Movie Review: Upgraded (2024)

Synopsis: After running up a ton of student loan debt as an art history major, Ana's dreams of owning her own gallery hinge on being able to make an impression with her new boss, Claire, at a prestigious auction house. She gets that opportunity when she's invited to serve as an assistant on a trip to London, where a rare collection is about to be auctioned off. After receiving a surprise upgrade to first class, Ana meets William, the son of a British actress, and when he mistakenly believes she has her boss' job, she doesn't correct him. This creates complications as she begins to fall for William and learns his mother is the one selling the art collection.

Who's in it? The movie stars Camila Mendes, Archie Renaux, Marisa Tomei, Lena Olin and Anthony Head.


Review: I came across this movie on Amazon Prime yesterday and since it sounded like something my wife and I would both like, I added it to my list. We watched it tonight and, overall, I thought it wound up being a good decision.

I'll start out by saying if you've ever seen the movie The Devil Wears Prada, there will be a lot of elements that are familiar in this film. Ana (Mendes) works for a perfectionist boss (Tomei), has to overcome abusive coworkers and is introduced to what is a cutthroat business. As I told my wife, the only thing missing was the uncaring boyfriend. 

On top of that, the movie also had many of the same predictable elements most romantic films have. In fact, there were some things about this movie that were so predictable (such as Ana being photographed wearing one of Claire's dresses) I could have practically written the script. 

All of that said, this movie had a lot of great qualities as well. I thought Mendes played her role perfectly, though probably not as perfect as the Oscar winner, Tomei, was as Claire. Their interactions were a lot more entertaining than Ana and William (Renaux) and frankly had a lot more impact when Claire's deception was inevitably discovered because it seemed like so much more of a betrayal. 

I also thought the movie had a strong supporting cast, adding some interesting characters and a few unexpected twists. Sometimes that's all a movie really needs to be entertaining, regardless of how basic the overall plot might be.

Final Opinion: I don't think there was anything overly unique about this movie. However, a strong cast and stronger execution do make it entertaining to watch. We both enjoyed it, and I would recommend it.

My Grade: B+

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Kwik Trip Kitchen Cravings Tailgater Pizza

Image
  When my wife and I decided on pizza for dinner last night, I stopped at Kwik Trip with the intention of just buying a cheap, frozen, cheese pizza for our daughters since we already had another pizza in our freezer. However, as I was walking up to the checkout counter, this particular pizza caught my eye and, even though I wasn't crazy about spending $8.99 when I already had another option at home, I was intrigued enough to make the purchase anyway. We ended up making the pizza in the oven when I got home. After trying it, I have to say it is one of my favorites. One of the things, in particular, that really stood out for me when it came to this pizza was the toppings. The combination of sausage and cheese curds was both unique and delicious, especially since the curds were fresh enough to still squeak when we were eating them. The pizza also proved to be surprisingly filling, both because of the thicker crust and the generous amounts of toppings and cheese.  Normally, when my wi
Read more

Movie Review: Damsel (2024)

Image
Synopsis: Elodie, the oldest daughter of Lord Bayford, reluctantly agrees to an arranged marriage with Prince Henry in the far-off land of Aurea because her bride price will provide much-needed relief to the starving residents of her homeland. When they arrive for her wedding, Elodie quickly warms up to the idea after seeing Aurea's beauty and even falling in love with Henry. However, soon after the wedding, she discovers it has all been a farce and she instead is thrown into a cave as a peace offering for the dragon living inside. Who's in it? The movie stars  Millie Bobby Brown ,  Ray Winstone ,  Angela Bassett ,  Robin Wright  and  Nick Robinson Review: My wife and I decided to watch a movie late yesterday evening and after striking out on horror films lately, ended up changing things up a bit with the fantasy adventure, Damsel . My wife thought it looked good from the trailer and I enjoyed Millie Bobby Brown in the Enola Holmes movies, so we had cautiously optimistic ex
Read more

Movie Review: Mr. Monk's Last Case: A Monk Movie (2023)

Image
Synopsis: Despite showing improvement after solving his wife, Trudy's murder, the pandemic caused Adrian Monk to regress, and he now plans on killing himself after Trudy's daughter, Molly, is married. However, a day before the wedding, Molly's fiancé, Griffin is killed while bungee jumping. While a coroner's inquiry determined it was an accident, Molly believes Griffin was killed by Rick Eden, a billionaire and wannabe astronaut Griffin was about to expose for murder. Even though he isn't convinced by Molly's theory, he delays his suicide so he can investigate and bring her closure. Who's in it? The movie stars Tony Shalhoub , Traylor Howard , Ted Levine , James Purefoy and Caitlin McGee. Review: I used to be a huge fan of the television series Monk and still occasionally watch reruns when I can't find anything else on TV. So, when I heard there was going to be a movie based on the series, I was intrigued albeit a bit skeptical. I finally had a chan
Read more