Technical
Assessment: 3
Moral
Assessment: 2.5
MTRCB rating: PG 13
CINEMA
rating: V14
In
the dystopian society of post-war Chicago, society is divided into five
factions according to their most dominant personality trait and are tasked to
uphold a specific quality: Dauntless for bravery, Erudite for knowledge, Candor
for truth, Amity for peace and Abnegation for selflessness. Those who belong to
more than one faction are called Divergents and are considered a threat to
human existence. Tris Prior (Woodley), former Abnegation and
trained in Dauntless was discovered to be a divergent in the previous movie
while ambitious Erudite leader Jeanine Matthews (Winslet) spearheaded the
attack on the entire Abnegation faction in order to gain control of the system.
Insurgent begins where Divergent ends. We see the surviving
Abnegation and Dauntless members hiding in Amity and Candor as Jeanine hunts
down remaining Divergents in order to unlock a box that supposedly
contains data from the city's founders and eventually end the Divergent
problem. Meanwhile, Tris, Four (James) and the remaining Dauntless
seek refuge with the Factionless whose leader, Evelyn Eaton (Watts), is
also Four's mother who wishes to join forces and overthrow Jeanine and the
entire faction system.
One
needs to be familiar with the series to be able to appreciate the film. But even
with its literary counterpart to provide the needed depth and texture, it is
difficult to sympathize with them as they barely transcend the cardboard like
characters. The sets and production design are able to give layers in the
characters more than the performances and dialogues. The storyline is a little
more cohesive but still fails to deliver a convincing argument about the
faction system and the divergent and why and how it works. As an action film,
the movie delivers breathtaking chase scenes and dazzling visual effects. But
scrap all of these off the plate, you are left with a very thin plot that
forces audience to believe the protagonist has valid issues to overcome and the
antagonist is a real threat to the world. Even the concept of simulation,
serums and making a single choice to define one's person is a little weak (both
in the film and in the novel). On the technical side, the production design and
scoring successfully interprets Roth’s idea of faction system and action
events.
Does the greater good justify trampling
over the rights and humanity of the few? We have heard this line from leaders
who sought to rationalize their violence and cruelty. And we always hear this
as an excuse for the so many inconveniences we suffer everyday. Jeanine
Matthews' defends her decision to slaughter an entire faction or force a group
to kill each other or jump to their death for in order to ensure that society
remains intact. So did one dictator when he had opposition leaders rounded up and
incarcerated. So did Caiaphas when he insisted on having Pilate crucify
Jesus. But whose good are they really referring to? We have to examine
our choices. It one thing to exercise tough love in order to serve a greater
purpose but that purpose should always have as an end result love, respect and
selflessness.
Further,
the exercise of one virtue does not mean neglecting all others—bravery does not
mean violence and aversion to peace, truth does not mean tactlessness and being
inconsiderate. While virtues are non-negotiables, they do not exist in black
and white. That is why human beings are virtuous because it takes discernment
and conscience as well. The film successfully underlines that Divergents (those with two or more dominant
traits/virtues) are the instruments for society to survive and humanity to
flourish.
