A cut above the average dystopian story

“You’re different. You don’t fit into a category. They can’t control you. They call it Divergent. You can’t let them find out about you.” says Tori, the mysterious Asian tattoo artist who kicks off the plot of the movie.

Divergent is the latest dystopian novel to get a big screen adaptation from HarperCollins publishing. Set into the post apocalyptic world of the city of Chicago, the city is walled off from the supposed outsiders struggling to survive around the city in an implied savage and lawless way. To create order, the government has created four factions representing selflessness, intelligence, honesty and kindness for people to fit into very specific and fulfilling lifestyles all their lives.

Our protagonist is named Beatrice Prior, though quickly into the movie she renames herself Triss, played by Shailene Woodley. Triss is a bold girl unable to find her place in the world as she struggles to find herself among this system. Choosing a house, she soon finds she needs to pass a series of physical and mental examinations to see if she is fitting of the faction she has chosen. Against this story is a larger story of political maneuvering, conspiracy, love and a good old fashion massacre.

Without giving too much away,what you should know is that at 2 hours and 20 minutes, the movie has a lot to keep you entertained. Plots develop in subtle, organic ways with very few jarring jumps. Woven well from it’s source material, the movie hits all the macro plot points very well, even if it skips some of the more intricate details.

But perhaps the movie’s greatest strength is the cinematography. Wide, sweeping camera shots really explore the large scope of this ruined world. Fittingly, our protagonist’s chosen faction, Dauntless, are parkour influenced martial artists who get around by jumping from trains onto building rooftops. What this allows is a greater scope and the visual exploration of Chicago, allowing ruined, blown up buildings to become concrete jungle-gyms and the wide, open look of the city to give our protagonists a great freedom by which to find themselves.

Case in point, at the height of Triss’s physical abilities is a zipline jump where she flies off what appears to be the Sears Tower down through several wrecked buildings to street level, and the incredible, sweeping world of Divergent as buildings whizz by, the decay and lack of street lights show the utter scale and depth of everything. It’s beautiful.

On the other side of things is the soundtrack. Prominently featuring “Run Boy Run” by Woodkid instrumentally, the soundtrack manages to underscore the great freedoms and tensions of the movie while at the same time giving some depth to the quieter, emotional scenes. Also worth noting is the seamless integration of the pop songs, which in a rare occasion manage to add to the mood instead of sticking out like an obnoxious sore thumb.

One thing to be noted is Kate Winslet’s performance. Fantastically creating a layered conspirator, her character is a subtle delight to hate as she plays a cold, calculating and manipulative authority figure that audiences can rally against.

Other characters meanwhile play their parts very well. Triss and her ragtag friends all understand their characters and bring them to life in all their defiant, determined, and somewhat sarcastic glory. Leaping out of the shadows of this particular literary craze with a very solid cast to drive the plot is important to create a stable foundation should this turn into a longer series.

In all, the movie is far more than I expected going into it. Great atmostphere, well woven plot, good casting and some great tunes make this a cut above the average dystopian novel. Just enter with an open mind.