Upgrade

Movie Name: Upgrade
Year of Release: 2018

Director: Leigh Whannell

Stars: Logan Marshall-Green, Harrison Gilbertson, Benedict Hardie, Melanie Vallejo, Betty Gabriel, Simon Maiden, Linda Cropper, Christopher Kirby, Clayton Jacobson
Genre: Action, Horror, Sci-Fi

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
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Synopsis:

Actor, writer, director, Leigh Whannell has made a successful name for himself across multiple disciplines, and multiple projects he's been responsible for. He was the creator (with James Wan) of the "Saw" series, and also "Insidious", having also acted in films such as "The Conjuring" and even further back, "The Matrix Reloaded". "Upgrade" is his second directorial effort, following "Insidious: Chapter 3" and focuses on the story of Grey Trace. The film takes place in a near future, where self driving cars have become impeccably done, and where technology has completely integrated itself into house, security and medical living. Grey makes a living creating cars that are all about the mechanical components, with little to no contact with technology. Upon delivering his latest project to a very well known tech businessman, Grey and his wife get attacked on their way home. His wife gets killed, and Grey is shot in his back, rendering him a quadriplegic. His client, Eron, comes forth with a solution under the guise of a chip, that once inserted in his organism can give him the opportunity to start walking again. The chip, by the name of Stem, does more than that - Stem is AI, and starts giving Grey not only the opportunity to walk, but also trace what happened to his wife.
"Upgrade" is an extremely interesting film from Leigh Whannell, borrowing elements from different sources, but still creating something fresh and very relevant to how society currently is envisioning and fearing technology and the relationship with humans. There's definitely an aesthetic that Whannell has borrowed from his associate James Wan, and his lean approach to the action proceedings is also reminiscent from the style of Don Siegel in the 70s. But where the film reaches a superlative take, is in its influences that seem to digest what David Cronenberg did with his films focused on body horror, and how the human body can be shifted ("Videodrome" from 1983 for instance), something that here gets taken to a very interesting level. The mix of the biological with the technology, with the hardware within the bodies is simultaneously interesting and surprising, very much like the ending. It's a film that packs an interesting punch, violent, but one that is definitely worth watching.