INSURGENT | Film Review (NO SPOILERS)

Title: Insurgent
Director: Robert Schwentke
Starring: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Ansel Elgort, Miles Teller, Kate Winslet
Originally Released: 2015
Running Time: 119 mins / 1 hr 59 mins

Insurgent is the second instalment of the Divergent series, and an adaptation of the book of the same name. It picks up pretty much straight after events of the first film, so this review will most-likely contain spoilers for Divergent. 

Divergent was probably one of the most enjoyable watches of 2014. It was a culmination of Young Adult clichés, but with this in mind it was a fun experience. I've actually read all three books in the series and have fairly enjoyed each of them. They're quick, fun reads. I was very excited for Insurgent, I mean I wasn't counting down the days but I made sure I was watching it in the cinema, something I didn't do with The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part I (I still haven't seen that, oops.)

The film follows Tris (Woodley), Four (James), Peter (Teller) and Caleb (Elgort), now outlaws, on the run from Jeanine's (Winslet) authoritarian Erudite faction. Jeanine has uncovered a special box that requires the skills and mentality of a 'divergent' to unlock it and peer at its contents. As Tris tries to raise a rebellion against Jeanine, Jeanine on the other hand is on the hunt to find every divergent.

Insurgent is the weaker of the two films. I don't want to start on a bad note, but it is and it needs to be said. A lot of the beauty within Divergent has been evaded in this second instalment. First off, where was the perfect soundtrack? Divergent was enriched with Woodkid's 'Run Boy Run', Ellie Goulding's 'Beating Heart' and 'Hanging On', and let's not forget the stand-out musical moment of M83's 'I Need You'. Each song fitted perfectly with the aesthetic the film gave, its lush soundtrack distanced itself further from other YA film franchises. However, Insurgent has only one moment of decent soundtrack, and it only comes at the film's close with M83 and HAIM's collaborative track, 'Holes in the Sky'. The song has a feel of Sunshine's 'Adagio in D Minor' by John Murphy, alluding to the scale of the film's finale, so overall it did work well, enticing the audience back for the series' final film, Allegiant. 

In terms of book-to-movie adaptation, it's very basic. They've taken their artistic license further with this one, changing key moments and adding little things to make it simpler. The use of a technological box is implemented as the film's MacGuffin, fuelling the persecution of divergents, instead of the simple idea in the book of targeting them for simply the fear. Key moments for certain characters have been altered, whilst main characters fade into the background or have been removed entirely. I personally found the books to have too large of a supporting cast, so I wasn't too bothered by the omission of some. However, key players in the first film are now muted, specifically Tori and Christina. Tori has a fairly significant role in each book and in this one, she's simply a figure in the sea of people.

The acting is fine, but nothing special. Shailene has her moments, Theo still sounds way too old, but overall is convincing, Ansel is a bit stale but has a hilarious run, Kate Winslet is so generic it hurts, and Naomi Watts is incredibly similar. The only actor that stands out for merit in this film is Miles Teller. Damn it! I was doing so well hating on Teller after 21 & Over and That Awkward Moment, but his recent roles in Whiplash and in this film prove he's actually a talented actor. He's really the comic relief in this film, allowing the film to stray from taking itself too seriously.

To be honest, Insurgent is more style over substance, and the style at times wavers. On the most part, however, it is a very aesthetically pleasing film, and I'm not just talking about its attractive cast. The aerial shots of dystopian Chicago are grand, and the dream sequences that were explored in the first film are, whilst more unrealistic, very pretty indeed. However, overall Insurgent is a three star kind of film, it was decent but lacked in too many areas.