I am reviewing the special edition with commentary

I bought this cause I haven't seen it in a long time and it said it had a ton of special features.

Well I am here to tell you that the special features are plentiful and they are very good.

The thing that i was dissapointed about was the commentary. It is the director and arnold talking, and they give you some very informative info on how arnold financed this movie, and how minority report was originally total recall two. But arnold ends up ruining the commentary for me. he keeps satimg "watch, watch this, I am a woman here and my head is about to explode, ok here it is". This goes on for most of the commentary and is really annoying. I was at least expecting it to be funny because it was so stupid, but arnold is just plain stupid.

So overall a really good movie, good special features, and an ok commentary.

The last really good practical-effect sci-fi movie?

A friend and I were discussing the other day about how CGI has come to be used (and over-used) in sci-fi these days. This has produced some mindblowing movies that represent virtually a new golden age of sci-fi and fantasy, and yet, not ever director is capable of using CGI properly. That led us to discuss the "old way" of doing things: practical effects. Of course, the last great era of practical specisl effects began in the late seventies with Alien and Star Wars, but when did that era end? What was the last really good practical-effect sci-fi movie?

Of course, that depends on how you define "good".

For my money, I say "Total Recall" is the best choice. The stop-motion decompression effects are very memorable in a good, but gross way.

Away from effects, of course, "Total Recall" is a good movie in it's own right. It may be the best movie Arnold ever did, even if it's not necessarily his best performance. Being larger than life, Arnold tended to gravitate toward tales that were "black and white", but "Total Recall" got him into some gray areas, which he played well. The fine script keeps the viewer slightly off-balance throughout, as you never are 100 percent sure where it's going until it takes you there.

"Total Recall" is a fine film all around, whether it represents the end of an era or not.

Fast paced, fairly entertaining

This is a fast paced, fairly entertaining science fiction action movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. I'm sure you all know that already.

An average man who dreams of going to Mars visits a company that implants false memories, and there his real memories of being a spy on Mars are revealed.

He discovers his whole life is a sham - actually, the movie is an early ontological thriller, like The Matrix, where our perceived basis for reality is undermined.

Maybe I'm reading too much into an action movie, but it was based on a short story by SF master Philip K. Dick.