this post was submitted on 31 Mar 2026
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Great short story, originally. I guess the movie version wasn't terrible, by Hollywood standards.
Seems like with the very first PKD adaptation turning in to a cult classic ("Blade Runner"), studios have been trying to make hay with his stories ever since.
Both Total Recall and Screamers started as Dan O'Bannon projects that went into development hell.
The movie version played it straight so can't really complain about that. The Game of Ur in the beginning was cool little detail. Peter Weller does some heavy lifting with his world weary demeanor. The end scene with teddy bear is chef's kiss reinvention of the story finale. There's also Roy Dupuis hamming it up which is always a good thing.
Hmm, I don't remember them playing the Royal Game of Ur in the beginning. Do you remember if they did that in the short story? ("Second Variety" I think it was)
Total Recall for all its problems was a Hollywood and Arnie masterpiece to me. Okay, maybe not in the top tier of films, but damn good for what it was, on the level of the first couple Terminator movies and Aliens. Did you happen to catch the remake? ...because I have no real desire to see them mess with a classic.
The Royal Game of Ur is just a background detail in the very beginning of Screamers - my first specialty was ancient history - so that kind of thing nerded me out big time back in the day.
As for Total Recall, Verhoeven wisely did his thing. The O'Bannon/Cronenberg version was much more ambitious and it was basically a kafkaesque political thriller - think of Parallax View except the antagonist and protagonist are the same and it's basically a infernal endless suffering loop.
The remake is just there. not great not awful. just like the Robocop remake - it never commits to do anything in particular. it got some good stuff in-between, the visuals are good and Kate Beckinsale is oddly effective as Richter character. It has the same bones as Verhoeven's movie so it's doesn't go wrong in that regard. The face change was a nice if underdeveloped touch.
Is there a community where people introduce themselves to each other, and... the populace at large? Seems like we've been chatting all the time this week (which is cool IMO), but I didn't know you had a BG in ancient history, and I love that. Maybe we could do a proper intro, somewhere?
no idea