10 Movies That Clearly Foreshadow Their Own Plot
7. Total Recall - Blue Skies On Mars
Total Recall consistently toys with with what's real and what's not, putting Doug Quaid into a machine that implants fake memories taken out of a Wowcher catalogue to get some much needed excitement in his life. Quaid chooses the spy package, which results in the film playing out as if the Rekall machine has broken from memories that already existed, suggesting a previous life as a secret agent.
It's never quite ascertained whether this is all a just creation of the Total Recall experience and we're simply watching what he paid for, as all the plot points he selected end up happening but seem to have been born from coincidentally matching his established past life - that is, until the very end.
The worker in Rekall tells Quaid as he settles into the machine he'll see 'blue skies on mars' as a way of emphasising the unreal brain trip he's going to be sent on. It's a throwaway comment, but as Mars's atmosphere becomes breathable at the film's climax, the skies turn blue. It all but confirms that it is definitely a dream he's living, as even if you believe in coincidence: this one is definitely pushing the mark...