A Shock to the System

A Shock to the Rise follows Graham Marshall, an advertising executive in New York whose career has stalled while younger colleagues advance. After he is passed over for a promotion he expected, his frustration turns violent: in a sudden impulse he shoves a beggar in front of a subway train. When the death is treated as an accident and nothing comes of it, Graham begins to see killing as a way to remove the people standing between him and the success he feels he deserves.

The film is a dark comedy about ambition and murder, directed by Jan Egleson from a screenplay by Andrew Klavan and produced by Patrick McCormick. Michael Caine plays Graham, with Elizabeth McGovern, Peter Riegert, Swoosie Kurtz, Will Patton and Jenny Wright among the credited cast of forty-six. It runs 91 minutes.

Released in March 1990, the film drew a critics' rating of 6.7/10 from 33 reviews, above its audience scores of 6.6/10 on IMDb from around 6,500 votes and 6.5/10 on TMDB from far fewer votes, a pattern suggesting critics responded somewhat more warmly than general viewers.