Dystopian action thriller Divergent opened last Friday, raking in $56 million over the weekend as projected. Not quite as bankable as Young Adult (YA)-franchises-not-to-be-named but still strong. It follows the journey of Beatrice Prior as she chooses to defect from her humble and selfless faction of origin to a quasi-militaristic faction.
Before she finds herself in Dauntless-one of five factions that include Amity, Erudite, Candor and Abnegation–Tris, the protagonist, along with her brother Caleb and a host of other 18 year olds, must take an aptitude test. They go under a simulation, as opposed to a hand-written multiple choice test, in order to determine which of the five factions they are most likely to fit in for the rest of their lives. What happened to the practicality of a scantron?
Soon after ‘failing’ this test, her test administrator, played by Nikita’s Maggie Q, warns her not to tell anyone that she qualified for more than one faction. As the movie title subtly implies, she is divergent and to be divergent is dangerous. Maggie Q’s character then tells her to hide inside of a faction. Probably somewhere quaint and quiet like Amity or Abnegation, right?
Wrong. She decidedly chooses of her own free will, regardless of rationality, to jump straight into the most reckless and dangerous faction…because screw the system.
While at times ambiguous and fragmented in its middle, it is a thrilling, heart pounding and emotional platform for the continuing installments. Brief touches of dry humor, simmering romance and enough action are present to keep you awake and from drowning in your popcorn. Tense scenes like the knife throwing and train jumping sequences invoke an odd feeling that migth be similiar to getting stabbed repeatedly in the abdomen with a dull butterknife. And that is not necessarily a bad thing.
However, while Dauntless leaders seem hell bent on killing the initiates before they can even get through training as one character jokes, you never quite feel the urgency of them “making the cut” as is very present in the book. You don’t get to see the brutality or manipulation within the competition. Things seem just a bit too easy and convenient for the leads.
After a mildly disappointing initiation test sequence, it was refreshing to see that the fear simulations are done extraordinarily well thanks to director Neil Burger (Limitless). Events were warped and distorted but not so strange that you feel like you’ve stumbled upon some avant garde nonsensical mess. It leaves you with an indefinite sense of ‘what is happening? Is this even real? I don’t trust a single thing happening now!’ As well you shouldn’t. More importantly, the two hour run time seems to breeze by.
The things that most notably hurt this film’s chances with critics are the successful YA giants that came before it, allowing it to suffer a litany of unfair but not entirely unfounded comparisons. So it would be a real crime for me to mention “has been” Twilight and “it girl” The Hunger Games any where in this article–well, too late.
In true book to movie adaptation fashion, liberties were taken, fan favorite scenes and characters were cut, even the themes presented in the beginning as well as during promotion were diminished somewhat along the way. However, it will be sad to see this creative team go in order to make room for the next director who will helm the sequel, Insurgent. Hopefully they will be much more responsible in their expansion of the world, in terms of not only effects but also plot.
Everyone, including the supporting cast, handled their roles solidly–although not as fully realized as they could have been. Theo James plays a stoic yet compelling (not to mention rude and intimidating) Four. Shailene Woodley’s Tris hits the right balance of bravery and apprehension.
They are both strong and vulnerable when the circumstances warrant it. As lovers they don’t necessarily need each other, but they choose to be together–and not just because of his rippling abs. No one is forcing them to be to commited, and no one is crying over separation axiety.
Running toward the train in order to escape the aftermath of a fight in the final act, Tris yells to Four who is trying to offer a hand:“I can do it”.
He simply responds :“I know you can”.
This particular scene reflects in just two lines the practicality and strength of their burgeoning relationship. He never coddles her but reinforces her determination and choices. They borrow from one another instead of depleting each others’ strength.
In the end, there aren’t any villains, which is true to the book in that everyone has an idea about how the factions should be run and what information certain people should be privy to.
Ultimately, when those with the authority to make difficult decisions clash, it is their people that suffer the consequences–becoming murders, casualties. This is shown in the end when once eager Dauntless initiates are turned into brainwashed soldiers, although the how and why, like most devices in the film, could have been explained much better.
Zhana Johnson
Features Correspondent