Down' (second track after 'Caroline' way back then) and I was on the balcony which was moving up and down about 18 inches because everyone on there was jumping to the beat. Bloody frightening I can tell you. It's amazing it didn't collapse.
John.
@@moviecollector5920, it's all good. That show is an official release. I recommend it.
@@bobhuber8480 I see what you mean now Bob. I'll take a look.
John.
Come on John, you got my like. Give us people some reviews! 😉
We're running the 4K of the 1978 Superman tonight so that may be next. 'Ad Astra' is coming too so that may be another 4K review soon.
@@moviecollector5920 Ad Astra A1 great movie + RIP the real SUPERMAN Chris Reeves
@@jimcameron1234 'Ad Astra' arrived yesterday - yippee! And today I'll be working on the 'Superman' review which is proving interesting. It's like two different transfers: a rather poor first 35 minutes and then a stunner.
John.
Oh dear, I though Ad Astra was poor. Plot holes, and got quite silly as it went on. But it is nice to see big-looking science fiction films still being made.
EDIT: I'd recommend the George Clooney/Steven Soderbergh film Solaris as doing a similar thing but better. There are rumours of a 4K release of Solaris but nothing is out yet.
Tomorrow’s watch on the new projector, or for you today!
Sounds like you're having a great time right now Gary. I think Total Recall is a cracking 4K. 35mm on a disc again. John.
@@moviecollector5920 Too much fun!
@@moviecollector5920 had an Arnold double feature, after Total Recall watched Running Man, a German 4K Digibook. If you like the movie an excellent transfer.
@@garyharper2943 I do like The Running Man. I still have it on VHS and it's a lot of fun. "I'll be back!" "Only in a re-run!" Classic! Directed by Paul Michael Glaser after the original director was dismissed I believe. John.
@@moviecollector5920 You definitely need to look into the German 4K Digibook, you can buy something on my recommendation, for a change!
You forgot you had a CD called Total Recall.
Yep! Sad isn't it?
John.
I really like your videos and this is meant as some constructive feedback, but this is like a history of Total Recall rather than a 4k blu ray review. Perhaps do a bit more reviewing of the 4k?
Fair point. But it is the history of the film that's interesting and a major reason why we've come to be able to enjoy it in 4K. The steelbook is worth the investment alone irrespective thinking about it now. And I don't usually care for steelbooks much at all. John.
Color grading looks really odd on that remaster. I prefer how it looked on the 2012 remaster. Also, no mention on how Studio Canal did a poor job regarding compression? Just watch the landing shot on Mars on the bottom right and the very final shot on top right, just plain ugly and annoying.
Turn the brightness down on your picture because it only just shows up on both of my systems. Apart from that one minor issu, the Total Recall release is excellent. Amazing to have it in filmic quality after all these years.
@@moviecollector5920 The Italian release from another company is told to be better than the one from Studio Canal.
@@BeberDag130482 I am so happy to have this film in the quality that has been transferred to this 4K disc that there is no way I'm going to bother purchasing it ever again (unless the disc gets nicked or suffers laser rot or something). What we are looking at with this Studio Canal video is near 35mm quality. That is amazing to me and was unimaginable less than 20 years ago. Things have come a long way in a short time. John.
Mr.collector do Star Wars super 8 film on ebay
Is there a feature copy available on Super 8 at the moment Marko? I gave away my original 400ft Super 8 Ken Films selected scenes reel 1 but I do still have the second reel in 'Scope as well as two copies of the Derann feature release. Neither copy is brilliant but a colleague has the original review print and that is a bit better so it wasn't too bad originally.
John.
Bring on True Lies
There has been a Blu-ray release in Europe somewhere but I think it was a transfer from a 35mm print so it won't be as good as it can be. Looks fabulous on PAL LaserDisc though so maybe that Blu-ray would be quite surprising. John.
cutthroat island the movie flop ended carolco,,
Wasn't that a shame? I really like Cutthroat Island even though it's a complete load of tosh really. Such good fun and fabulous to look at. It also helps that the PAL LaserDisc is one of the best ever image quality LaserDiscs and in a beautiful gatefold to boot. John.
John, i liked that line where the geezer with the hideously deformed moosh (face) says to him: "You gotta` lotta` nerve showing your face around here", and he says back to the geezer: "Look whos talking". Truly hilarious. And bit where the geezer says to the bird: "You're gonna' be submissive, compliant, appreciative, passive, and ALWAYS sexually available", i had such a lot of fantasys about Rachel Ticotin where she always possessed those 5 key character traits, that slag was gorgeous, even tastier than Sharon Stone. BTW John, i still think the ludicrously under-rated 2012 remake is a marginally better movie, there are 5 or 6 truly outstanding chase sequences in that film that are all quite amazing, combine that with the stunning beauty and desirability of Jessica Biel and Kate Beckinsale and you`ve got yet another criminally under-rated science fiction classic.
John, who did you think was the more gorgeous bird, Sharon Stone or Rachel Ticotin ?.
Sharon Stone. But I think Sharon Stone is even more beautiful today than she was back then... as if that is even possible! John.
@@moviecollector5920 Yeah, admittedly the bird did have an incredible boat-race in 1989 at the time of principal photography when she was 31. I haven't actually seen any really recent pictures of the bird but if you say she's still a tasty bird at the age of 64 i'll take your word for it.
@@wernerherzog3502 She appears in the extras made recently for the 4K of Basic Instinct. She seems to be a genuinely nice lady and as far as I'm concerned she looks lovely and even more attractive than she did when making Total Recall and Basic Instinct. Could just be that I'm getting old of course and my taste has changed from sexy young ladies to more mature gals. John.