The Divergent Series: Insurgent – Movie Review
Hey, folks! We are BACK to our regularly scheduled program today. Maybe the mind needs a little vacation every once in a while, but, once rejuvenated, it comes back better and sharper than ever; and with new reviews no less. Just got in from a watching The Divergent Series: Insurgent starring Shailene Woodley, Ansel Elgort, Theo James.
As we return back to this world, Things pick up right where we left off. The backdrop is a post apocalyptic world in which the last remnant of humanity is split into five factions: Erudite (the intelligent), Abnegation (the selfless), Amity (the peaceful), Candor (the honest), and Dauntless (the brave). Every once in a while there is a person born that posses traits from multiple factions. These multi-faction humans are known as Divergent. Our protagonist, Trice, is one of these Divergent. After finding out that she is a divergent and that there is a deadly alliance being formed among the factions, she forms a small group within the Dauntless that breaking away to thwart a threat being implemented by alliance. After finding a short-lived sanctuary among the people of the Amity faction, Tris soon finds that she must face her inner demons in order to bring down this deadly regime.
I definitely have to say, I had a blast with this one. If the first of the series focused on the world itself and how the characters in the story fit in it, then this one dug a little deeper into who Trice is. What makes her tick and what pushes her to her limits. It was interesting to see which aspects of the factions she had the most trouble excepting. This was more of her personal development and journey as a character in this world and how the people around her contributed to her being. Shailene Woodley did great as the lead. There were some really intense moments where she as an actor dug deep to pull you into where she was in the story and it made for excellent storytelling.
Out of all the other supporting actors (who did amazing jobs) Johnny Weston stands out to me the most. I don’t know if you remember the review we did on Project Almanac, but this guy is a pretty solid talent. Keep your eye on him. In Insurgent, Weston plays Edgar, a member of the factionless people. He added an interesting conduit to the voice of the Factionless. I’ll be interested to see where this guy goes in his career. It was also a joy to see Daniel Dae Kim as well playing as Jack Kang, the leader of the Candor Faction. Kim has been going on the radar as far as talents in this industry. He’s always fun to watch whether he’s on Hawaii Five-O, Lost, or even voicing the violent sociopath Johnny Gat from The Saint’s Row gaming series. Octavia Spencer also carried her own as the Amity Faction leader. Her character serves as an excellent aid to Trice in her character development. She’s a brilliant actor. I just recently got a chance to see her in another film, Snowpiercer (definitely worth a look over, it’s available on Netflix).
Visually, Insurgent was brilliant. What I’m starting to notice with 3D films is that subtly they give you a perspective of depth in the scene that makes you feel as iff you’re peering through a window. There were moments I was watching Insurgent and felt like I could honestly just walk through the screen and be there.They don’t try to overwhelm you with the 3D, but it’s subtle enough to make the images much richer than average.
Insurgent as a whole did feel a little short, and there were points where the film began to feel familiar to the matrix. In the fact that there are so many simulations, and there’s a bit of talk of “the one”, but it wasn’t so overwhelming that I couldn’t see what things were for.If there was anything I didn’t like was how short it felt. I’m looking forward to seeing the next two films: Allegiant part 1 & part 2 and where the story goes from there.
This one is definitely a good one to see this weekend. 3D is up to you, but I felt it added to the visual experience and I didn’t come out of it feeling like I wasted time. Check the latest trailer below. Tickets for Insurgent go on sale today!