Movies out today: INSURGENT does its name a disservice

What is it with Young Adult Sci-Fi Action Movies having overly long titles that have to use a colon? The Divergent Series: Insurgent. The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2. All we need now is a movie based on Rebels: City of Indra: The Story of Lex and Livia. That’s right everyone, TWO colons. That’s how you know it’s extra dystopian!

• The Divergent Series: Insurgent

THE DIVERGENT SERIES: INSURGENT raises the stakes for Tris as she searches for allies and answers in the ruins of a futuristic Chicago. Tris (Woodley) and Four (James) are now fugitives on the run, hunted by Jeanine (Winslet), the leader of the power-hungry Erudite elite. Racing against time, they must find out what Tris’s family sacrificed their lives to protect, and why the Erudite leaders will do anything to stop them. Haunted by her past choices but desperate to protect the ones she loves, Tris, with Four at her side, faces one impossible challenge after another as they unlock the truth about the past and ultimately the future of their world.

According to Google, “an insurgency is a rebellion against a constituted authority when those taking part in the rebellion are not recognized as belligerents”. While this might sort-of hold true for the overall plot of Insurgent, it doesn’t hold true for the movie itself. Following too closely in the footsteps of every other YA adaptation, it doesn’t rebel against any tropes of its genre. To but it baldly, Insurgent is not a good movie. The plot is ridiculously overwrought and convoluted, the acting largely forgettable and ultimately, it just serves as a bridge between the first and third movie and can’t stand on its own. If you’re a huge fan of the book series there’s a very slim chance you might like Insurgent, otherwise you’ll probably just be wasting your time.

• Lovesick

LOVESICK is the tale of Charlie Darby (Matt LeBlanc), a man who has everything going for him: a great job as an elementary school principal, supportive friends and a wonderful life. The one thing that Charlie doesn’t have is love because every time he starts to fall for a girl, his brain chemistry changes and he goes clinically insane. When he meets Molly Kingston (Ali Larter), a former dancer who just might be his perfect match, Charlie is confronted with the consequences of his condition.

Ha, I see what they did with the title. Love… sick. Literally! And sick is pretty much all you’re going to feel after watching this bland, boring, banal, other-descriptive-words-starting-with-a-b romantic “comedy”. Somehow scraping up together 40% on Rotten Tomatoes, the only reason it might be worth watching is to just marvel at how old Matt LeBlanc looks.

• McFarland, USA

Novice runners from McFarland, an economically challenged town in California, give their all to build a cross-country team under the direction of Coach Jim White, a newcomer to their predominantly Latino high school. Ultimately, the runners bond with White, to build not only a championship cross-country team, but an enduring legacy as well.

Read the blurb and you know exactly how this movie is going to go. But, even if we know the overall tropes that it loyally sticks to, McFarland, USA still manages to be endearing, pleasant and heart-warming enough to get 79% on Rotten Tomatoes.

• Ballade vir ’n Enkeling

In die middel jare 80 het die treffer TV-reeks BALLADE VIR ‘N ENKELING kykerrekords gebreek. En nou word die hele storie weer vertel, maar dié keer word die brutale waarheid uitgebeeld en is die verhaal aangepas vir die jaar 2014.

Ballade vir ‘n Enkeling was an iconic TV series back in the 80’s. Now, all 13 episodes have been condensed into a feature length film, and the story – about a well-liked author and his sudden and undoubtedly mysterious disappearance – has been updated for modern times. And, that’s all I got. I’m sure if you were a fan of the show this will be great for you, unfortunately I’m too young to remember the original.

Last Updated: March 20, 2015