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DIVERGENT
“Divergent”
– Lionsgate Films – Debut 03/21/2014
Staring
Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Ashley Judd, Ray Stevenson, Zoe Kravitz,
and Kate Winslet.
Directed
by Neil Burger
I knew very little of this movie
before I set out to see it with my wife. I was informed it was a book
and it was a lot like The Hunger Games. Knowing that, I knew that it
would likely appeal to a younger audience. Not to my surprise, the
theater was full of teenagers, their parents, and adults under 40. I was
curious because of some of the hype it received leading up to the
movies’ release.
The story takes place in a post
apocalyptic world (sounds familiar) and it centers around a 16 year old
girl (sounds familiar again) named Tris. The city (or society) is split
up between 5 distinct factions. The city’s culture revolves around the
factions, that factions over blood. At a certain age, a person takes a
test to help them make their choice as to which faction they are to join
for the rest of their lives. Tris’s family, before her faction
choosing, is involved with politics and her faction is rather disliked
by another faction. The movie tries to convey that there’s a
conspiracy going on within the government and Tris’s faction.
Without giving away more of the
movie, I would say that the movie was very entertaining and very
visually appealing. However, I walked away saying that it was a poor
man’s version of the Hunger Games. It centered around a 16 year old
girl, post apocalypse, predicatable romantic scenes, and instead of 13
districts, there’s 5 factions. Tris becomes rebellious against her
government…just like in the Hunger Games. There’s too many
comparisons to name them all.
Bottom line, did I like the movie?
Yes I did, I thought it was entertaining, and worth seeing, but don’t
expect too much out of it, it’s clearly catered to a younger audience.
I did like that the story took place in
Chicago
and took place in places I’ve personally have been to. The acting was
alright, the story was fairly predictable, but if you’re looking for
decent entertainment, watch the movie.
review
by Matthew Haumschild
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