The next book-to-film adaptation to be released is Summit Entertainment’s Divergent, opening in theaters March 21st. The New York Times best seller was written by Veronica Roth (co-producer of the film, as well) before she had even graduated with her undergraduate degree in Creative Writing from Northwestern University. The story follows protagonist, Beatrice “Tris” Prior, as she learns that being ‘Divergent’ is something dangerous and life-changing.
The world of Divergent is understandably a dystopian future where society is divided into five factions: Abnegation, Dauntless, Amity, Candor, and Erudite. Each faction is based on what skill-set comes the most natural to you. Abnegation values selflessness in the service of others, Amity values peace above else, Candor values honesty, Dauntless values bravery, and Erudite values the virtue of intelligence and wisdom. At the prime age of 16, each coming-of-age child must become a member of society and choose one of the five factions at a Choosing Ceremony. This decision is determined by an aptitude test that uses a “simulation” to find its results. The test results, however, are only a suggested path, the initiate has the power to choose what life they will lead.
The film starts off with showing Beatrice (Shailene Woodley) in her grey, barren Abnegation house with her father (Tony Goldwyn), mother (Ashley Judd), and brother (Ansel Elgort). Beatrice takes the aptitude test like every other initiate. Her results, however, are inconclusive, which we later find out to be the ominous ‘Divergent’. Instead of choosing Abnegation, what she knows, Beatrice chooses the fear-seeking Dauntless and embarks on a journey packed full of action, adrenaline, and suspense. The next scene you see is Shailene Woodley and Zoe Kravitz hauling ass, running beside a train, trying to jump aboard. “Run Boy Run” by Woodkid fills the scene with this hyper-coolness — you just want to be DAUNTLESS!
My overall impression of the film is described best in the last sentence of the previous paragraph. The filmmakers do a great job at making you want to be apart of this world — ass-kicking, jaw-breaking, nose-bleeding and all. And let’s be honest, I’m definitely not the type of person that would engage in violent activity for fun, so that’s saying A LOT for me to want to be a part of it! The way the music becomes such an intrinsic part of this film reminds me of the Twilight world. (Please don’t zone out on me now; I’ve got a point, I promise.) The music allows you to feel the story and to feel Tris’ struggles and triumphs. The most notable music collaboration was Ellie Goulding’s contribution to the Divergent soundtrack; my favorite being the single, “Hanging On,” which perfectly describes Beatrice as she walks into the Choosing Ceremony about to select her fate. It’s so easy for a big franchise like this one to select popular musicians just to select them. It’s so much harder for a big franchise to be transcendent with its music selection. You will have to buy the Divergent Soundtrack (out NOW) after seeing the movie, trust me and you’re welcome.
It’s time to talk chemistry because that’s all we really want to know now-a-days. Shailene and Theo have a great on-screen chemistry. At first, you feel like Tris is just hot for teacher, but their relationship develops more and you can really start to feel it, especially towards the end. Oh, and can we just talk about Theo’s abs? Hey, I am not being grotesque, he talked about them here. In real life, Shailene and Theo could not be more different, which, to me, makes promo interesting. It’s not forced. I love that. Is it time yet to bring out the cliches? Opposites attract. BOOM, just.did.it.
Okay, so now you are probably thinking, How close is this movie to the book? Well, I hate to burst your bubble, but let’s face it. Every book-to-film adaptation has to have some creative cutting, splicing, adding, etc., to make it ready for all audiences. The film adaptation, Divergent, strays from the book in terms of timing. Fans of the book will be happy that all the important scenes are in the movie; however, the sequence of when that important scene might have occurred has shifted a bit. Don’t worry, you’ll still see Tris and her mom reunite; it’s just not in the way you think it will be. It’s Hollywood and you have to make a movie that everyone is going to understand. Moviegoers are not granted the luxury of reading every thought that crosses Tris’ mind, nor are they allowed the time it takes to read a 487 page novel in 2 hours. As a fan of the book, I can accept what they changed, deleted, and added because the filmmakers remained in the world. They did it justice. It still makes sense. I’ll post a spoiler-worthy write-up on the book-to-film differences after opening day.
This film (and basically whole story) is BADASS. (I wrote that a lot in my notes while screening the film). The combat, romance, and thrill allow for both sexes to find Divergent entertaining. I expect this film to open big, so why wait to hear from your friends about it? GO OUT AND WATCH IT OPENING WEEKEND!
Check out the photos we took of Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort, Tony Goldwyn and cast from the Divergent press junket here. Watch our red carpet interview with Theo James, Shailene Woodley, Ansel Elgort, and Veronica Roth at the Los Angeles World Premiere.