Upgrade

The near future portrayed in science fiction can be rather fascinating to explore depending on the themes the story is conveying, the action sequences involved (if any), how creative the environment is, and/or the depth of the important characters. Examples of this that come to mind include District 9, Elysium, and Robocop. While most films that explore this had a modest budget for the time they came out, very few of these challenge themselves by working with limited resources (at least until most recently). This brings us to Upgrade, a new entry that was made itself depend more on the writing since they couldn't use that much of a Blumhouse production budget and was directed by Leigh Whannell (a writer and producer of the Saw and Insidious movies). The marketing campaign didn't sell this project well with the trailers showing way too much (avoid them if you haven't seen them) as well as having good amount of buzz from SXSW and positive critical reception. I went into the theater ready to see what kind of experience this sci-fi would provide and left it ecstatic at how not only this became one of my favorites of the year but also how it's the type of movie Venom wishes it could be.

Plot: Taking place in the near future where technology has evolved in everyday common usage, the story follows a man who gets a chip installed in his spine after becoming paralyzed following an attack and his quest for revenge on those who were involved. On paper, this is essentially a revenge plot lines many are familiar with at this point and it would need something to help it stand out. Thankfully the execution here is very solid in keeping the exposition simple enough to follow its formula to a tee. It manages to establish the lead protagonists viewpoint on technology right away before shaking up his life and the manner in which he copes with it is great from the actors performance. The pacing feels smooth and somewhat fast enough to carry the audience from point A to B with dragging much. The environment here is nothing too advanced since the movies budget is $3-5 million (which surprised me when I checked it after watching the film), which shows when they show overhead futuristic city shots like a computer desktop screen but then you see most of the filming is done through alleyways, normal houses, and standard warehouses (which implies that this future isn't far off).

There's a critical flaw that holds back this creative thriller from feeling any emotional attachment, which is the characters. While the main protagonist himself is very well fleshed out, the supporting roles and antagonist goons are incredibly underwritten. These isn't much screen time for one in particular who's the motivation for our lead and that weight of his determination is held back when that person is mentioned. The cronies that are being targeted here contribute to the superhero aspect of having weak bland archetypes but they do serve their purpose fine. So while the story itself is creative with its environment and the third act that clenches in great points to finish things off well, the people within the story are limited by their archetypes that they serve.

Characters: The leads to focus on are Grey (Logan Marshell-Green) and STEM (Simon Maiden). Grey is a paralyzed mechanic who gets STEM installed into his spine and goes after those who wronged him. Logan is excellent here as someone with the mindset of preferring doing every day activities by hand instead of relying on technology in his environment. His evolution on his journey is carried well on the actors great range from being depressed in paralyzed state down, his stubborn attitude towards the tech, and the fear he feels during the fights. STEM is an advanced chip device that’s put to into Greys body that not only communicates with him but also helps his brain command his body. Simon’s performance is great in his mannerisms that can be darkly comedic and fascinating to listen to. A dishonorable mention goes to Eron (Harrison Gilbertson) for being his occasional awkward performance and being underwritten.

Action: One of the best aspects of this thriller is how the fights are handled in terms of choreography and camera work. Our protagonist has encounters with augmented individuals and the best way to hold them off is letting STEM take control of his body in order to fight them off. The editing is quick, tight, and coordinated enough to keep up with what’s going on and is entertaining to watch. Just keep in mind that despite the films budget, there’s gore that will shock some people once or twice (at least on screen). The best compliment to surround this is how the fights are so well done it looks like something that costs more than the actual amount. One funny thing to note is the look of horror on the protagonists face when he lets STEM do the fighting and his worried dialog during then is darkly comedic to watch.

Overall Consensus: Upgrade excels at delivering clever storytelling through its strong lead performances, stylistic action, fascinating environment, dark humor, and good soundtrack, despite its character issues. ⭑⭑⭑⭑1/4🍿🎟 Runtime: 1 hour 35 minutes R

Reasons to watch it: You like any of the aforementioned actors. You are looking for a sci-fi flick that challenges itself with limited resources while bringing solid entertainment value. You want to go for a small scaled revenge movie instead of the numerous mainstream blockbuster types. You don't mind some violent gore in fight scenes.

Reasons to avoid it: You dislike any of the aforementioned actors. You aren't looking for a sci-fi flick that challenges itself with limited resources while bringing solid entertainment value. You want to go for the current mainstream blockbusters instead of a small scaled ones. You are sensitive to some violent gore in fight scenes.

Coming up next: June just bounced back with Upgrade, one of the best summer movies thus far! With the anticipated releases coming in each weekend from here on out, our next stop will be something that's been on my radar for quite a while. It's been a while since a horror movie has been covered here and the upcoming entry is going to fix that. Tune in next time as Screening Spectacles will watch and review Hereditary! Like and follow on social media to keep up to date with new movies reviews the summer season will bring!!