Despite altering events, dialogue and character roles from the books to the film, the “Divergent” film sequel “Insurgent” was impressive.

Fair warning, this review is being commandeered by a less-than-impressed fangirl. By my count, there are 19 alterations made from the book to the big screen; four referring to a character change, five to changed situations and 10 belonging to major plot adjustments. Perhaps it was excessive to track this, but I am a fan of words, words created by another person that bring life to characters. I am a fan of the individual who writes the script.

In Veronica Roth’s version of the story, despite their attraction and trust in one another, it took Tris and Tobias [Four] much longer to sit down and discuss their affections. They’re living in a society falling into war and corruption, so romance is not a priority. However, in Hollywood, they love to focus on romantic subplots, which is something I never liked. This resulted in many passionate moments in-between gunfire.

The thespians’ chemistry onscreen is on point; when Tris cries, (which she does often due to severe PTSD), her remaining friends go toward her immediately, folding her in their arms. She plays a strong female role, and another character describes her as a “bleeding heart” because she has the ability to empathize with others. This doesn’t weaken her, but instead drives her into action while others remain still.

For those of you who have seen the first movie, “Divergent,” her sequel is nothing short of visually stunning. Viewers see a beautiful countryside from the Amity Faction’s farmland, Erudite and Candor’s shining buildings looking impressive alongside ones in shambles. The hideouts of the factionless were so trashy they provided the perfect camouflage in an imperfect world.

The movie wasn’t as fantastic as “Catching Fire,” but wasn’t as disgraceful as “Percy Jackson” or “Vampire Academy” either. 

When I separate the movie from the book, yes, it is phenomenal. However, since I do typically read stories before they make it on screen, I’m left feeling dissatisfied. When lines such as, “Be brave, Tris,” are docked from the script, it hurts. Despite that, I can begrudgingly admit that I enjoyed “Insurgent.”