One Choice, decided your friends. One Choice, defines your beliefs. One Choice, determines your loyalties – Forever. ONCE CHOICE CAN TRANSFORM YOU”
Beatrice Prior lives in a futuristic version of Chicago wherein it is divided into five different distinct factions. Each faction is dedicated to following one single virtue. The first faction is Abnegation, known as the “stiffs” of the community. It was formed by those who blame selfishness for human nature’s errors; thereby eliminating anything that can be seen as being selfish. Dauntless was formed by those who blamed cowardice for society’s problems; thereby finding bravery by facing ones fears. Erudite- the “brains” of the operation. Run by those who blamed human ignorance for the faults of society. They formed Erudite as a way of eliminating ignorance and darkness from human minds. Amity- the “flower children” who dislike war, was formed in order to keep a peaceful society that would be free from conflict and sadness caused by wars and instigation. Candor- a faction formed by those who blame duplicity and deception, who believe that dishonesty is the key fault in human nature which began evil and war. There are also those who do not fit into any of the factions. Those people are called The Factionless and are people who are poor and live on the streets. There are few who possess the traits of all five factions. They are called The Divergent. Being a Divergent is considered extremely dangerous because their minds can not be controlled.
The only way to find out which faction one belongs to is by taking an aptitude test. It’s not until the ceremony that a person chooses to join a faction according to the test results. Beatrice doesn’t have the luxury of knowing which faction she belongs to because her test results came back as inconclusive meaning she is in fact a Divergent. She chooses to leave her mother and father behind in Abnegation and decides to join Dauntless while her brother is placed into Erudite. The family is torn apart without knowing her secret of being a Divergent. After she arrives into Dauntless she is forced to be brave by overcoming obstacles, finding love and making friends while finding herself in a war that tries to overthrow the government.
I was pleasantly surprised with how much action this film has. Without reading the books prior to screening the film, it is hard to say if the film follows closely to the book Honestly I did not have high hopes for the film and I’m not sure why other than its story being somewhat similar to The Hunger Games in all of its dystopian glory. I am glad to report that though the two stories are alike they are unique in their own way. One is not better than the other, they are just different and should not be misconstrued as being the same type of story. The acting is exceptional! The actors are perfect at portraying their characters. After being sucked in from beginning to end it not only left me wanting more but it left me wanting to know the characters more. I am left with wanting to read the series of books that much more!
“I feel like someone breathed new air into my lungs. I am not Abnegation. I am not Dauntless.
I am Divergent.”
4.5 out of 5 Factions!!
Review By Gabby Colageo
From book to screen comes the first installment of Veronica Roth’s hit series Divergent. In a post war society, people have been divided in to factions. Amity for the peaceful, Candor for the honest, Erudite for the knowledgeable, Dauntless for the brave and Abnegation for the selfless. In the city that was Chicago is a girl, her name is Beatrice ‘Tris’ Prior (Shailene Woodley). When a person is at the age of sixteen they must take an aptitude test to test into what faction they would belong in; although the test may give you an answer you are allowed to choose whatever faction you want. In Tris’s case her results come back as inconclusive, making her Divergent; a case where a person tests into more than one faction. Unfortunately for Tris this marks her dangerous, as deemed by society. On the day of choosing Tris and her brother Caleb (Ansel Elgort) leave their family in Abnegation, Caleb goes to Erudite and Tris chooses Dauntless. The Dauntless are basically the law enforcement in this world, they protect the city and guard the wall, which surrounds the city. Once Tris makes it to Dauntless she meets Four (Theo James) an instructor who is charge of training the transfer initiates. To make it into Dauntless Tris must rank high enough or she will be left factionless, she must fight her way through the ranks and survive the ridicule she is put under by fellow Dauntless, such as Peter (Miles Teller) a fellow transfer initiate originally from Candor who believes Tris isn’t cut out for Dauntless, Eric (Jai Courtney) a Dauntless Leader, and many others who believe she is just a ‘Stiff’. While Tris keeps her divergence a secret, people such as Jeanine Matthews (Kate Winslet) an Erudite leader are keeping a look out for Divergent’s and is having them eliminated. That isn’t the only thing Erudite has in store; they are trying to over throw Abnegation (who is charge of the government) deeming it an unneeded faction. With the help of Four, Tris will be able to save her family and make it into Dauntless without being caught as a Divergent?
As book adaptations go Divergent was great! Sure it didn’t really play up Four and Tris’s romance and the movie left out some interactions that Tris had in the book. Such as her interacting with Dauntless born and her kicking the crap out of one of the Candor transfers, but it mostly hit all the major plot points. I had not read the book until after I saw the movie, and from a viewer who only knew the basic information from the trailer it was a fantastic movie. It explained the world really well and the plot progressed at a nice pace. The romance wasn’t super heavy in this film which I found refreshing since in most young adult book to movie franchises the romance is layered on thick, and it becomes a little to dramatic. It left me wanting to see the sequel and see what happens to Tris. The acting was good, I was impressed by Shailene Woodley who up until this point hadn’t played such a bad ass role. She can definitely kick some butt! Also the chemistry that she and Theo James bring to the roles of Tris and Four really pulled me into the story. Also Kate Winslet does such an amazing job as being the villain! She pulls off being evil with a smile flawlessly.
I would definitely recommend Divergent to anyone who is a fan of the dystopian world/ young adult genre. With movies such as City of Bones and Hunger Games being out this movie can stand out on its own because of its originality. Divergent is a great movie for anyone who liked the book or just wants to see a great story on screen.
4/5 Factions! (Stars)
Check out our Premiere Images, Interview with the Stars and Costume Images from Divergent Here
