Saturday, April 5, 2014

Movie review: Divergent



I went and saw Divergent the other night and thought it was great. So often lately when I see movies I am disappointed- but not this time. I have not read the book so I went in knowing almost nothing about the series- I knew there were five factions and that's about it. The beginning was interesting, with the rusting ship sitting in what used to be Lake Michigan apparently, and the great fence surrounding Chicago. That was impressive.

I thought Shailene Woodley did a great job as Tris. She was vulnerable but tough. I really liked the choosing ceremony and Tris' introduction to Dauntless was cool. I thought she really conveyed a sense of freedom as she jumped on that train and took off for her new life. The fact that she didn't go from weak to badass overnight was nice too- she got her butt kicked a few times and almost got booted, but her determination and inner toughness won out. That seemed realistic to me. It was nice to see her slowly win Four over that way as well.

I thought Theo was good as Four, tough and no- nonsense but he had a vulnerable side too, as Tris soon discovered. There were times when I desperately wanted him to slap Eric down, there's obviously a history between those two. I assume this is covered more in the book. I liked that the romance between Tris and Four was a slow build- and when it did happen Tris put the brakes on a bit, and Four was fine with that. He was classy about it and respected her. No whiny emo kids here! I especially liked they way they handled that in case my kids see this (and apparently my daughter is hearing all about at school) - sends a good message.

The director did a great job pacing this movie. So many movies these days are over hyped and turn out lame. This one genuinely thrilled me at times. It's a longish movie but I was never bored. They spent a lot of time on the Dauntless training but it was interesting to see how tough it was, and frankly this was my favorite part of the story. Tris' struggles and the capture-the-flag sequence were very well done, I thought. There's no way I would ever do that zip line though!

The only thing I didn't really like was the whole mind control thing. That seemed over the top and silly, almost. I get the faction vs. faction idea but the fact that everyone in Dauntless got this serum and became drones just didn't work for me. The movie seemed to devolve at that point into a shoot em up, and I also thought they infiltrated Dauntless base way to easily. At that point Tris was like a seasoned commando- just seemed a bit sudden.  Still, it was nice to see her take charge. Of course Tris and Four had to fight- sigh. But he can't really hurt her because he loves her- check. Still, none of this was a deal breaker for me. It's just that a story  I was really liking became a little predictable. I did like how it ended though- where do they go from here? Since I haven't read the books, I have no idea.

I have to say Veronica Roth has created a compelling, and frankly disturbing, story. This is not a world I would want to live in, but I would happily revisit in a sequel. I don't know if I'll read the books, but I thought the movie version was very good.

What did you think of Divergent? Are you a series veteran or a newbie like me?


11 comments:

  1. I thought this movie was well done myself too. I did hear the second movie was green lit so there will be another one! I am sure too if the third one gets picked up they will split that in 2. So unneeded. Really I liked this movie a lot!!

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    1. That's awesome, I would really like to see a sequel. I liked these characters a lot and am curious to know more. I'm even tempted to read the books. :) I agree though, I so hope they don't milk the third one with two movies!

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  2. I haven't read the book yet but I have it and I know I need to get into it, but the movie will be out this week in France, so I'll try to go and see it, I'm really curious.

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    1. I hope you like it, I was pleasantly surprised not knowing much about the series.

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  3. I loved the book Divergent, but thought the second book Insurgent wasn't as good. I still haven't read the third book. The faction idea is really original and I liked it. And the romance wasn't an insta love I liked that as well. I agree with you that the ending wasn't that good, indeed the midn control thing seems a bit weird. I mean they basically can control a whole faction, that's just a bit too much.
    I am not sure whether I'll go and see the movie, sometimes a movie can ruin the images I have in my mind. And I still have to read the third book, but who knows maybe I decide to see it eventually.

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    1. I can totally relate, sometimes i see a movie adaptation and I get frustrated by it, or yes it ruins the image in my mind. So that's a toughie... in thsi case I really liked the movie, but not being a book reader I can't say how faithful it was although a lot of people seem to say it was pretty close. I like the faction idea, and thought the romance was a slow burn which I liked. It was mainly just the mind control thing that threw me a little...

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  4. I'm a big fan of the book series, and totally recommend you read them- it might help you understand the serum and the mind control. I haven't watched the movie yet- it's coming out this week where I live. Really looking forward to it! Great review(:

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    1. I had a feeling I missed a lot- backstory and details. I may read the books, I'm really curious although I heard a lot of angst over the third book. :) Would be fun to read it and draw my own conclusion... thanks for commenting, and I hope you enjoy the show when it comes out!

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  5. I went and saw this yesterday and it was so good, I loved it. I love the book also and I have no complaints about the adaptation, there were of course a few things I would have liked to have seen but no deal breakers.

    The next two books have been green-lit and are in pre-production and it looks like movie three is not going to be in 2 parts - phew.

    I totally agree with you about the slow burn romance and Fours' respect for Tris.

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    1. That's awesome, I would totally see the sequels and am even considering reading the books, just to get the whole story. I liked it that much. A great movie all the way around.

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  6. Overall, this is a solid first-up effort for the Divergent franchise. Even though the film loses momentum in its final act as it sets up shop for next year's sequel, a majority of fans will be perfectly content with what has been achieved here.
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