Divergent at the 2014 Teen Choice Awards

I am a fan of the Divergent novels. My favorite being Insurgent and least favorite being Allegiant. Now I don't hate that book because of the ending as I wasn't bothered by a certain event at the end of the Animorphs series, a book series that Roth is also a fan of. I don't like the final novel in the trilogy due to how much weaker it feels compared to the other two novels in the trilogy.

Divergent (2014)

Title: Divergent

Director: Neil Burger

Starring: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, and Kate Winslet

Rated: PG-13

Released: 2014

Personal Rating: 4.5/6

Oscars: N/A

Plot: In a world divided by factions based on virtues, Tris learns she's Divergent and won't fit in. When she discovers a plot to destroy Divergents, Tris and the mysterious Four must find out what makes Divergents dangerous before it's too late.
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From Book to Screen
I have read Divergent and so when I saw this movie I couldn't help but compare it to the book. One thing that bothered me was the fact that Peter is actually sort of likable in this movie. In the books there is no doubt that he isn't a good guy (and his arc in Allegiant will mean jack shit if they don't build him up to be a total asshole). I thought that the Tris/Four love story was done well. They at least got it out there though I think it was a little bigger in the book. Only problem with Four/Tobias was that I believe he was revealed to be Divergent earlier. I think double checking these facts is a good reason to re-read the trilogy!

Caleb
Okay, I won't say where his storyline goes for those who haven't read the book but...it's so heartbreaking seeing him on screen. I like how he is portrayed by being the brother who Tris admires. It's great seeing him be an outstanding member of the Abnegation faction and then seeing he wanted to be Erudite all along. The makers of the movie did a good job with this character.

Special Effects
They were good. There are different points in the movie where Tris goes into either her's or Four's fearscape. The fearscape is somewhere you enter by way of a serum and its purpose is for you to face your fears. It's used by Dauntless for their initiation. Besides the fearscape, the testing that Tris goes through in the beginning of the movie another serum is used. I especially liked the testing, though it didn't go down as in the book, since the effects used really contributed to the atmosphere the scene needed.

Final Thoughts
This movie was very enjoyable. The movie does a decent job at explaining the book's material to a theater audience. So if you know nothing about Divergent, when you leave the theater you should understand the world people like me have fallen in love with. If you see the movie and want to read the books I would say that's not a bad call as it will expand your understanding of the world of Divergent. I am probably one of the few hoping that a certain event in Allegiant isn't changed for the movie version. Here's hoping!

The Divergent Movie Trilogy

The Divergent books revolve around Tris and the society she lives in. They are great books and I recommend you read them ASAP. The first two are golden while the third one does provide answers and an end to the trilogy, but it doesn't hold up to the first two that well.

On March 21'st of this year we'll get to see Divergent on the big screen. I am very suspicious, as always, about how well the filmmakers will make the adaptation.

However, this blog post isn't about my uneasiness. This blog post is about the fact that it seems the other two books in the series are lined up for film adaptations too!

I admit it's confusing to me how the other two are greenlit when the first isn't even released yet. How do those in charge know if the other two will be financially successful?

Depending on how well the first one does will define how I think the other two will turn out.

Insurgent has a 2015 release date for now.

Of all the books, I got the most out of Insurgent. Divergent had opened me to the world then Insurgent came in to expand on it and had a killer cliffhanger ending. I don't know how I survived the wait for the final book.

Allegiant has a 2016 release date for now.

I am surprised that Allegiant isn't being broken up into two movies as that seems to be the rage nowadays. Maybe that will happen later?

I saw one person say Allegiant shouldn't be made into a movie since it has a very depressing ending.

Two things about that:

1.) I have seen (The Grey with Liam Neeson) and read (Cujo by Stephen King) endings that are far sadder than Allegiant's ending. Allegiant has a really sad and shocking ending, but it's not the saddest I have dealt with in the past.

2.) Having a sad and depressing ending doesn't mean you can't film it. If that were the case, some great movies wouldn't have been able to be filmed.

Allegiant's ending (without spoiling anything) showed that Veronica Roth treats Young Adults like adults. She basically said in the ending, "I know you can handle this."

The outcry from the readers might be from not expecting an ending like Roth gave them and had them confuse the sad ending for a bad one.

Divergent, Please Don't Suck

I like to go into movies with an open mind. But, of course, that's not always the case. Sometimes I have bias for a movie I'll be seeing.

For the upcoming Divergent movie I'm biased because I love the books. I want to see a good adaptation of the books on the big screen. I am well aware that doesn't usually happen, but Harry Potter and The Hunger Games have gotten some decent adaptations.

What makes me worried about the Divergent movie is the fact that events are being changed and characters are being dropped. Those things always make me a little nervous.

Yes, you can tell a great story without some characters, but it makes your job a little harder. And it seems those who do movie adaptations usually don't realize what is at the heart of what they're adapting for film. So it means they have even more of a chance to fuck things up when they change the order of events and drop characters.

Shailene Woodley is set to play Beatrice "Tris" Prior who is the heroine of the Divergent Trilogy.

Theo James is set to play Four/Tobias who is a fellow Divergent and love interest.

If you're wondering: Yes, Veronica Roth is an Animorphs fan.

Jai Courtney is set to play Eric and is also being considered for the role of Kyle Reese in this upcoming film:

The Divergent Trilogy
Good Film Adaptations