Insurgent

THE best thing I can say about Insurgent, the sequel to last year's Divergent, is that its appealing young star, Shailene Woodley, who plays heroine Tris, keeps on growing on me. I found the first film's Personality Plus idea intriguing and it certainly gave viewers a cheat card on how to assess people's personalities.
   Insurgent recounts the traits of the personality groups and sets off on a war cry early on, with Tris and macho lover Four (a choleric) seeking to exact revenge on Jeanine (Winslet).
   I don't know why, but this desire for blood reminded me of the first Star Wars trilogy. Viewers will remember that neither the rebels nor the Empire ever sought to talk things over first instead of rushing into battle.

   It seemed that Insurgent was heading in that direction, but instead, it took viewers into the head of Tris, who must complete simulations of the five personalities to uncover the message of a hard-to-open box.
  This, of course, is similar to the test scene in Divergent where Tris has to go into her subconscious to complete certain tasks.
    Women play a big role in these two films, and Insurgent introduces viewers to Evelyn (a brunette Watts), a schemer if there was ever one. It's a shame that her role is small in this film, but she is expected to do greater things in the two-part final instalment.
    The film delves into Christian ideals when Tris forgives herself for the deaths of her parents and her best friend's (Kravitz) boyfriend. This was first propounded at the beginning when Tris and her cohort rough it out in an Amity village, which reminded me of the Amish village in Harrison Ford's Witness.

3 out of 5 stars