That One Scene (Upgrade Edition)
Ever have one scene sell you on an entire movie?
That happened to me a few days ago when I rented Upgrade from Redbox on a whim. I remember hearing good things about it when it was released back in 2018, but other than the general gist of it being an action movie about a man whose body is upgraded with cybernetics, I knew nothing about it, not even the actors involved.
Of course, that’s easily my favorite way to go into a movie. That probably stems from that time I walked into Batman Begins knowing nothing about it besides that it was about Batman — I wasn’t even sure if it was connected to the Burton/Schumacher movies or not — and ended up being blown away by a style unlike anything I had seen in a superhero film up to that point. If I had seen a trailer, it wouldn’t have hit nearly as hard. That’s not to say I’m one of those people who gets unreasonably up-in-arms about spoilers — you can still enjoy something when you know what’s going to happen — but having a plot point or twist, a stylistic choice, or a unique character dynamic sneak up on you out of nowhere and suddenly make the entire film snap into place is one of my favorite things about movies, or stories in general.
(With that in mind, there will be very, very minor Spoilers for Upgrade from here on out)
Upgrade definitely does that with one powerhouse scene, though it doesn’t come until the end of the first act. Up until then the movie is…perfectly fine. As Grey and Asha Trace, Logan Marshall-Green and Melanie Vallejo have pretty great chemistry, which makes the set-up more enjoyable than it should be; I was pretty invested in them as a couple, but the problem is that I knew it was all leading up to the inevitable moment where Asha is murdered, setting Grey on the path of revenge. Playing into that tired, sexist old cliche took a moment that should have been tragic and just made it exasperating, but thankfully, it’s the movie’s only major misstep.
The attack that claims Asha’s life leaves Grey quadriplegic, until his reclusive, billionaire tech genius employer implants an experimental chip in his neck, which passes signals from his brain past the fracture in his spinal cord, allowing him full use of his body again. The movie’s first surprise comes when the chip, called STEM, starts speaking to Grey. I legitimately did not see this coming, and it turns the movie on its head, taking what I thought would simply be a tale of revenge and turning it more into a story about the conflict between Grey, who wants revenge but is still, ultimately, a good person, and STEM, who wants to help Grey but, as a machine, has no real sense of morality.
Everything that makes Upgrade great comes into focus in the movie’s first fight scene, when Grey and STEM are investigating one of the men involved in the attack on Grey and Asha.
Like, this whole sequence just lit up my teenage boy action movie lizard brain. I can’t get enough of it. Just on a basic level, the choreography is great — fast and brutal, but still complex and visually interesting, and shot in a way that’s clear and easy to follow. But what truly makes this scene shine is the way the action highlights the characters and their dynamic, and reinforces the rules of Upgrade’s world.
For example — STEM can’t control Grey’s body above his neck, so notice the way STEM has to use Grey’s hand to push his own face out of the way of a punch early in the fight. That’s incredible world building and attention to detail, something that sets the fighting apart from many other action movies. The sound effects, the way the camera always keeps Grey in the center of the frame, even if he’s on the ground, and Grey’s inhuman gait when he’s under STEM’s control all highlight the unique control STEM has over the battle, and really, over the world around it. And the entire fight is a brilliant showcase for Marshall-Green, who is essentially acting as two entirely different characters with different parts of his body at the exact same time. I don’t know how somebody can move their body like that to begin with, but especially while pulling the kind of faces he’s pulling. I can’t even pat my head and rub my belly at the same time.
(Actually, Upgrade is a pretty good showcase for Marshall-Green in general. Grey’s more sullen scenes aren’t his strongest suit, though he plays them well, but whenever he’s asked to grandstand, or flirt, be humorous or flabbergasted, he suddenly brings a really interesting energy to the screen. He has some real charisma, and I’d love to see him in a more comedic role)
Most importantly, though, the action highlights that central conflict between Grey and STEM. Up until Grey vomits it’s played for humor, but Grey is horrified at the violence he inflicts, yet continues to ask STEM to inflict it, first to save his own skin, and then, as the movie progresses, to track down the men who attacked him and Asha. This fight for Grey’s soul is the true story of Upgrade, but it’s a theme established as much, if not more, by action than it is dialogue or exposition. In an action movie, that’s just smart writing.
The use of fight scenes remains similarly tight throughout. There’s not as much action in Upgrade as there is in, say, John Wick, but every punch counts. While all the fights stick to the style introduced in that first scene, each finds Grey and STEM in a different state of mind, each has a different goal, different enemies, different settings. It never feels like there’s action just for the sake of action — each fight moves the story forward, while still being incredibly satisfying to watch just as an action set-piece.
I’m not going to spoil the ending — I want you guys to watch this one — but I will say that it zigged and zagged on me a couple of times when I thought I had it figured out. Ultimately, the reason I wanted to talk to you guys about Upgrade was never the ending anyway; it’s that first fight scene, the moment the movie showed exactly what it was and really made me take notice, that I was so excited to share. I love when a movie suddenly surprises me, but I love even moreso when it does it with such a sense of purpose and identity.
CHECK OUT
Clearly I want you all to watch Upgrade, but it reminded me of a couple other stories worth checking out as well.
First of all, I can’t talk about Upgrade without talking about 2018’s other movie about a man whose body is taken over by a morally ambiguous being that speaks to him in his head, Venom. Is Venom a good movie? Of course not. Much of it, from the plot to action, is a complete mess. But is Venom worth watching? Absolutely. The movie makes some audacious choices and Tom Hardy plays Eddie Brock as completely bonkers as possible, meaning the movie’s always fun to watch even when it’s at its messiest — or perhaps because of the mess. What really turns this film into the kind of trainwreck worth gawking at is the decision to essentially turn Eddie and Venom into a bickering couple. Imagine Venom as a romantic comedy with an occasional fight and it’s suddenly a much better movie. It takes very little imagination to do so.
A more genuinely great story in this same vein, though, is Blue Beetle — specifically, the Jaime Reyes iteration of the DC Comics character. Jaime is a young boy living in Texas whose life is turned upside down when an alien weapon with a mind of its own, the Scarab, implants itself on his spine. Jaime’s a legitimately pure soul — when a villain grants him his greatest, darkest desire, he becomes…a dentist, because they pull in enough money that he could live a comfortable life and support his family — while the Scarab was created by villains, has no morals and nearly unlimited power. It’s up to Jaime to tame the Scarab, bring his family and community together, and save the world, and the story of how he does so is fun and thrilling, inventive, and optimistic. DC’s done a few different runs with this character, many attempting to tell this same story (because that’s just how comics are, unfortunately), but the one you should take a look at is the series that began in 2006, written by Keith Giffen and John Rogers and illustrated by Cully Hamner and Rafael Albuquerque. Their story ran 26 issues and is collected in four trade paperback collections (Shellshocked, Road Trip, Reach for the Stars, End Game).
ABOUT
“Do You Know What I Love the Most?” is a newsletter from Spencer Irwin. Spencer is an enthusiast and writer from Newark, Delaware, who likes punk rock, comic books, working out, breakfast, and most of all, stories. His previous work appeared on Retcon Punch, One Week One Band, and Crisis on Infinite Chords, and he can be found on Twitter at @ThatSpenceGuy. If you like this newsletter, please subscribe and share with your friends!