Shailene Woodley

Movie Review -- 'The Divergent Series: Insurgent' Rebels Against Intelligence

Insurgent_2 I enjoy fantasy. There’s a place for big, broad, occasionally dumb movies like The Avengers and Star Wars and The Hunger Games. There’s so much cynicism in the world. Why question genuine enjoyment? Even with Divergent and Insurgent, which, let’s face it, are blatant knockoffs meant to fill the void left by better series, I can’t say I was bored. That zip line over the Chicago skyline in the first film is gravitationally dubious, but every ten-year-old in the world knows that when a five mile zip line ceases to excite you, you’ve lost something fundamental to the human experience.

Myths are all, on some level, daydreams. Daydreams are impervious to criticism. It’s...

Movie Review - 'The Fault in Our Stars' Combines Love and Loss Beautifully

fault-in-our-stars-poster The trailer says The Fault in Our Stars will "make you feel alive," which is ironic considering it follows the story of a 17-year-old with terminal cancer. The story and its characters, however, focus on life rather than death. They deal with break-ups, hovering parents, foreign travel and romance all to the backdrop of hospitals, oxygen tubes, prosthetic legs and support groups. Fans of the John Green book will not be disappointed by the cinematic adaptation. The majority of the key scenes, character development, quotes and philosophical...