Upgrade (2018)

This has nothing to do with the Blake Crouch novel of the same title. Pity; that could make a great movie. This one is only vaguely similar in premises, but at least it promised to be similarly exciting.

A few decades from now, in an unspecified U.S. city, thugs paralyze mechanic Grey Trace (Logan Marshall-Green) from the neck down and murder his wife, Asha (Melanie Vallejo). Engineering genius Eron Keen (Harrison Gilbertson), one of Grey's customers, offers him a computer chip called STEM to let him move the rest of his body, but since STEM isn't government-approved yet, he must keep it secret and pretend to still be quadriplegic. Little does Grey know that STEM has a mind of its own and can speak (with Simon Maiden's voice) such that only he can hear. Indeed, STEM's superior mental acuteness and reflexes help him track down and take on his attackers when the police have had no luck.

As fun as it can be to watch this dynamic duo of sorts bring thugs to justice, not least when the camera takes on a video-gamey perspective, this isn't a sheer revenge flick like John Wick or The Crow. Grey's actions come to look like a bad idea on multiple levels. First, despite STEM trying to erase evidence, Police Detective Cortez (Betty Gabriel) becomes increasingly suspicious that he's not as incapacitated or innocent as he acts. Second, Eron attached strings to his "gift" and threatens to shut it down remotely if Grey keeps doing what he disapproves. Third, the thugs in question have their own bionic upgrades, more suited for combat, so they won't be easy foes. Fourth...well, again, STEM has a mind of its own, and an earlier scene shows a reason Grey's been leery of relying on AI. If nothing else, STEM is too coldly calculating and gruesomely brutal for his mores.

Funny to think this came out six years ago. Yes, self-driving cars were already a reality, but the ones herein resemble Cybertrucks, and it feels like the bulk of worrisome AI advances have been more recent. At the same time, it's kind of odd to see characters thinking Grey crazy when he talks aloud to STEM, instead of assuming he's on a Bluetooth or whatnot.

I don't recognize the names of anyone involved, not even the production companies. That may be just as well, because I brought no preconceptions. Everyone does at least an adequate job. OK, some viewers want better effects, but I didn't notice any misfires.

To call the ending happy is a real stretch, but I did feel better than before I started Upgrade. It is as thrilling and mentally stimulating as I'd hoped.