Camila Mendes and Archie Renaux play the two main characters in "Upgraded," which was released on Prime Video on Feb. 9. Mendes portrays struggling artist Ana Santos, who has a master's degree in art history. The majority of this film is set in London and New York City. For Valentine's Day, this romantic comedy is a perfect movie choice.
Synopsis
Ana Santos is a struggling artist interning at Erwin's Art Gallery; she lives with her sister at the beginning of the film. Ana chose to pursue an internship because she hopes to open her art gallery someday. She establishes her credibility with Marisa Tomei's portrayal of Claire Dupree, the art director, by showing her dedication and ambition. Ana succeeds in doing so, earning a position as Claire's assistant during this journey to London to sell an art collection.
When she arrived at the airport on this trip, Claire Dupree's two other assistants had reserved her a spot in the economy class. Those assistants are comparable to Cinderalla's two vile stepsisters. The employee upgraded Ana to first class when she was checking in for her ticket. This was a dream for Ana because she could never afford first class. Before she could board her flight, the first class had its bar and spa. Ana spilled her bloody mary after bumping into William Laroche (Archie Renaux) while sipping her drink.
William would never forget Ana after that. William was beside her when she boarded the plane and settled into her seat. It was obvious they had chemistry when she began talking to William, but there was one tiny issue. Ana told William a lie that she was the art director of Erwin's Art Gallery in New York. This lie took a spiral of its own throughout the whole movie.
Highs
Marisa Tomei's performance was astonishing due to her accent and sense of flair. In the recent Spiderman movies, Tomei plays Aunt May; in "Upgraded," she plays the opposite character, a relentless businesswoman. Her acting performance was outstanding. Claire was an impressive art director who instilled fear in her interns. Next, Mendes's portrayal of Ana Santos was flawless since her character embodied a perfect combination of humor and ambition. Ana's character development was a recurring theme in the movie. By the end, she had transformed from a scared and insecure young woman to a powerful and courageous woman. Her character Ana and William's chemistry was charming and cute. It developed into the ideal romantic comedy.
Another highlight of this film was the plot progression. Everything seemed to flow naturally and created an easy-to-follow storyline between the characters. We meet Ana at the beginning of the film as a lost and upset character and watch her, as the story unfolds, go through all the circles of emotion upon meeting new characters. She goes from the burden of living at her sister's house to taking an unexpected trip to London to meeting a famous art director to jeopardizing her job and then eventually regaining it all the while attempting to balance a relationship in the works with the art director's son, William. This seems like a lot to take in, but the story balances all of these story elements naturally.
The set of this film, specifically in London at the house of William Laroche, had a very luxurious collection of paintings in the library of the house as well as an all-around beautiful interior design of the home that shouts money. Living there, William's mother Catherine (played by Lena Olin), portrays, on the outside, an eccentric and pompous actress/model married into riches. On the inside, however, she displays sympathy and guidance towards our main character Ana, and eventually helps the story come a full 180 from where it all began.
Lows
Some of the lows of this film mainly include predictability. Although the plot unfolded nicely, it was predictable. A struggling woman gets the opportunity of her life, almost blows it, and meets a love interest are all elements we've seen time and time again. This movie was entertaining but average at best. Some of the dialogue felt unfinished or otherwise rushed in certain scenes, and the acting of certain characters, mainly Suzette (played by Rachel Matthews), was cliche and predictable.
Another low of this film was the underdevelopment of Ana's love interest, William. William should have gotten more screen time, and there should have been a little more detail surrounding their struggling relationship for this movie to be a true romantic comedy. Although there were scenes between Ana and William that shed light on their situation, there was much left on the table that could have taken this film in another direction.
Verdict
Overall, this movie was funny, light-hearted, and entertaining but left certain elements missing.
Rating: 7/10
Mariam Fakhreddine is a film and theater reviewer for The Eastern Echo. She has worked as a news and features reporter for The Echo for two years.
