The UpSide Film Review

       Image result for the upside movie            Image result for the upside movieImage result for the upside movie            Image result for the upside movie


  Despite its interesting performances with Kevin Hart, Bryan Cranston, and Nicole Kidman, The UpSide has not surpassed the French movie Les Intouchables, and its adaptation to the real story is questionable. The UpSide is an interesting film, great for a good laugh with friends on a Sunday afternoon. However, I wish that the film stuck more to the real story, without the cliché relationship between Yvonne and Phillip. I would rate this movie a 7.5/10 because although the actors' performances were on point, I didn't enjoy the way Philip is portrayed in many of the scenes in comparison to the French original version of the movie. The attention is drawn off him as his personality is not very intriguing and totally dependent on other characters. It is silly that after everything he went through he would act hostile with people that cared about him just because the lady he exchanged letters with didn't love him back. And later on because the other character, Dell Scott set up a date with the woman he work with for years he would realize that she is his real love. Totally expected. Besides Philip's love life the overall film has a meaningful message challenging the audience's views on disabilities, showing that the only thing limiting you from pursuing your interests is your mind.


   The UpSide movie directed by Neil Burger talks about how our preconceptions of people affect how we interact with them. We can clearly observe the contrast between the two main characters, Dell and Philip played by Kevin Hart and Bryan Cranston, as Dell has a criminal record and lower social status, on the other hand, Philip is a very rich man that appreciates the arts, and one day got involved in an accident while paragliding that left him completely paraplegic. As he was looking for a caregiver he meet Dell, that since then has been his companion.


   Kevin Hart did a nice job in portraying Dell, his funny personality shined through the character and made the movie's tone happier and enjoyable. While Bryan Cranston was also able to convince the audience that he really is disabled, with his expressions of pain and angst. The music also played an important role in the movie, showing the stereotypical rich white man that listens to Opera and classic music like Luciano Pavarotti and the Hood black man that really enjoys blues and soul and loves Aretha Franklin. It is very fun how the music represented each character and it is very cool to see the characters exchanging their passions for music and be exposed to different types of art.


   The camera was also very well used with a variety of shots to establish space and mood. It was very interesting that in some scenes the camera switched between characters kind of moving and not stable as it is for most of the film, showing the characters' emotions and different perspectives and angles. This movie really gets you thinking about how our prejudice affects the way we interact and view others in different financial and social statuses and it shows us the daily life of a disabled person and the misconceptions we have about them. 

   The movie settings compared to the French Original version changes a lot the pace and New York never fails to make things more agitated and chaotic. Well, as I mentioned before the cast is able to represent the characters very well and bring a different perspective on this true story based on Philippe Pozzo di Borgo and Abdel Sellou's friendship. Although I prefer the French version of this story, it wouldn't hurt to check it out at least once.






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