Finally, something clicks in ‘ Allegiant’
Of all the big, silly action series out there, the “Divergent” series is the least obnoxious. It’s a collection of dumb ideas, with acting and direction that is so earnest and naive that the movies become funny when they don’t mean to be. But the installments are generous in terms of story — stuff keeps happening — and there’s none of the stretched- out sense you get from the “Hunger Games” series. These stories move.
The latest — how’s this for a title: “The Divergent Series: Allegiant — Part 1” — combines the usual dumb ideas with one good one. And not just good, but impressive, in that it makes sense of much of what went before.
For those just tuning in, this third installment takes place in a postapocalyptic Chicago, in which people have been divided into communities based on personality type. Peace- loving folk live in the Amity section. Strong, fearless people reside in the Dauntless part of town. Intellectuals find a home in the Erudite community. Honest people hang with the Candor crowd. And selfless, service- oriented individuals practice their doormat ways in the Abnegation sector.
The entire setup of this world, based on the novels by Veronica Roth, has seemed absurd, more a metaphor for high school socializing than any kind of model for a peaceful world. But now we find out the truth, and it’s genuinely interesting: The apocalypse came about through genetic engineering. By using the genome to emphasize various desirable character traits, scientists created a world of people out of psychological balance. The end product was a devastating war. In Chicago, they’re living with the aftermath.
It’s just too bad they don’t all have Chicago accents. It would have been great if that were the one thing that absolutely could not be eradicated.
Precisely how this new information fits in with the rest of the story is for audiences to discover. Suffice it to say that the central character, Tris ( Shailene Woodley), along with her brooding boyfriend, Four ( Theo James), and a small band of friends, make it through the city walls this time, and they discover a reality far different from the one they’ve been living.
The first hour of “Allegiant” is nicely plotted. It moves when it should, and whenever it lingers, it’s to lavish time on something worth considering. In one scene, Tris has to get decontaminated after exposure to radioactivity. She goes into a chamber where she strips down, and her clothes are incinerated. Immediately the mind goes to the Nazi death camps, and we have to wonder if she will get out of there alive.
Except in the highly visual or action sequences, Robert Schwentke’s direction has a peculiar quality, in which you can almost hear him yelling “Action” and “Cut.” What I mean by this is that when people are moving within a frame, they often seem less like bodies caught in the midst of motion and more like actors who’ve just started to move on command. This is a weird criticism, but if you see the movie, you will notice this. That, combined with lines such as this ( from an interrogation scene) —“There is no doubt you helped Jeanine take over Chicago!” — gives the series the air of some billion- dollar episode of “Amateur Hour.”
In the second half of “Allegiant,” the generous plotting begins to seem random, as though it were being made up on the spot. However, as has been fortunately the case in every installment in the series, the story doesn’t trail off or stop midway. The movie ends with a feeling of arrival and completion.
Jeff Daniels, acting just like Jeff Daniels but in another century, appears as a futuristic mastermind, and for most of the movie Tris and Four are trying to decide if he’s a good futuristic mastermind or a bad one. Eventually, they do decide, but they don’t necessarily decide for the audience. For example, I walked out of the movie with a different opinion of him than Tris.
Whether that’s a problem or a virtue of the series can’t be known until the next episode, which is almost something to look forward to. At least, it’s not to be dreaded.
The entire setup of this world has seemed absurd, more a metaphor for high school socializing. But now we find out the truth.