Total Recall (1990)
Get ready for the ride of your life.
Construction worker Douglas Quaid's obsession with the planet Mars leads him to visit Rekall, a virtual vacation company that manufactures memories. When something goes wrong during Quaid's memory implant procedure, his life turns upside down, leading him to question what is reality and what isn't.
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| Type | Movie |
|---|---|
| Released | 1 June 1990 |
| Genre | Action, Adventure, Science Fiction |
| Director | Paul Verhoeven |
| Starring | Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin and Sharon Stone |
| Runtime | 113 min |
| Rated | R |
| Scores | Rotten Tomatoes (average) 7.4/10 · Rotten Tomatoes 80% · Metacritic 60/100 · IMDb 7.5/10 · TMDB users 7.3/10 |
| Budget | $65 million |
| Box office | $261 million worldwide |
Where to watch Total Recall
Total Recall is streaming on Fubo in the US. It is also on Paramount+ ($13.99 a month). If that is the only reason to subscribe, one month of Paramount+ is $13.99 at list price.
We check availability daily. Page last updated 1 November 2026. Prices are standard monthly plans and change often, so check with the service before you sign up.
Rent or buy
You can rent Total Recall on Apple TV and Prime Video. It is also for sale on Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube and Fandango at Home.
Where to watch Total Recall in 14 other countries
| Country | Streaming on (price a month) |
|---|---|
| Andorra | Prime Video |
| Australia | ARD/ZDF |
| Canada | Prime Video $9.99 CAD |
| France | Max €10.99 |
| Ireland | Skygo |
| Italy | Prime Video €4.99 |
| Japan | U-NEXT ¥2189 JPY |
| Monaco | Max |
| Poland | Prime Video 25.99 zł |
| Portugal | Prime Video €4.99, Filmin |
| San Marino | Prime Video |
| Spain | Prime Video €4.99, Filmin €9.99 |
| United Kingdom | Skygo |
| Vatican City | Prime Video |
Subscription, free and ad-supported services we track; prices where Binge Boss has a price list for the country. "About" marks a price the service bills in another currency, converted at the day's rate. All countries as data.
What kind of watch this is
Paul Verhoeven directs this 1990 action sci-fi as a physics-defying fever dream. Arnold Schwarzenegger plays a construction worker whose memory implant goes haywire, sending him into a reality-bending hunt. The film is 113 minutes of pure, unapologetic chaos. It does not ask if you can keep up; it assumes you will be thrown around. The violence is stylized, the stakes are cosmic, and the logic is optional. It is a ride that treats gravity as a suggestion.
What the critics said
Critics found the movie mixed. Rotten Tomatoes gives it an 80% Tomatometer score as of July 2026, while Metacritic lands on a 60/100 Metascore as of January 2026. Audiences were happier, with CinemaScore reporting an average A− grade. Gene Siskel and Peter Travers called the second half "mechanical." Others, like Jonathan Rosenbaum, saw a "worthy entry" in the dystopian genre. The hotel scene was widely cited as the peak, a moment where identity dissolves. The violence sparked debate, with some counting kills and others noting it never felt deliberately sadistic.
How it did with audiences
It cost $65 million and took $261 million worldwide, a spread that film accountants call a triumph and everyone else calls a good year. In the United States, it pulled in $119 million, landing as the second-highest-grossing film of the summer behind Ghost. Audiences on TMDB rate it a 7.3, while IMDb users gave it a 7.5/10 as of February 2026.
What came next for the cast
Arnold Schwarzenegger moved from The Terminator and Predator into a sequels-heavy run, including Terminator 2 and later entries. Sharon Stone stepped out of Police Academy 4 and Above the Law toward Basic Instinct and Casino. Michael Ironside followed Top Gun and Scanners with roles in X-Men: First Class and Nobody. The timeline suggests momentum, but careers rarely hand out cause-and-effect certificates.
If you liked this
TMDB's recommendations for people who watched Total Recall.
Read more: Resident Evil: Extinction · Watchmen
Sources
- Total Recall on TMDB — synopsis, cast, ratings and recommendations
- Wikidata Q222018 — review scores, box office and awards (CC0)
- “Total Recall (1990 film)” on Wikipedia, by its contributors (history) — reception, audience figures and legacy, summarised and adapted here under CC BY-SA 4.0
- Where to watch and prices: Binge Boss, from TMDB watch-provider data (powered by JustWatch) and our own provider list
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