DVD: Insurgent

The second installment in the Divergent movie franchise was released in theaters in early 2015 and was recently released on DVD. 

Insurgent is a much more mature film than its predecessor in that it includes a sex scene, plenty of murders that are shown off screen including the murder of Jeanine Matthews, and some bloody scenes involving one on one violence. As with the first film,  Insurgent is packed with action, plot twists, and moments of romance and betrayal.

Where Insurgent succeeds is in telling the story in a more cohesive and succinct way than did the novel. Usually it's the other way around, but the convoluted storyline of Insurgent  has been significantly cleaned up in the movie due to good screenwriting. 

The movie differs significantly from the novel from the very beginning. For example, Eric is never put on trial but is simply shot by Four when the Dauntless traitors led by Eric attack the Candor headquarters. Evelyn murders Jeanine rather than Tori. In the novel, Jeanine's development of a new simulation that is capable of affecting almost all Divergents is the driving force behind Tris's determination to take her down. However, in the movie version, the implications of the new simulation was only a small part of the movie. The most significant change is the secret box discovered under Tris's parents home that was not a part of either the Insurgent nor Allegiant novels.  The creation of the box containing a  message from the founders that only the Divergent can open, seems to have been done to create a bridge between the story in Insurgent and that forthcoming in Allegiant.

Exciting action scenes, such as when Four is being chased from the Amity community and he races to beat the train which will separate him from Eric and the soldiers, are the mainstay of the movie. However, these same action scenes are part of a weaker aspect of the movie because Shailene Woodley, with her (too) slim build and lack of musculature, doesn't come across as capable of the physical feats she performs. In this respect, Woodley doesn't offer a believable portrayal of the character, Tris.

Woodley's performance is not as strong in Insurgent, where she lacks the same connection with the character of Beatrice that was present in the first movie. Several excellent scenes were designed to demonstrate the internal conflict Tris is experiencing over the death of her friend Will and her parents; when she experiences the truth serum of Candor and is questioned by Jack Kang and when she fights through the Dauntless sim involving her mother. Woodley also seemed to struggle recapturing the connection between her character, Tris Prior and her mentor and companion Tobias Eaton known as Four, that was so powerful in the first movie. The actress admits that it was challenging to establish that connection when they filmed the Amity scenes at the beginning of the movie because they were so different from the Dauntless scenes in Divergent.

Miles Teller who plays Peter, one of the pivotal characters in the novel, impresses in Insurgent mainly because his performance as the traitorous Peter who saves Tris is believable.  Insurgent also introduces the Factionless, those who do not fit in with any faction or have left their faction. The leader of the Factionless is Evelyn, Four's mother played by Naomi Watts who seemed, at first glance, too young for the role in some scenes. Of course this leads into another problem involving casting for this movie series. Four is played by the handsome Theo James who is thirty-years-old but who must play an eighteen year old man - an eleven year age difference. James is excellent in the role, looks the part physically, and exudes a kind of hero persona, but he just doesn't look nineteen. To get around this problem, in the movie he is said to be twenty-four which makes his relationship with sixteen year old Tris somewhat questionable and even a bit creepy.

Overall, Insurgent is a good second movie in the dystopian series but is not a movie for younger viewers. It will be interesting to see how the final book is presented as a two part movie. The final novel in Veronica Roth's series, Allegiant will be split into two movies, the first of which will be released March 18, 2016.

Movie Review: The Fault in Our Stars

The movie adaptation of John Green's blockbuster novel of the same name, will leave theatre-goers and fans of The Fault In Our Stars, weepy but overall, very satisfied. Shailene Woodley stars as Hazel Grace Lancaster and Ansel Elgort as Augustus Waters, two star-crossed teens who both have cancer and who meet at a cancer support group. Dispensing with conventional views about young people with cancer, they are determined to live and love despite the life they've been handed. When Gus reads a novel, The Imperial Affliction, that Hazel gives him, he becomes determined to learn what really happened to the characters after the book's hanging ending. Hazel is shocked to learn that Gus's emails to the author, Peter Van Houten are returned and they are invited to come to Amsterdam to meet him and to talk about the book.


During the time that they have read the novel, made arrangements to travel to Amsterdam and are in the midst of supporting their friend, Isaac who loses both his remaining eye to cancer and his girlfriend, Gus finds himself falling in love with Hazel. But Hazel doesn't want Gus to love her because she feels she is like a grenade, about to explode and obliterate everyone's life with her eventual death. All this does not matter to Gus, who believes he is destined to live a remarkable life. However, a remarkable life will not be Gus's destiny. The trip to Amsterdam while not providing the answers they were hoping for, results in Hazel and Gus falling in love. Hazel begins to realize that this is the only life they get and they have to make the most of it, whatever it might be.

Shailene Woodley gives an emotionally riveting performance as Hazel and is well supported by Elgort as Gus, by Laura Dern as Frannie and Sam Trammell as Michael, Hazel's warm, supportive parents. But each of these actor's performances are also exceptional. The chemistry between Woodley and Elgort is surprisingly effective; their relationships comes across as warm, funny and romantic - very believable. But this movie also manages to capture some of the heartbreak, the terror and the pain that goes with cancer. Just as an example, when Hazel receives an email and calls her mother, her mom tears into her bedroom, fearing the worst. Her response seems over the top, but it's not for the parent of a child, chronically and terminally ill.

Fans of the novel will recognize that for the most part, the movie is true to the novel. The film was shot in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Amsterdam. Anne Frank's house was not used for the scenes in the house, only the entrance was used.

The only part of this movie I felt bordered on ridiculous was the portrayal of a cancer therapy group, in particular one that addressed spirituality. In The Fault in Our Stars, the cancer group Hazel and Gus attend is run in a Protestant church by a thirty-something man, who plays the guitar and who has hooked a rug of the Sacred Heart of Jesus - a solely Catholic image used to portray the mercy of God. The cancer support counselor was made to look like an absolute idiot, who has nothing to offer these young people, except some little ditties about resting in the heart of Jesus. Behind all of this is the hint of the senselessness (and hopelessness) of cancer, the suffering and perhaps even prayer. There is no magical theological explanation about the why of cancer; why some get it and live, why others get it and die, or why some never get it at all. It happens, just like bad things happen to good people, and we make the best of them. We help each other along that journey. And yes, we might also pray - a fact that even the National Cancer Institute recognizes. The NCI on its website indicates that studies show that patients whose spiritual issues are addressed either by their doctors or by support groups do better.

Once the movie moved past this point, it was on more solid ground exploring how young people struggle to cope with a serious illness like cancer, how they are viewed by others and how those around those around them, parents and friends, try to come to terms with illness in young lives. For example, Isaac's girlfriend dumps him before his eye surgery because she can't cope with him going blind, ignoring how traumatizing this might be for Isaac. This sort of insensitivity is common in many events in life, whether it be women suffering from a miscarriage or the loss of a child. It's that continual worry that something terrible is about to happen all over again.

Overall The Fault In Our Stars is a touching movie that will make viewers think a bit more deeply about the reality of young people who suffer from chronic health issues and how we often make illness a barrier to one another. The stellar performance by Woodley in particular, will prod those who haven't yet read the novel, to do so.

Below is the trailer for the movie:

Movie Review: Divergent

The screen adaptation of  the first novel in Veronica Roth's immensely popular Divergent series was thrilling and faithful to the book. The movie, directed by Neil Burger (The Illusionist) has a solid cast that includes Shailene Woodley as Beatrice (Tris) Prior, Theo James as Tobias Eaton, Ashley Judd as Tris' mother, Natalie, Ansel Elgort as Tris' brother, Caleb and Kate Winslet was Jeanine Matthews. Rounding out the cast is Maggie Q as the hardened Tori, Zoe Kravitz as Christina and Jai Courtney as the bad-ass Eric.

Divergent tells the story of post-apocalyptic Chicago, a city isolated from the rest of the country by an enormous fence designed to keep whatever is left, outside. Inside the city, the population is organized into factions based on virtues. At the age of sixteen, young people chose which faction they will belong too in an initiation ceremony. This ceremony takes place after they have undergone testing to see which faction they show an aptitude for. Beatrice Prior's test is inconclusive because she demonstrates an aptitude for three factions, Abnegation, Erudite and Dauntless. This means that Beatrice can overcome her fears and that she cannot be controlled like most of her fellow citizens. She is warned not to tell anyone because she is considered "divergent" and that she must hide within a faction.

Believing herself not worthy of staying with Abnegation, at her choosing ceremony, Beatrice picks the Dauntless faction and leaves her family to begin initiation into this faction. The initiation process is cruel and physically taxing, but Beatrice who now goes by the name of Tris, finds an ally in Four who is one of the Dauntless leaders. Four sees that Beatrice is both brave and selfless and he begins to help her train to move up the ranks. As romance begins to blossom between Four and Tris, they discover that their factioned society is breaking down with the Erudite faction accusing Abnegation of mismanaging the government.

In an attempt to remove Abnegation from their position of control, Jeanine Matthews, leader of the Erudites, uses an mind control serum that causes the Dauntless warriors, who believe they are in a simulation, to attack the Abnegation faction. Because they are divergent, Tris and Four are not affected. Instead they must now try to stop the wholesale slaughter of an entire faction.

Discussion

Divergent: The Movie provides fans of the novels a realistic means to visually experience the Divergent world author Veronica Roth created in her novel, showing a ruined Chicago with vast abandoned areas, partially destroyed buildings and a rejuvenated city center. Director Neil Burger does an good job of portraying life in ruined Chicago with its five factions, showing how each group dress and how their lives are lived so separately from one another. In the novel, this kind of detail is spread out through the story, but in the movie it's immediately apparent.

While the entire cast give strong performances and Shailene Woodley was surprisingly good as Tris, Theo James in particular stood out as Dauntless trainer, Four. James' solid effort proves he's more than just a pretty face and he almost steals the spotlight in this movie. James did all of his own stunts.

The screenplay is well done too, as it effectively showcases Tris' development from a shy, awkward teenager unsure about her future, into a brave and selfless young woman who begins to assert her "divergence" to challenge the status quo. This leads to plenty of action, romance, and tragedy. Completing this solid effort is a diverse soundtrack that is both appealing and enhances the action on the screen.

Divergent as a movie might actually be better than the book. The next movie, Insurgent is slated for release in March, 2015.