21
Mar/14

DIVERGENT

21
Mar/14
DIVERGENT

Four (Theo James) offers pointers to Tris (Shailene Woodley) as she trains to become Dauntless in DIVERGENT

DIVERGENT (Neil Burger, 2014)
Opens Friday, March 21
www.divergentthemovie.com

First things first: In another part of our life, we are directly involved in the publication of Veronica Roth’s bestselling Divergent trilogy. Does that mean we can be impartial when it comes to reviewing the first of three films based on her books? We certainly hope so. In a near-future dystopian Chicago following a devastating war, people are divided into five factions: the selfless Abnegation, the honest Candor, the peaceful Amity, the intelligent Erudite, and the brave Dauntless. Upon turning sixteen, every individual participates in a Choosing Ceremony in which they decide which faction they will serve for the rest of their lives. But Tris (Shailene Woodley) is clearly different. Raised by her parents (Ashley Judd and Tony Goldwyn) in Abnegation, she shows an aptitude for more than one faction after taking the life-determining test all teens must endure: Her multifaceted personality means she’s Divergent. Test administrator Tori (Maggie Q) reveals that Divergence is a death sentence in this ever-more-fascistic society and that she must keep it a secret. She ultimately chooses to become Dauntless, going through rigorous training led by Four (Theo James), who sees something special in her even as she continually fails at feats of strength. But soon she is using her intellect to rise in the ranks as she tries to find her place in a world that, as she discovers, is powered by evil and corruption. “Human nature is the enemy,” Erudite leader Jeanine Matthews (Kate Winslet) tells her.

Tris (Shailene Woodley) and Christina (Zoë Kravitz) set out on the next phase of their life in DIVERGENT

Tris (Shailene Woodley) and Christina (Zoë Kravitz) set out on the next phase of their life in DIVERGENT

Directed by Neil Burger (The Illusionist, Limitless), who will not be helming the sequels, Insurgent and Allegiant, Divergent has more than its fair share of plot holes and red herrings, but they are overcome by a strong lead performance by Woodley, a promising young actress who has previously appeared in such well-received fare as The Descendants and The Spectacular Now — and will next star in the adaptation of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars alongside Ansel Elgort, who plays her brother, Caleb, in Divergent. Woodley captures the pitfalls and missteps of an adolescent on the verge of adulthood, facing the deeply entrenched apprehensions and anxieties that will follow her through life, in many ways a wildly imagined metaphor for the daughter leaving the nest, beginning with SAT testing and selecting a college, then searching for the right clique as she desperately tries to fit in somewhere. Perhaps not coincidentally, Roth began writing the book while still in college herself. No mere Hunger Games ripoff, Divergent is about the fears we all carry with us and must face time and time again in the choices we make on our path to finding out who we are.