Total Recall

This rip-roaring slice of sci-fi excess remains Arnold Schwarzenegger's most satisfying film since his breakthrough hit, The Terminator. Director Paul Verhoeven, armed with a smart script from Ronald Shusett, Gary Goldman and Dan O'Bannon (itself loosely based on a short story by cult novelist Philip K Dick), cuts loose with a gloriously over-the-top mix of black humour, ultra-violence and spectacular effects. The result was a massive worldwide hit. Schwarzenegger plays the dull construction worker on a futuristic Earth, who is drawn into a conspiracy on the planet Mars when a virtual reality holiday awakens long-dormant memories. Ronny Cox, fresh from his bad-guy role in Verhoeven's RoboCop, delivers another villainous performance, and is ably assisted by Michael Ironside. However, the real find turned out to be Sharon Stone; she had been on the fringes of Hollywood for some time, but it was this performance that led to her star-making role in Verhoeven's next movie, Basic Instinct.