Film Review: DIVERGENT

(This review contains a few spoilers and direct references to scenes in the film)

I went into Divergent feeling relatively neutral, not particularly excited, and not expecting anything that great. The trailers were interesting, and I liked what I had seen so far cinematography-wise, but I didn't really know what to expect and how the director, Neil Burger, was going to interpret and develop his impression of Veronica Roth's fantastically fast-paced novel.

Even when the title sequence began rolling, I knew that there was going to be something a little special about this film. I couldn't have been more accurate. Divergent was unique in its stance on the YA novel turned film adaptation as it didn't compromise the visuals or screenplay and yet maintained a good, gripping pace. Although there were a few differences between book and movie, there were also a lot of positives about this adaptation. 

Let's start with what I liked about the film:

The cinematography and appearance of the film was stunning. The attention to detail was fantastic and I really liked their artistic representation of this crumbling but surviving futuristic Chicago. There was a good combination of futurism and technology intermixed with the more simple and mechanical appearance I imagined from the book: for example, whilst the Erudite and Dauntless compounds had a very stylised newness about them, the trains that ran through the city still looked old and weathered. It was this juxtaposition alongside the eroding skyscrapers scattered through the city that really created an exciting visual effect.

The film was also shot in a very intimate manner in which the viewer feels very close to the main characters during the action. Specifically, I really enjoyed the visual choice to make frequent close-ups of Tris whilst the film progressed which allowed us to really notice the small changes in her disposition. My favourite element was the reoccurring motif of her reflection. After the viewer becomes familiar with the Abnegations' uneasiness with mirrors, the simulation where Tris becomes multiplied again and again into infinite copies of herself is a beautiful symbolic representation of her choice. Tris' reflection then follows her throughout the remainder of the film in moments of novelty or excitement, such as the zip-wire scene and the fear landscapes. She is forced to connect with herself.

One of the changes that, in my opinion, really benefited the plot of the film was the construction of Tris as a character. In the book, she does gain bravery and confidence immensely, but still holds something childlike and naive in her demeanour. However, Shailene Woodley's portrayal of Tris was more mature, hard hitting and wittier. Contrary to the dystopian genre, the film was full of light-hearted humorous lines which were timed effectively and because of this, I found it a lot easier to warm to Tris. I ended up preferring film-Tris to book-Tris just because I feel like the journey from girl to woman is a lot clearer in the film and there's something a lot harsher and more determined in Woodley's Tris. 

Furthermore, I enjoyed the beginning of the film a lot where we were able to get a sound and thorough introduction of all the factions and how they fit within the structures of the society. Moreover, it was interesting to see Tris slowly noticing more and more of the Dauntless until she becomes one. The scene where she climbs the bridge amongst the running Dauntless with music pounding and smile spreading across her face is magical: the viewer really experiences a certain exhilaration with her.

As for other changes that worked really well; I liked how the action was more serious, for example, the paintball activity in the novel changes to war games with fake bullets that feel like real ones. Suddenly, that omnipresent danger becomes all the more clearer even in the activities they consider "fun". The fighting, battle and action scenes were also very extensive and the stunts were very well crafted. I really valued this choreography and that they didn't minimise the action as Divergent is characteristically fast-paced and tense.

Similarly, I like how the fear landscapes were interpreted. Unlike the book, the Dauntless can only escape their fears by solving how to stop and escape it, much like a logic puzzle. This made the viewing experience a lot more satisfying and exciting however it didn't really make sense to show bravery by using puzzle solving skills which seem more suited to Erudite. I especially liked Tris and Four's journey into his landscape where he taught her the difference between Divergent actions and Dauntless actions. I felt this made more sense within the context of the tests as well as allowing a more plausible reason for Four to allow Tris into his mind.

Talking of Four, Theo James presented a version of him that was completely different to anything I had imagined, but worked surprisingly well. Theo's Four had such an intense masculinity about him whilst still retaining the tenderness and honesty so integral to his personality. Other characters which exceeded my expectations in a good way were Tori (Maggie Q), Christina (Zoe Kravitz) and Eric (Jai Courtney).

"I don't want to be just one thing. I can't be. I want to be brave, and I want to be selfless, intelligent, and honest and kind."

As for elements that didn't work as well: I really wanted more from the secondary characters. The movie was very focused on the main story-arc as I mentioned before, following Tris very closely. However, in choosing to do this, a lot of the thorough and rich subplots with the secondary characters were lost. The viewer wasn't able to see the romance blooming between Christina and Will; we weren't able to see the true extent of Peter's maliciousness; and we were unable to get introduced to any of the Dauntless-born initiates. It is fully understandable as to why these small details were cut, but the real appeal of Divergent was its set of characters, and it was a real shame that we couldn't get to know them all as well as we did in the book. This also meant that when certain characters did die, the impact was cushioned by the fact that we didn't get that intense connection.

The pacing also felt extremely rushed due to the fact that they were trying to maintain most of the plot points. A lot of scenes were included, but they all seemed to happen briefly, especially during the Dauntless initiation which loses some of its apprehension and fatality. Again this lowered the viewer's investment in the plot and characters and I struggle to think what non-readers of the book would think of this film.

Overall, Divergent was a nice accompaniment to the book. I appreciated the artistic interpretation and creation of this wonderfully corrupt future. The visual design was fantastic and the acting very good although the rushed pacing made it quite difficult to grasp the scientific side of the narrative. A great, cinematic experience but not mind-blowing.

p.s. The actor who played Will (Ben Lloyd-Hughes) looked so much like Ezra Koenig from Vampire Weekend in this film. Scary.

(Screencaps from http://www.divergentlife.com/)