Ex Machina (2014) vs. Upgrade (2018)

[Veum]

Which is the better film?

[larson1977]

Both are amazing but not comparable...

[Casiusco]

I really consider them very different films.

 

Still, it would be very interesting if a major studio made a movie twice with two very different directors. With the same actors, the same sets, the same crew.

 

For example, that any of these two films were made by their original director, and by David Lynch. Or by David Fincher and Michael Bay. Or by John Carpenter and Ron Howards.

 

Or by Joss Whedon and Scorsese.  

 

It would be a very interesting experiment.

[GuyIncognit0]

I've never heard of Upgrade but really like Ex Machina. Is it worth a watch?

[Veum]

53 minutes ago, GuyIncognit0 said:

I've never heard of Upgrade but really like Ex Machina. Is it worth a watch?

 

Yes Ex Machina is a great syfy film and you should look into getting this beauty of an edition from Manta Lab... I have the FS & Lenti:

 

I'm trying to watch UPGRADE this week (maybe today!) UPDATE: watching now! 🎞…

 

as well as rewatching Ex Machina to see their differences! 

 

Edited January 24, 2022 by Veum

[GuyIncognit0]

3 hours ago, Veum said:

 

Yes Ex Machina is a great syfy film and you should look into getting this beauty of an edition from Manta Lab... I have the FS & Lenti:

 

I'm trying to watch UPGRADE this week (maybe today!) UPDATE: watching now! 🎞…

 

as well as rewatching Ex Machina to see their differences! 

 

 

Ah, I misspoke. I've seen Ex Machina and I have the PET FS. You're right in that it is an amazing release. I would grab the OC if I could find it for a decent prince in the secondary market.

 

Upgrade is the one I've never seen/heard of. Let me know what you think when you finish it!

[Veum]

30 minutes ago, GuyIncognit0 said:

 

Ah, I misspoke. I've seen Ex Machina and I have the PET FS. You're right in that it is an amazing release. I would grab the OC if I could find it for a decent prince in the secondary market.

 

Upgrade is the one I've never seen/heard of. Let me know what you think when you finish it!

 

I enjoyed it (would love a beautiful Lenti from some of our Premium retailers of this 😍) and I smell a sequel! 

 

I see that some are saying Upgrade and Ex Machina are not similar and I agree with that to a certain extent… they are similar in their A.I. components though!! 

[Hollywood E Rock]

On 1/21/2022 at 12:22 PM, Veum said:

Which is the better film?

While I agree with some in saying these movies are vastly different I’m still able to answer the question of which is the better film, & the answer is Ex Machina. Both are good movies that I wouldn’t have an issue with recommending to any movie fan, & under normal circumstances Upgrade would have been my pick because I’m a junkie for Action/Sci Fi. Between these picks Ex Machina I enjoyed more & is the film I think about more after my viewing.

 

 

[Hollywood E Rock]

9 hours ago, Casiusco said:

I really consider them very different films.

 

Still, it would be very interesting if a major studio made a movie twice with two very different directors. With the same actors, the same sets, the same crew.

 

For example, that any of these two films were made by their original director, and by David Lynch. Or by David Fincher and Michael Bay. Or by John Carpenter and Ron Howards.

 

Or by Joss Whedon and Scorsese.  

 

It would be a very interesting experiment.

 

@Casiusco

 

I like your thinking, of course it’s not very practical & no studio would ever go along with it, but it’s a great subject to ponder. What would Batman Begins, or The Dark Knight be like if Tim Burton, or Spike Lee directed them? How different would Robocop be if James Cameron directed? What would Halloween be like in Guillermo Del Toro hands. These are basically alternate realities scenarios, we could even go so far as to ponder rather or not these changes would lead to a difference in their box office performances.

[Noir21]

Well, it turns out that I have not seen Upgrade either and with this you have encouraged me to make the comparison, so I will try to see it these days and comment on it then.🙂

[GuyIncognit0]

16 hours ago, Noir21 said:

Well, it turns out that I have not seen Upgrade either and with this you have encouraged me to make the comparison, so I will try to see it these days and comment on it then.🙂

 

Same here. Hopefully within the next couple of weeks.

 

Though, I watched the trailer for Upgrade and I'm already leaning toward Ex Machina 🤣

[Veum]

23 minutes ago, GuyIncognit0 said:

 

Same here. Hopefully within the next couple of weeks.

 

Though, I watched the trailer for Upgrade and I'm already leaning toward Ex Machina 🤣

 

I like them both! 

[Casiusco]

On 1/25/2022 at 2:45 AM, Hollywood E Rock said:

 

@Casiusco

 

I like your thinking, of course it’s not very practical & no studio would ever go along with it, but it’s a great subject to ponder. What would Batman Begins, or The Dark Knight be like if Tim Burton, or Spike Lee directed them? How different would Robocop be if James Cameron directed? What would Halloween be like in Guillermo Del Toro hands. These are basically alternate realities scenarios, we could even go so far as to ponder rather or not these changes would lead to a difference in their box office performances.

 

Basically, it's an experiment that has been done, but unintentionally, and a little differently. Like when two films are shot on a similar topic in a short time, following a sudden trend that is not a coincidence; where marketing departments decide to create a short phenomenon.

 

Remember, for example, the films about Alexander, or Truman Capote, or so many others, that appear almost at the same time talking about the same thing, but in a different way.

 

Another experiment, already different, but curious, was that of Van Sant shooting "Psycho" again, as the original, or Haneke doing a second version of his "Funny Games", the same absolutely shot by shot, but in another place and with other actors. The result should be the same, but... it never is. Even changing only few things.

 

It's just speculation, but it would be interesting for me, for example, to see two versions of a new movie. Taking risks, with different directors, even if everything else was the same. They never will, but subjectively I would find it more interesting than some unnecessary remakes.

In fact, there are more and more remakes, on old films, on European films, on American films, on Asian films, on other films... Rarely do we see something truly original. And the few original options are far from the box office, they are films -like Lynch's, or others even further away- that are not copied officially, but from which things are copied by our usual loved films.

 

It's just speculation, yes, and for the most part -barring chance- I don't think a second/alternative version of a blockbuster would improve its box office, obviously. Just as it would not happen with many other films.

But, on the other hand, maybe it would open the perspective of those who went to see it just out of curiosity, because they were followers of the first; recognizing on the screen other ways of expressing the same thing, with the same actors, the same set, and the same music.

Ultimately, it would be an enormously educational tool.

 

They never will, but if the next Marvel movie was shot by James Gunn and Pedro Almodovar, or Whedon and Wong Kar Wai, even if they had some kind of metaverse connection between them, I'd sign up to see them. Even if it was just out of curiosity.

 

Even so, Ex-Machina and Upgrade are two very different films, which -in my opinion- only have a few details on the topic in common. In fact, Ex-Machina tries to be a film with greater depth, sometimes playing auteur sci-fi, while Upgrade is fun with a certain moral undertone.

 

 

 

Edited January 27, 2022 by Casiusco

[GuyIncognit0]

On 1/24/2022 at 8:45 PM, Hollywood E Rock said:

 

@Casiusco

 

I like your thinking, of course it’s not very practical & no studio would ever go along with it, but it’s a great subject to ponder. What would Batman Begins, or The Dark Knight be like if Tim Burton, or Spike Lee directed them? How different would Robocop be if James Cameron directed? What would Halloween be like in Guillermo Del Toro hands. These are basically alternate realities scenarios, we could even go so far as to ponder rather or not these changes would lead to a difference in their box office performances.

 

That it definitely a fun thought experiment and @Casiusco provided a much more thoughtful and intelligent answer than I could ever provide. I would love to see something like that even if it was as stupid as Michael Bay directing "Up".

 

 

It's old but it always gets a laugh out of me, particularly the very end. It's cut pretty well.

[extantsrevenge]

No question

😍

[javi]

Upgrade is amazing...but Ex_Machina is perfect!