Rating: ***
Director: Paul Verhoeven
Cast: Arnold Scharzengger, Sharon Stone, Michael Ironside
Another Verhoeven film that could have been done much better by someone else. A rather poor adaptation of a Philip K. Dick short story, Arnold Schwarzenegger is a man who's being plagued by resurfacing memories of Mars and flashbacks of things that he can't recall ever doing. He decides to take a virtual trip to Mars that actually ends up being a real trip to Mars (or does it?), and the bad guys are chasing him around, hoping to catch him before his memory fully returns. Except that they really want it to, because he used to be in their employ and he accepted a mission to join the revolutionary party, but his memory had to be wiped first. Confusing? Yeah, but it works pretty well and keeps the viewer guessing. Unfortunately, Verhoeven spoils the tone of the film with too much camp and ultra-violence, but most of the effects are pretty cool. And Sharon Stone is actually quite attractive for a change.