The Divergent Series: Allegiant

I have mixed feelings about this movie and this series as a whole. I enjoyed the first film, but I felt the second veered too far into the "main character as a Christ-child" trope. This last film in the series doubled down on the Christ-child imagery and didn't give me enough of the people and city in which I had developed an interest. I appreciate knowing more of the story, but I felt it was at the expense of everything this series had worked so hard to build up. I saw every turn coming and every plot point the script was going to hit way before it did. However, in spite of that, I was engaged by the film and did enjoy it on some level. I would be interested in seeing the fourth installment if it ever gets made, as this really wasn't a satisfying ending for me. Overall, it was okay, but nothing spectacular. 3/5

The Divergent Series: Allegiant on Netflix

The Benefactor

Something has taken hold of Richard Gere, and it's marvelous to see. Last year he gave what I felt was one of the best five performances of the year in "Time Out of Mind". In that role he went completely against type and gave a quiet, small, and incredible subtle performance that was magical. In "The Benefactor", Gere went the opposite route and went through a cacophony of emotions in very short spans of time. He was elated, depressed, confused, shamed, angry, and heartbroken, all within a matter of seconds. It was a true master class in acting and something I never would have thought in him. If only the rest of the film stood up to his performance, but sadly it did not. The script was bland, and Dakot Fanning was utterly wasted. I liked the direction and will be interested to see what this new director does next. All the stars for Gere though - he's just on fire. I think back to "Manglehorn" and I feel sure that, were he cast in that, it would have been transcendent. 3.5/5

The Benefactor on Netflix

Divergent

This action version of "A Brave New World" is fun to watch but light on plot depth - I wanted more details. 3/5

Divergent on Netflix