Slugging to the Finish Line | Allegiant

Allegiant 
Director: Robert Schwentke
Release date: March 18th, 2016
Genres: Action, Sci-fi
Cast: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Ansel Elgort
Duration: 121 min
Rating: PG-13

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Tris (Shailene Woodley) escapes with Four (Theo James) to journey beyond the wall that encloses Chicago. For the first time, they leave the only city and family they have ever known to find a peaceful solution. Once outside, they learn shocking new truths that render old discoveries meaningless. As the ruthless battle threatens humanity, Tris and Four quickly decide who to trust to survive. Tris must ultimately make difficult choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice and love.


Review:

SPOILERS! YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!



Allegiant was a very slow read for me. It was really hard for me to get through it. The focus of the trilogy underwent a sharp change that I didn’t find as interesting as the focus of the first two books, Divergent and Insurgent. The action felt sluggish, and the plot slow.

For the above reasons, I did not expect to really enjoy the film, which I watched in theaters as a final show of dedication to a series that I had once adored. I was right: I wasn’t particularly drawn into the movie and nothing really resonated with me.


As always, it was “The Tris Show” as Tris Prior (Shailene Woodley) was yet again being paraded around as “special”. This time, according to David, the head of the Bureau of Genetic Warfare, she wasn’t just divergent, but “pure”. I’ve become less enamored with Tris’s character, and didn’t really find myself rooting for her as some special little snowflake.


Tris’s genetic purity, as well as the favoritism she received from David, caused a rift between her and Four/Tobias Eaton (Theo James) as their relationship hit a snag. I have to mention that, at this point, I wasn’t really feeling their romance, and it was getting stale and boring for me. The conflict stemmed from Tris’s trust in David, while Tobias was increasingly distrustful of not only David, but the Bureau of Genetic Warfare as a whole. There was, I must admit, a powerful moment when Tobias urged Tris not to follow David, and Tris looked him in the eye and refused, defiantly going along with David. It revealed Tris’ independence and willpower. Even though she ended up being wrong, I couldn’t help but admire her strong will.

Now, on to the rest of the ensemble. Tori (Maggie Q)’s death was pretty predictable for me, simply because of the way they were lingering instead of running from the imminent danger behind them. Rest in Peace.


It seemed that Peter (Miles Teller) has now become the comic relief. I still strongly dislike the weasel, but for some reason, he was given all the “witty” lines, which brought out laughter from the theater audience. I was appalled. He’s a disloyal douche bag, and his character did not amuse me.

I liked Caleb (Ansel Elgort) in this! To be honest, I never hated him, even though he betrayed Tris. I really enjoyed watching the way his brain works, and what makes his gears spin. I was riveted by his wonder when he was assigned surveillance. His intelligence is honestly wasted in Allegiance. I loved how, in the end, he basically saves the day with his smarts. Go intellect!


I wish Christina (Zoe Kravitz) was given more character development, instead of just being Tris’s sidekick. Unfortunately, this is too often the case for women of color in film. Christina is so badass, and I wanted to see more of that. However, I was thrilled by one scene towards the end, when Christina was teaching Tris how to work the drones. Watching them fight together, with Christina in the lead, was so kickass! I also adored the way she was basically like, “hands off!” to Caleb when he tried putting his arms around her – while she was on his lap out of necessity - in the aircraft thing. I was like, “You go, girl!” internally.

Overall, I felt that the movie plotline was pretty lethargic, and needed more action. I also still don’t completely understand the Bureau of Genetic Warfare and their motives. I think that the storyline got too convoluted, and it shows.


My rating:    ★ 

Reviewed by Kelechi

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