Aylmer to Zazzoo and Beyond: Divergent

Friday, March 21, 2014

Divergent - Movie Review

DIVERGENT
(2014 - March 21)
Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi
2 hr. 20 min.

Rated: PG-13 | Some sensuality, intense violence and action and thematic elements. Common Sense Media says Pause for kids 13 & under. Read more
Intense violence and action, thematic elements and some sensuality.
Grade: B-

Director: Neil Burger
Writers: Evan Daugherty (screenplay), Vanessa Taylor (screenplay), Veronica Roth (novel)
Stars: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Kate Winslet | See full cast and crew

Divergent is a thrilling action-adventure film set in a world where people are divided into distinct factions based on human virtues. Tris Prior (Shailene Woodley) is warned she is Divergent and will never fit into any one group. When she discovers a conspiracy by a faction leader (Kate Winslet) to destroy all Divergents, Tris must learn to trust in the mysterious Four (Theo James) and together they must find out what makes being Divergent so dangerous before it's too late. Based on the best-selling book series by Veronica Roth.

The story is set in the not so distant future, it is mentioned that it is 100 after the great war, that war has decimated the earth. The survivors in Chicago have walled off the remains of the city and rebuilt society.

The survivors divided themselves into factions by their personality traits – Dauntless, Erudite, Amity, Candor, and Abnegation. When each teenager comes of age, they are required to take a test that recommends which faction they will join. They are, however, allowed to choose any faction they want to become. Divergent is based on the novel by Veronica Roth.

Beatrice Prior is a young woman who's time has come to take the test (You definitely must suspend belief to accept her as a teen). Her brother, Caleb, is also taking the test on the same day. Their parents are leaders in the Abnegation faction, the political and governing faction, they hope both of their children will choose to remain Abnegation. The Abnegation are in a struggle for governing control with the Erudite faction, but since she was a child Beatrice has dreamt of becoming one of the fearless, daring and adventurous Dauntless faction. The faction assigned the responsibilities of policing and military service.

Beatrice and Caleb takes the test, yet her results are unusual. It shows she should join Dauntless, Erudite and Abnegation. It turns out that Beatrice is a Divergent – someone who doesn't fit in the system. Divergents are considered dangerous so they risk being put to death. Beatrice's test administrator warns her to hide her results, to tell no one and she will report the test failed. At the choosing ceremony, Caleb selects Erudite and Beatrice ultimately chooses to join the Dauntless group, much to the shock of their parents.

They are quickly taken from their home, and Beatrice is initiated by Four, a Dauntless trainer. He puts the new recruits through mental and physical tests to train them and toughen them up. Beatrice changes her name to Tris as she learns to fight. While political unrest threatens the fabric of their society, Tris' status as a Divergent is at risk. She is struggling with her training and could end up as a cast out, 'factionless'. Being discovered as a divergent will put her at even greater risk. She is in a fight for her very life.

Shailene Woodley as Tris and she carries the film and does so quite well. Her girl-next-door looks make her likable and more realistic and relatable as a character. She isn't an immediate success as a Dauntless fighter. She gets beaten badly more than once and when she does complete a test or fight she barely succeeds. This makes it easy to root for her character. She's an unglamorous underdog.

Theo James as Four is paired up with Woodley. He will set off the radar for many as a leading man the way Robert Pattinson did in Twilight. James has the mix of bad boy and vulnerability that girls like, he is tough, rugged and handsome.

Remarkable for Hollywood, the character of Four respects the fact that Tris wants to take their relationship slowly. They would usually, almost religiously, have them jumping in bed together immediately after their first kiss. This is such a rarity and so refreshing and is a good message to send to impressionable young girls in the audience. That element alone warrants a little boost to the grade I have awarded it. Divergent is rated PG-13 for intense violence and action, thematic elements and some sensuality.

There will be obvious comparisons to Hunger Games and Twilight. I went in to this film with low expectations and was pleasantly surprised. The two hours 20 minuets running time flew by for me, I never checked my watch once, where as during the Hunger Games (both of them) and Twilight (all of them) I did as I kept wondering when is this going to end. There are some places where it could be trimmed down, some of the training scenes were a bit redundant and could have been cut. There could also have been a tiny bit more humor, on the rare occasions where humor was used it was a welcome relief, giving the film a little more contrast.

The supporting cast is also quite strong. Ashley Judd as Natalie, Tris' mother with secrets of her own, which brings an interesting twist on the mother-daughter relationship.

Jai Courtney makes a good menacing charater as Eric, one of the Dauntless trainers. Zoë Kravitz is likeable as Christina, Tris' best friend among the Dauntless recruits. Kate Winslet, as Jeanine, is the scheming, emotionless, subversive Erudite who generates the conflict that Tris must face. In her younger days Winslet could have played the role of Tris, it's kind of interesting to see her as the villain and not the heroine.

Maggie Q also has a brief role as Tori, a reluctant confidante to Tris. Rounding out the supporting cast is Miles Teller as Peter. He was Shailene Woodley's co-star in The Spectacular Now, here we see him not as her love interest but her personal bully and he does a good job making the audience hate his character Peter.