THE DIVERGENT SERIES: INSURGENT Blu-ray Review

Article first published as Blu-ray Review: 'The Divergent Series: Insurgent' on Blogcritics.

This week, the second film in the Divergent Series, Insurgent, is released on 3-D Blu-ray, Blu-ray, and DVD.  Divergent is set in a post-apocalyptic Chicago, where the remaining humans have been sorted into castes based on their abilities. One girl defies the framework and challenges those who wish to manipulate it for their own gain. Picking up just a few days after where the last Divergent movie ends, Tris (Shailene Woodley) and Four (Theo James) must bring the fight to Jeanine (Kate Winslet) before she destroys their society, pinning death and chaos on the pair. Jeanine’s tool to do so happens to require Tris, and the trippy adventure to get there is action-packed and visually impressive.

The story behind Insurgent is interesting, if a little underdeveloped. The plot rockets through four different groups of people in two hours, while still trying to grant some character development to the leads. This means little insight into the various factions and their leadership structures, even as each new corner of the world begs to be explored. And it’s a fascinating world.

Most of the action is focused on Tris, the emotional entrance to the film’s heart, and I understand the desire to maintain the focus there, but it feels like there are wasted possibilities constantly plucked and then discarded.

As a result, those plot threads are neglected, minimizing the roles of terrific actors, new to the sequel, including Octavia Spencer (The Help), Naomi Watts (The Impossible), and Daniel Dae Kim (Lost). I find myself wishing for more story in each of their zones. The talented new cast members, join the already impressive cast from the first movie (which, alongside Winslet, includes Ashley Judd, Mekhi Phifer, Jai Courtney, Ray Stevenson, Miles Teller, Maggie Q, and more).

The overall story arcs feel a bit weak at times. For instance, Tris is able to resist the mind-controlling serum in the first movie because she is Divergent, but quickly succumbs to Candor’s truth juice? The powers of a Divergent aren’t quite clear. And why does Candor have its own guards? It also seems like Jeanine has a lot of power, but then has no idea what is going on in other parts of the city, though the soldiers that work for her always seem to show up when the movie requires another shot of adrenaline.

Insurgent is not a bad film. What it lacks in plot, it makes up for in some really neat shots. I wish I’d been sent the 3-D version of this film to review because I am sure it would be cool to see all of the visual effects with depth. As it stands, even the  Blu-ray version is pretty good looking. Some wide shots and crowd scenes are identifiable as computer-generated, but everything that happens to Tris, and there’s a lot of mind-confounding stuff for her to go through that isn’t set in reality, is very well done. As a blockbuster-type movie, Insurgent delivers on the expectation for big, flashy scenes.

The special features on this set are also much better than most recent releases I’ve seen. “The Ultimate Behind-the-Scenes Access” is the entire length of the movie, often showing the film in a small box while talking about different aspects. This is more than just fluff, giving real insight into a variety of pieces of the production. There’s also a separate audio commentary, and several featurettes about adapting the book, the cast in general, a break down on a scene, and a look at perhaps the most interesting character, Peter Hayes (Teller). Most of these are not on the straight DVD, so that means blu-ray is recommended, though I’d imagine 3D is the best way to go if you have a 3D television and player.

In short, while Insurgent has some flaws, the package has a lot of value to it. It may not be as good as some other recent entries in the genre, but there is a lot of clever, original material here, too, which will give the savvy viewer much to ponder long after the film is over. Combined with a great array of extras, I’m glad to add this to my collection.

The Divergent Series: Insurgent will is available August 4th.

Missing misses the mark

On this week's episode of ABC's Missing, "Ice Queen," the plane lands without Michael (Nick Eversman, Vampires Suck, The Runaways) on board. The CIA questions the woman who is on the plane, Sloane (Victoria Smurfit, Trial & Retribution), but she plays dumb. Giancarlo (Adriano Giannini, L'ombra del destino) gets Becca (Ashley Judd, Sisters, Heat, De-Lovely) out of CIA custody. However, before Becca can get information from the also-released Sloane, Mary (Aunjanue Ellis, The Mentalist, Ray) shows up, making herself a pawn in the game. Meanwhile, Michael is placed in seemingly comfortable surroundings.

Missing would like to be a cross between Alias, 24, and Taken, but it fails to reach those aspirations. The action is pretty exciting, and Judd excels at her performance, as always. The overall tone is enticing, and the pace is fast enough. In short, it's fairly enjoyable.

It is more than a simple spy show, or a basic kidnapping story. Given the format of series television, Missing can afford to toss in back story, mystery, and some twists. But it does it so clumsily that it fails to live up to its potential. The fault of Missing is not with the actors, who are all at least adequate, or the locale, which is usually beautiful, if CGI-enhanced. No, the real issue with Missing is the plot. There are so many plot holes and developments that just don't make sense. It becomes incredibly distracting for those trying to enjoy the story.

For one thing, why doesn't Becca just come out and tell Mary the truth? She wants to protect Mary and maintain their friendship, fine. Then confessing her past to Mary would not only spare Mary's feelings, other than a bit of betrayal for not having been told sooner, but would get Mary home safely and not force Becca to act like an "Ice Queen." Instead, by lying at first, Becca sets Mary up to keep digging until she is taken by Sloane, putting her in real danger. Not to mention, Becca asks Giancarlo to pose as her lover, but then doesn't give him the chance to until after Mary doesn't follow through with Becca's wishes. So Becca knows Mary well enough to know that she just won't go home? Then why even attempt that route?

The scene in "Ice Queen" where Becca and Sloane have their final confrontation is also weird. A sniper takes out Sloane to keep her from spilling the beans after Sloane tells Mary that the man who killed Becca's husband, Paul (Sean Bean, Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones), has Michael. The sniper is in position long before he pulls the trigger. It's understandable that he doesn't shoot while Ashley Judd holds the diamonds over the water, but only if he then goes after the diamonds, which he doesn't do. It's unlikely this shooter can hear the girls, anyway, so why doesn't he kill Sloane sooner? The timing is strange.

Additionally, Dax (Cliff Curtis, Trauma) keeps telling Becca and Giancarlo that he will help. Yet, he seems perfectly willing to let the CIA send Becca home until Giancarlo breaks her free. Then he changes his mind and decides to intervene, though he claims total support for her. So which is it? Is Dax following CIA orders or assisting Becca? Because those two purposes do not run parallel.

Lastly, it doesn't make any sense for the Big Bad to be consulted about shooting Michael to warn versus harm in "Ice Queen." Clearly, the plan is already in place to have Oksana (Tereza Vorísková, Znamení kone) tell Michael that he will be injured if he attempts escape again as part of the plan to get Michael to trust her. It's a solid scheme, but it makes the early scene unnecessary and weird. If the scheme isn't developed until after the warning shot, which seems unlikely given the level of planning the villains show in Missing, then the logical thing to do when the Big Bad orders the next shot to hurt Michael would be to tell him this immediately.

In summary, Missing could be good if the writing gets smarter. Until then, it's popcorn fluff, with story continuity taking a back seat. Missing airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC. In Columbus, ABC is found on channel 6 (antenna), 386 (satellite), or 1006 (high definition cable).

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