Review of Upgrade (2018) by Rodney W — 14 Jun 2018

I love a good revenge film, especially one that doesn't take itself too seriously. Upgrade is like that. It's a sci-fi thriller-action-comedy with an intensity that hardly ever lets up, action sequences that are laughably gruesome, and a surprising amount of heart.

Grey's wife is murdered and he's paralyzed. He gets a computer chip augmentation that doesn't only allow him to walk again; when he gives full control to the computer (named Stem) he can kick all kinds of ass. The premise isn't the most original one but it doesn't need to be. The protagonist is skeptical of electronics and where they're leading society, and then suddenly he's lost everything and he needs a computer to even function. And not only can he function, he can exact revenge on all of those sons-of-bitches that ruined his life.

The vengeful path he takes is a blast to watch, and the look on Grey's face when Stem first takes over and completely wrecks a bad guy with the body it's been given control of is hysterical. As I said, this is not a movie that takes itself seriously, but when it is serious it hits home.

The pain of losing everything, including the basic functions of his body is delivered in a way that is effective even though so much of it feels like a joke. The themes of human reliance on electronics, and their capability to outgrow us and make us obsolete are ones that have been discussed and portrayed on the big screen countless times, but I don't know if it's ever been as fun to watch as it is here.

All of this in a film where a man gets his head blown to pieces with the gun implanted in his own arm. Hell yes, it's a must-see; as long as you aren't squeamish.

I give it five snot-nanobots out of five.