MOVIE REVIEW: The Divergent Series: Allegiant (2016)

THE DIVERGENT SERIES: ALLEGIANT (2016) Review
Directed by Robert Schwentke

The adventures of Tris continues as well as her love for Four. The Divergent Series: Allegiant is the first part of the book of the same title but was parted in two because… Money and also The Hunger Games has ended so they need to keep their YA adaptations alive. If you think that making Mockingjay cut into two parts was a bad idea, then you’re in for a worse ride here in Allegiant.

The film follows where Insurgent left off, people began to walk or run to the walls after finding out they’re not alone, that people are actually studying about them outside the walls. But people are still divided and the group who won the war, the factionless are ruling Chicago right now. For those who aren’t familiar, the people in the Divergent world are secluded because they thought the outside world is dangerous to live in. While most of it were, some actually lives outside the walls and Allegiant discusses that in an overlong weirdly-written, incoherent, ridiculous way.

Director Robert Schwantke doesn’t actually have an impressive filmography and helming Insurgent and Allegiant didn’t help him redeem his name as an effective director. The film doesn’t get its characters and leaves all the supporting characters on-hold while the main actors are focused which makes the film inauthentic. The rebels fought for a cause and that cause was successfully obtained at the end of Insurgent because of Tris and Four but they still followed someone, the wrong person for them to be led.

The Divergent Series: Allegiant is a product of poor writing from someone who lacks the capacity to think for not just one person, or three or five. Because Allegiant is composed of people from various types, that at the end of Insurgent, there’s no faction between them, all equal. But nothing seems to change, nothing seems to progress from these people that they don’t have a voice, a choice, their own minds to think for themselves. Only the main characters can decide for the faith of all.

The quality of the film is degrading per installment, Divergent was okay, Insurgent was ridiculous but the actors made it look decent. Allegiant just wants to go all out without making sense. The third installment may have something for the fans but it doesn’t have anything else apart from its good actors. The visual effects looked uncomfortably funny like it was something from a set of a TV show. The story is boring but it kept things interesting by putting senseless action sequences every now and then.

Maybe they should’ve just stopped with Divergent or maybe they could’ve deviated from the source material. Its outlandish representation of people from a dystopian world is reckless, feeble minded and hopeless. You wish for more because of its talents but the source material and the director cannot offer more than what they already have.

1.5 OUT OF 5 STARS

“The Divergent Series: Allegiant” is now showing in Philippine cinemas nationwide from Pioneer Films. Rated PG by the MTRCB.