Why was plot of Mars replaced in Total Recall (2012)?
Total Recall (2012) and Total Recall (1990) both are loosely based on the Philip K. Dick short-story We Can Remember It for You Wholesale. But Mars is the major part of the original story as well as 1990's movie . But what is the reason of eliminating the plot of Mars from the movie Total Recall (2012).
Is it just to distinguish it from the original movie or any other reason?
Mars is a very good element of story and they can do so many creative thing within Mars which is not possible in 1990. So what is the need to completely remove it from script?
Best Answer
The director, Len Wiseman, explains in an interview with ScreenRant:
SCREENRANT:
You said that you wanted to stay a bit closer to the Philip K. Dick story. How do you think you’ve done that with this film?
LEN WISEMAN:It’s a combination of more of a tone that I’d say is familiar with with the short story. Our biggest difference with the Verhoeven film is that we don’t travel to Mars. Which – the book never goes to Mars, as well. They talk about it, but it all takes place on Earth, and it’s actually, for those who know the book, the imminent threat is actually about invasion on Earth. And so we incorporated a lot of those ideas. But I really think it’s a fun combination of a lot of things that are familiar from the story, things that are familiar from Verhoeven, and things that are entirely original to our own film.
From an interview with ScreenCave:
LEN WISEMAN:
... the short story actually never travels to Mars. The threat is actually an invasion to Earth… Quaid or Quail is put in position to hopefully stop this invasion from happening to Earth. But Dan O’Bannon, who I think was the first writer on that one, took creative license to go in the other way of creating the alien aspect of it.
... When people go, ‘Well if this doesn’t go to Mars then it’s not really inspired by Philip K. Dick.’ I go, ‘Wow, you guys. It didn’t even go to Mars.’ ...
From an interview with MTV:
MTV:
Will we see Mars?
LEN WISEMAN:We won't see Mars. And I got to say, it's one of the things that attracted me to the script, because I really, I along with a lot of other people, I really loved the Verhoeven film. I was very skeptical on just the reboot, just the idea. And until I read the script, with a lot of speculation going, it takes it in such a different direction from that film. Because it didn't go to Mars, funny enough, is why I was interested. And it's also just like I said: It plays a little bit into the threat of what the Philip K. Dick story had of, much more of bringing the threat back, really Doug's mission to save Earth, not Mars.
Pictures about "Why was plot of Mars replaced in Total Recall (2012)?"
Is Total Recall 2012 set on Mars?
Unlike the first film, the setting is on a dystopian Earth, not Mars. The film blends American and Asian influences, notably in the settings and dominant populations of the two nation-states in the story: the United Federation of Britain (Western Europe) and the Colony (Australia).Does Total Recall take place on Mars?
Plot. In 2084, Mars is a colonized world under the tyrannical regime of Vilos Cohaagen, who controls the mining of valuable turbinium ore. On Earth, construction worker Douglas Quaid experiences recurring dreams about Mars and a mysterious woman.Why are there mutants on Mars in Total Recall?
Coming in various shapes and sizes, the Mutants are considered a degenerate class in the Total Recall universe since they were created from poor shielding against Mars' relatively high radiation levels. Therefore, the only jobs we see them holding are fortune tellers and prostitutes in the Venusville district of Mars.The Ending Of Total Recall Explained
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