Insidious Chapter 3 gave a small dosage of body horror during the film's climax as the evil ghost became flesh by taking possession of a living human body. Adding to the creep factor is that despite the body's serious injury of two broken legs, the ghoul is able to walk with no problem. Whannell makes this the center piece for in his next film as it stems away from the paranormal and into the technological...
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| Shocker and the Blue Ranger enjoying some quiet time. |
Set in the near future where smart cars and smart houses are commonplace, Grey Trace (Logan Marshall-Green) lives a happy life with his wife Asha (Melanie Vallejo) until the night they are mugged, leaving Asha dead and Grey severely injured. Now a quadriplegic, Grey's ready to give-up on life when he's approached by Eron Keen (Harrison Gilbertson), a tech millionaire who offers him a second chance to walk. With the help of a super-computer chip called STEM, it is inserted inside Grey's body and does more than fulfill its promise. Grey soon discovers that STEM is no ordinary computer chip, as it has a mind of its own and voice (Simon Maiden) only Grey can hear. With STEM's vast quantity of intellectual knowledge and fighting enhancements to his body, Grey uses this new ability to search for his wife's killers but to his horror it gets a little messy when STEM starts calling the shots.
Upgrade begins as a sci-fi movie that descends into a revenge thriller than back into sci-fi but with a sprinkle of horror. It's a brutal but solid sophomoric effort from Whannell who draws inspiration from
Robocop, Total Recall, and
The Terminator. This film could fit right at home in the eighties had it been it made in that decade as like those films
Upgrade does an excellent job on creating its sci-fi universe, establishing its central characters, great action and the layers it has underneath.
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| Eron observing STEM |
One of these being the theme of A.I. and our reliance on technology; going less Spike Jonze's
her and more Alex Garland's
Ex Machina. Technology isn't bad, its how much we allow it to take over oue lives as seen with Grey who allows it and the villains who gleefully accept it. Whannell's mortality theme comes in the form of Grey who like Quinn and Elise from
Chapter 3, suffer a heavy blow and can't let go of that anguish. An unnatural method is employed and while it seems to have promise, the consequences prove fatal.
Even with a small budget, Whannell backs it up with a good script and a good cast as he proved with Saw and Insidious which were made with equally less money and made more than enough at the box-office. Logan Marshall-Green makes for a great lead capturing the dread of having one's body being controlled especially when STEM takes it too far you see the shock on his face as his body goes forward with such brutality and he can't stop or look away. Simon West had never done voice work but he nails it as the voice of STEM, who at first sounds logically sound like KITT from
Knight Rider only to go in the direction of say HAL from
2001: A Space Odyssey. The side characters are done better than in Whannell's previous film, but with the exception of the villains lead by Fisk (Benedict Hardie), they were still a tad one-dimensional like Det. Cortez (Betty Gabriel) who I wished had more to her character than just being the generic suspicious cop though she is given more than a few clever moments.
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| Grey vs Fisk |
Upgrade premiered in the summer of 2018 with positive results critically and financially. It was praised for its originality (and rightly so) and seen as the superior body possession film than
Venom which came out the same year. If you are ever in the mood for an eighties sci-fi throwback than this film is for you. Viewer beware, the violence is graphic, if that's not your thing than I don't recommend it. This is from the writer of
Saw but like the first installment it's able to balance it out with the story and characters for an engaging watch.
Where could Whannell go next?
The recent film from his friend James Wan centered on an iconic character who started from printed pages and spawned various adaptations from the small and big screen. Joining in on the fun, Whannell's next film would also center on a well-known character whom you might know from the classic works of H.G. Wells.......
Trademarks:
Opening Title
James Wan Easter Eggs
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| A picture Billy from Saw can be spotted twice when Grey tries to escape his pursuers |
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| Who knew James Wan was a resident here? |
Hospital:
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| Grey after the accident. |
Damaged Character (Mentally and Physically)
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| Bound to a wheel-chair like Quinn in Insidious 3. |
Room 514
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| Like in Insidious Chapter 3, Grey makes his way to room 514... |
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| ......and like Quinn is unable to stand due to his injured body. |
Ominous Stairs
Invisible Villain (Spoiler)
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STEM is revealed to be the real mastermind,
an invisible threat watching and planning everything including Grey's accident. |
Body Possession (Spoiler)
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Like the villain from Insidious Chapter 3, STEM takes full possession of Grey's body,
despite the bleeding but unlike the ghostly villain, STEM succeeds. |
Behind-the-Scenes:
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| Leigh Whannell |
Final Verdict: B+
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