S2 E1: Comparing Digital Afterlives - Upload (2020) vs. Archive (2020)

Sep 16 2021 • 1 hr 37 mins

Welcome to Season 2! We are kicking off the new season with a comparison of Archive (2020) the movie, and Upload (2020) the series on Amazon Prime. Both productions deal with issues that might arise when and if humans devise a way to extend posthumous consciousness digitally. What’s interesting is that they imagine a digital afterlife very differently. BE WARNED: There are spoilers in this article and in the episode.

Archive (2020)

This story is set in the near-future of 2038 and hinges on the development of artificial intelligence, jealousy, and a huge plot twist right at the end.

George’s wife did NOT want to be archived, so it’s conceivable this all may be happening without her consent.

This bleak vision of the afterlife is terrifying, where it seems that George is being suspended in death at the behest of his employer to finish out his contract to develop an advanced AI. This fact is revealed at the VERY end of the movie, but alludes to the twist throughout the entire story. George’s daily routine never deviates outside the bounds of the compound, save for a single meeting with the Risk Assessor. He is, essentially, a prisoner in his afterlife AND of his memories.

Upload (also 2020)

A much more uplifting and comedic vision of a digital afterlife that manages to introduce many really deep questions that arise when considering artificially delaying death such as:

Class divisions (the 2Gigs and less enhanced, cheaper afterlife platforms)
Practical aspects of using self-driving cars
Wearables and mobile tech (also how are they making phone calls to the uploaded?)
Tech support for those enjoying their afterlife
The “deceased” must obey the rule that they are not permitted to work.

There is MUCH more diversity in this cast, but there are also just more people in the cast.