If you are a fan of young adult books, movies, or are just a moviegoer in general, you've probably heard of Divergent, the new up and coming dystopian series now playing in theaters. Many of you might be thinking, "OMG another Hunger Games?" or possibly "oh no...another supernatural romance like Twilight". Both assumptions are not an uncommon opinion. However, that certainly doesn't make them true. I'll tell you why in a minute. Let's start :)
I first heard about Divergent in high school. Back then, I was more of an avid reader, so I picked up the novel at Target because it sounded completely epic.
You have to admit, it sounds pretty amazing.
Believe me, it was.
I finished that book in two days while in school, which for me was an accomplishment. The tale of teen Tris Prior entertained me to no end.
When I heard it was getting an adaptation, I was ecstatic. My boyfriend and I went to the midnight premiere at 12:01 Thursday night.
If you have never heard of Divergent, I'll try to sum it up quickly.
Imagine a future Chicago, divided by a new government unfamiliar to today's world. You have five factions you can belong to:
Abnegation (selfless people who help the homeless, rule the government, live a simple life)
Candor (honest people who never tell a lie, lawyers, etc.)
Erudite (smart people, scientists, researchers)
Amity (hippies who live in peace and farm and stuff lol)
Dauntless (crazy, badass people who serve as the 'military'; risk takers)
Tris is a member of Abnegation who decides to switch factions during the Choosing Ceremony, which everyone must partake in before they reach young adulthood. Before the Choosing Ceremony, she was given a test to see what faction she would most fit into. However, her results are inconclusive, making her Divergent.
So what does our young heroine decide to do?
She leaves her family to join Dauntless.
Divergent follows Tris and her decision to switch factions and adjust to the Dauntless lifestyle, all while hiding her secret that she is Divergent.
Divergent the movie is an adaption of the first book in the trilogy. Honestly, it follows the book quite well, which is a rarity in book-to-movie adaptations.
Some notable points about the movie adaptation:
-Shailene Woody plays Tris, and does a great job doing so. She fits into her character quite well without being awkward or unrealistic.
-The other characters fit in well, but many do not get a chance to show their true personalities. Of course, this is something hard for an hour and a half movie to convey, and isn't too much of a deal.
-Four's actor does a decent job at playing his character. There are some awkward moments with him, especially the kiss scene lol. Overall, he did a good job.
-The other characters fit in well, but many do not get a chance to show their true personalities. Of course, this is something hard for an hour and a half movie to convey, and isn't too much of a deal.
-Four's actor does a decent job at playing his character. There are some awkward moments with him, especially the kiss scene lol. Overall, he did a good job.
-The scenery is interesting but is not how I imagined it in the book. Of course, this is always a challenge in adaptations. The world of Dauntless is pretty cool.
-Fight scenes and character interactions were believable and were very good at creating suspense. I do applaud the directors for creating tension.
-Political corruption is a dominant theme, and really shows the government's true colors at the end. Its quite fascinating to see how the factions crumble under one another.
-No, Divergent ISN'T a Hunger Games ripoff. The only things it really has in common are the young adult targeted audience, the dystopian universe, and strong female protagonists. As a fan of both, I can confirm this. Don't let the familiar genre turn you away from seeing this.
Overall, Divergent was a great adaptation of the novel by Veronica Roth. Was it the best thing ever? No. Was it just average? Certainly not. It was very good. Although I said I wouldn't compare it to Hunger Games, Catching Fire was a better book adaptation than Divergent. Divergent lacked the character backstories and the sense of time from Tris joining Dauntless until the end. For example, her relationship with Four seemed rushed in the movie, whereas the book it was much more realistic and spread out time wise. Deaths were sad, but didn't reduce me to tears. The book did though.
Movie grade: A-/B+
You should see this movie if: You are a fan of dystopian fiction, young adult fiction, strong female protagonists, fight scenes
You shouldn't see this movie if: You hate young adult fiction or dystopians, you are nit picky about movie adaptions of novels, hate stories about political corruption, hater violence
Watch the trailer here:
Stay cute!
-Em-chan
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