Upgrade

Ein effektvolles Upgrade einer Revenge-Prügelei. Die Geschichte ist einfach wie die alten "Karate-van-Damme-Filme“, die futuristische Dimension erinnert im Rahmen vom niedrigeren Budget eher an den ersten Terminator. Die originellen Details sorgen für einen innovativen Action-Science-Fiction-Film, der vielleicht zu einer kleinen Kult-Angelegenheit werden könnte. Whannell war eine Überraschung, Wan selbst wäre nicht imstande, den Film besser zu machen. (04.10.2018)

This is one of those films where the plausible psychological evolution of the main character, following a brutal attack and the loss of his beloved wife, is completely brushed aside and subordinated to him being able to joke and be tough, immediately after getting “superpowers”. To be clear, in this particular case it didn’t bother me at all, but it’s worth noting in case someone went to this film expecting some serious technological sci-fi. Upgrade is nothing but a light-weight B-movie. A quality and proud B-movie with a lot of nice ideas, plenty of original tricks and a confident technical aspect. I would compare it a little to the new Dredd, but as an experience, Upgrade is a notch higher. What’s fun is that many of the things that seem silly while watching make a lot more sense when you understand the points. On the other hand, I’m not quite sure whether everything that makes sense while watching, still make sense in hindsight. In any case, I’m happy that, after five years, Whannell has written something interesting again, and happier still that he found a director. (15.08.2018)

Actually, I have no words. Upgrade is one hell of a cyber punk movie. A clever hard-core sci-fi, with the actor in the leading role who from now on should appear only in the best blockbusters (and I don't mind that he is an Australian copy of Thomas Hardy, known from the series Quarry) and especially with the story which can at any moment explode into a rollercoaster of emotions that the audience cannot handle all no matter how hard they try. One more exciting aspect is that you cannot expect or predict this explosion. I have not seen such a well-written and well-filmed sci-fi with such a good atmosphere and music in a long time. (23.12.2018)

Grey's wife was just killed by a group of thugs and he ended up in a wheelchair. But his days aren't over, thanks to an experimental chip and artificial intelligence, he's started walking again and can get his revenge, and the computer in his body is willing to help him do it. Upgrade is an action-packed B-movie that's surprisingly smarter than it looks at first glance. Plus, it has some great uncompromising and brutal action, so it's fun to watch. It's just a shame there wasn't someone more capable and charismatic in the lead role. But it's still very much above average in its genre. (24.08.2018)

Wie lautet die beste Rachemethode? Den inneren Automaten anwerfen und das Gewissen ausschalten. Optisch und akustisch handelt es sich um ein souveränes Werk, welches in der ersten Hälfte hin und wieder wie ein mechanischer Streich aussieht, jedoch am Ende die Zweifel aus dem Weg räumt. Ein blutiger und realistischer Cyberpunk, der clever mit minimalistischem Bühnenbild sowie verzerrten Aufnahmen und einem Soundtrack arbeitet, durch welchen Erinnerungen an "Deus Ex"... geweckt werden ... Ich installiere! Ex Machina ohne unnötiges Schlaumeiertum, eine tolle Mischung aus B-Film-Spannung A-Film-Lösungen. (31.08.2018)

A cyberpunk buddy movie in the form of a likeable and straightforward dirty old-school genre flick that isn't afraid to lightly poke fun at the not-at-all silly Black Mirror influences. You can hardly ask more from a cheap B-movie. (05.09.2018)

Uncompromising action mayhem orgasm! Leigh Whannell, writer of Insidious and Saw, tries directing for the second time and it turns out great. Logan Marshall-Green, who has a Tom Hardy vibe, excels in the lead role and you root for him throughout the film. For the first time in a long while, a truly original film unlike anything I had seen before, and the action scenes are awesome, with no blood or violence spared. Combining my favourite sub-genre of revenge in a high-tech jacket was a great choice and suits the film perfectly. I find the fights (the final one is a treat) and the denouement satisfying as well. Although it is hardly a horror film at all, it is a solid action-sci-fi-revenge thriller. 85%. (14.08.2018)

Tolle Atmosphäre, die nach Cronenberg duftet, minimalistische Darstellung einer düsteren Zukunft, offene Brutalität bei Tötungsakten, schön aufgenommene Kampfszenen und - ähm - Tom Hardy in der Hauptrolle. Auf jeden Fall super Arbeit für das kleine Geld. (80%) (25.08.2018)

In an interview with Joe Rogan, Elon Musk mentioned that he was about to announce something interesting in the area of connecting the brain with the digital world (this was immediately forgotten, because the newspapers only wrote about him smoking a joint with Joe). If this is what he had in mind, then we have something to look forward to. Whannell’s Upgrade is surprising both with its excellent action scenes and a story that works great. It's like Robocop, but more realistic, and it certainly has something to say with its nice ending and captivating visuals. Even though it has a bit of a B-movie plot, it has a lot of heart – and no shortage of blood. (09.09.2018)

The most original little big cyberpunk B-movie in at least a few years. It has all the ideas, the swagger, the brilliant action and the blown heads that fans of revenge sci-fi need in regular doses every now and again. The production design is intentionally understated, with post-rock music that gives it the right mysterious atmosphere and moderate clear action without big military passages like in the Terminator franchise, but with a story that allows the filmmakers to indulge in relatively breakneck excesses. Whannell knows exactly how to mix this shake. Great fun. (25.08.2018)

John Wick trifft RoboCop und Black Mirror. Ich habe mich amüsiert und es kam mir überhaupt nicht dumm vor. Die Welt der Zukunft hat mich damit überrascht, wie durchdacht sie ist, und ich war von allen originellen Implantaten begeistert, besonders von den Waffen. Obwohl keine Zeit für eine detaillierte Erklärung des Handelns des Haupthelden oder für eine Verwunderung darüber, was er macht, ist, hat man sich mit dem Plot Mühe gegeben. Alles wird schwungvoll im Laufe der Geschichte geklärt, dank der Regie hat das Werk Stil und dank dem Drehbuch ergibt es Sinn. Der letzte Film, der mir solch eine Freude machte, war wahrscheinlich District 9. (07.10.2020)

It’s fun when a futuristic idyll turns into Death Wish under the baton of a smart-ass computer like out of Space Odyssey. It’s even more fun when Whannell doesn’t give a crap about the characters and serves one interesting idea after another so thoughtful viewers would not get bored and would not mind that they can see far into the premise. A narration without major peaks, but also without hesitation and with an ending that arrives at the right moment and doesn’t disappoint. For a little love, a lot of attractive fun. (01.11.2018)

A proudly entertaining action B-movie. When was the last time we had anything like this? As a bonus, an interesting gimmick in the fight scenes, a bit of the whole splatter and respect thing, oh the things you can do with five million. Never mind that the script was hashed out over a few beers and dishes out sequences like "CEO of a huge tech company, I'd like you to meet my wife, who works for your competitor." "Geez, well you should have said that right away, I was going to show you a super-secret prototype of the best technological gadget I have here." I guess it kinda goes with the territory. (30.11.2018)

This film was a pleasant surprise. The Australian filmmakers made a film with a great atmosphere, well-managed action, decent suspense and even a great twist. The whole time I had no idea who the main villain was and – well, go figure... But what I loved most of all was that the creators avoided scenes full of pathos and moralizing, although they had a lot of opportunity for that. I can imagine how it would turn out under the supervision of the Big Brother... (01.11.2018)