“Allegiant” Fails to Garner Allegiance to Film Franchise

The first half of the movie adaptation of Veronica Roth’s Allegiant leaves much to be desired.

The movie opens with the now-factionless society of future Chicago in a state of unrest, with the citizens divided on how to punish those who betrayed them. Feelings also vary on how to rebuild their society, with some people wanting to continue to live without factions while others wish to bring the factions back.

Our intrepid–or should I say insipid–heroine, Tris Prior, doesn’t think either of these is the solution; she thinks they need to look beyond the wall, to where they were told humanity lives on. Her previously nuanced performance is absent in this installment of the Divergent series as Shailene Woodley does the best she can with a lackluster script.

There are a few decent action sequences in the film, but they are sparsely scattered among long periods of nothingness. It takes forever for Tris and her boyfriend Four to come to an agreement on leaving Chicago, it takes forever for them to cross the wasteland between Chicago and O’Hare Airport, and it takes forever for the story taking place inside O’Hare to have any kind of point to it.

Is there any hope for Ascendant, the second half of the Allegiant story? I don’t know, but this reviewer isn’t holding her breath.