Has Potential To Be Something

Rating: 6/10 (14 August 2014)

I went into this open minded, and while I do think this movie establishes an interesting concept and has interesting plot points, it kind of disappointed me. I will say that it's not complete crap like some of the Hollywood films based on teen books are, so perhaps thats why I kind of want to go easy on it. It's good to see some effort being put into a film. Comparing this to say, The Hunger Games, perhaps is why I was left a little underwhelmed, because I think the first Hunger Games was not bad, and then Catching Fire ended up really impressing me. I kind of hope that since this film is the first in a series, the next will take what was interesting in this and bring it to the fore front. It certainly has potential to be a good series, but it's off to a slightly rocky start.
One of the stronger aspects of this film is Shailene Woodleys performance. She is a really strong actor and the film benefits from putting someone with skill in the lead role as opposed to the usual "pretty but terrible actress" kind of girls they usually put in these kind of roles. The rest of the performances we're okay. No real stand outs but they work for the most part.
The plot is another strength that works. It's about a society where young adults are sorted into different factions based on skills and it's a very stressful process. But what's great is that it is clearly a metaphor for the modern day process of pressuring young adults into university and making them make these big choices that affect the rest of their lives. I have always found issue in the way society does this ever since I started high school, and I think it's interesting to see that concept in this film. It kind of works, and I will give it credit for handling a subject that can be quite relate-able for many young people today.
Overall, the films strengths come from it's concepts and it's potential to improve in future sequels. As a person who likes film in general, I will always be positive about movies and I do hope they can smooth out the next film and make it something great. I would be really happy to see the sequel be something great, similar to how Catching Fire improved on The Hunger Games dramatically.