Sci-fi is often a genre marked by the worst imaginable visions of the future and the apocalyptic horror that will eventually close the human narrative. Sometimes, however, sci-fi can deliver nightmares on a more up close and personal scale, to great effect.
Leigh Whannell is probably best known for his role as the gentleman who doesn't hack his own leg off in the original Saw. More dedicated fans might know that he also wrote the first three Saw films, along with all the Insidious films. He directed Insidious: Chapter 3, then saw great success writing and directing the stellar reimagining of The Invisible Man. Whannell does a ton of work in these huge horror franchises, but he also crafted a great standalone project in 2018's Upgrade.
Upgrade is an action-horror-sci-fi film that proudly represents the cyberpunk subgenre. The story follows Grey Trace, a proud advocate of outdated technology living in a future that has innovated beyond his liking. Grey and his beloved wife Asha are violently mugged, leaving her tragically shot dead and him permanently paralyzed. Vengeful and miserable, Grey is approached by the reclusive tech prodigy who once employed his wife. He proposes a devil's bargain: he'll outfit Grey with a highly advanced neural implant that can give him back full control over his body and allow him to seek revenge. Though Grey finds the technology inherently inadvisable, he takes the deal and allows the super-AI STEM into his body, turning him into something akin to a cyborg. Grey must use his newfound superhuman abilities to uncover a high-tech mystery and avenge himself upon the world that wronged him.
The story of Upgrade is charmingly simple. There are a couple dozen comic book superheroes boasting a near-identical backstory. There's something video-gamey about the brisk path the film takes from its easy opening to the hardcore action scenes. The action scenes are absolutely the draw of the film. Grey is a normal man without any particular fighting skill or tactical know-how, but STEM turns him into an extremely capable puppet. The film got a bit of interesting publicity from the fact that an early scene is borderline identical to the kitchen fight scene from the first act of Venom. The films came out too close to each other to reasonably accuse Sony's first anti-hero adventure of ripping off Upgrade, but it is interesting to see the unique spin on the same concept.
Logan Marshall-Green takes the lead role, portraying Grey with an easy Everyman charisma. He acquits himself extremely well in the film's action scenes, largely because he isn't asked to do the generic growly macho action hero routine. Instead, Grey is an unwilling warrior, constantly terrified by his own combat prowess and the horrific violence he sees himself committing. Blumhouse regular Betty Gabriel turns in a fun performance as a hard-nosed cop investigating Grey's mysterious superpowered killing spree. Australian actor Harrison Gilbertson portrays the slimy Silicon Valley mogul who tempts Grey with STEM. His off-putting villainous role isn't exactly intimidating, but it is a perfect mental threat and grim manipulator. He conveys most of what people find uncanny about real-world tech billionaires with a fair amount of success.
What Leigh Whannell brings to the sci-fi subgenre is a deeply personal focus, a thrilling gory sensibility, and an existentially horrific worldview. The film expertly treads a line between horror and action, while exploring pitch-black comedy throughout. The film was made for only $3 million and saw some fairly impressive returns. Some of the action scenes featured some unique and interesting cinematography tricks that gave the film a very unique look. The narrative's twists and turns aren't groundbreaking, but they are delivered with excellent timing and presentation. The entire film comes across as an idea that could've easily been boring or forgettable, but Whannell and cinematographer Stefan Duscio's creative eyes made it something special. On top of its unique presentation, there are few filmmakers other than Whannell willing to go as dark as Upgrade does, and still be fun the whole way through.
Body horror, cyberpunk sci-fi, dark comedy, fast-paced action, and a classic revenge drama all come together to make Upgrade a solid experience worth its tight 100 minutes. Rumor has it that the film is set to be followed by a TV series, but it remains to be seen how the film could be adapted or followed. For his part, Whannell is set to create, write and direct the series, but he has plenty of other projects going on. He's still set to write the fourth and fifth Insidious films, both of which are still in production. He's also slated to direct a remake of John Carpenter's Escape from New York, but that project seems to be having some trouble escaping pre-production. Upgrade is a very simple film, proving that any idea can be molded into something great with the right execution.