Director: Robert Schwentke.
Starring: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Jeff Daniels, Naomi Watts, Octavia Spencer, Zoë Kravitz, Ansel Elgort, Miles Teller, Maggie Q, Mekhi Phifer, Ray Stevenson, Ashley Judd, Xander Berkeley, Bill Skarsgård.
Score: Joseph Trapanese.
Now, like the other Sci-Fi book to movie trilogies, I haven't read any of them but I actually enjoyed Divergent yet was disappointed with Insurgent which probably gave me low expectations for this instalment. The usual cast returns and Dir. Robert Schwentke continuing at the helm expanding the Chicagoverse.
It didn't drag for the 121mins and was entertaining enough, however some parts seemed rush and I imagine there being plenty of frames on the cutting room floor. Maybe too much going on but it does get a little predictable and in a nut shell, the story travels from one dystopia to another. It gets quickly overloaded with new faces, new gadgets and plot twists.
Shailene Woodley reprises her role as does the rest of the cast but again, seems like many of the main characters are given smaller parts, even the familiar sets we've seen before feel like cameo appearances. At one point I was thinking Zoë Kravitz might have been cut short due to filming conflicts with Mad Max but no, I thinks it's just so much is going on. (Lenny must be so proud!) Even the new characters we meet don't have enough screen time, however the actors do them justice, giving you a good impression of each. Jeff Daniels does well as the next city boss, Miles Teller does his sly counter-acting again but the star for me is Theo James. We need to see him do more and I think he would make an amazing superhero. Marvel? DC? Fox? Sony? Anyone!?
Even though we breach the wall it's all familiar ground. And some of it reminded me of Oblivion but I think that might have had something to do with the score; which was good synth beats and I then discover the composer is Joseph Trapanese who worked on the Oblivion score with M83 so that might explain it. Talking about the soundtrack, Insurgent disappointed me here comparing to the first one. Divergent had such a good score and better still, an album! The soundtrack for me made a big contribution to the film and there wasn't one at all with Insurgent. The score is better this time round but again, no album. Even Hunger Games knows it's got to have an arse-kicking soundtrack.
It's above average, and I think better than the middle one but not as good than the original opener. More Theo and Zoë for the next one please and give us a soundtrack album as well! Is it just me or does anyone else think Johanna reminds you of the oracle from The Matrix?
Running Time: 8
The Cast: 7
Performance: 7
Direction: 7
Story: 7
Script: 7
Creativity: 7
Soundtrack: 5
Job Description: 10
The Extra Bonus Point: -1 for lack of soundtrack
64% 6/10
