Heading into the third film based on Veronica Roth's best-selling
YA trilogy, The
Divergent Series: Allegiant has
settled into its mediocre place in the genre. It's not quite a blockbuster
like, say, The Hunger Games or Twilight, but it isn't a disaster
either. That divergence (no pun intended) is reflected in the films themselves,
with the first one a dull talker that struggled to explain the complicated
faction-based dystopia of the story's setting. The sequel, Insurgent, was far superior as it ditched the bland stuff for more
guns, more actions, bigger visual effects, more more more. With Allegiant, the first half of
the franchise finale, there seems to be no clear focus about what this film is
supposed to be, and there's definitely not enough story to sustain two movies
when it can barely carry one.
If you haven't seen the first two Divergent films then Allegiant is probably the worst time to
become a fan because there's no attempt to explain anything, not that it would
have made any sense. One of the biggest problems with Roth's series, and it has
been amplified in the adaptations, is that the future society these characters
exist in is utterly ridiculous and unconvincing. Shailene Woodley and the
mountain-voiced Theo James are back as polished lovebirds Tris and Four, who
have survived the attack by Jeanine and her plot to destroy
"divergents". What are divergents? Ehhhhh, well, they're sorta like
mutants except not at all. See, in the Chicago they live in, society was
divided up into ideological factions. Divergents were able to rise above all of
that and be themselves. Now in Allegiant the faction system is destroyed,
but there's no peace because Four's mother (Naomi Watts) wants total control
while a rebel group (led by Octavia Spencer) has splintered off.
Get all that? Well, there's more, and it
involves Tris, Four, the devious Peter (Miles Teller), and Tris' back-stabbing
brother Caleb (Ansel Elgort) fleeing Chicago into a cheap-looking technological
city where the Bureau of Genetic Warfare is being run by a mysterious man
named David (Jeff Daniels) There they learn Chicago has been watched over by
the Bureau, "Truman Show"-style, in hopes of helping humanity recover
from the effects of a genetic war. The whole thing is stupidly convoluted, but
the details that could have helped flesh this world out are presented in a
dismissive fashion. However, if you really need a reminder of the franchise's
core theme of individuality, it will be explained to you ad nauseum in one of
many variations on “Leaders need to make tough decisions to protect the
people.” Worst of all, Tris is relegated to background duty as the most
gullible person on the planet, a take on her character that fans of the
strong-willed book version will deplore. It's hardly the only change the film
makes from the books, too, and few of them add anything of value.
Normally these films are carried on the
capable shoulders of star Shailene Woodley, but even she looks as disengaged as
we are. The same goes for Watts, Daniels, Teller, and...well, it's hard to tell
if James is bored because his expression never changes, anyway. Perhaps it's the green screen overload, the
utter reliance on CGI that has the cast so listless. This is the second
Divergent film directed by Robert Schwentke, and while the effects fit for Insurgent which was all runnin' and gunnin',
the slower-paced Allegiant could have done with more tangible
effects. Coincidentally, Schwentke quit the franchise after this, citing
exhaustion. You can feel the cast and crew's fatigue permeating every frame of Allegiant, and sadly there's
still one more to go.
Rating: 2 out of 5
