“Insurgent” delivers the best use of IMAX 3D in a long time. It is so good that fans should only see the movie in these two formats.
It doesn’t hurt that the movie itself is also superior to the first one, with Tris far stronger and not always on the verge of an emotional breakdown as she tries to simultaneously stay away from and overthrow Jeanine (Kate Winslet), the leader of the power-hungry Erudites in a futuristic Chicago that has been gated almost like Manhattan-turned-prison island in Escape from New York. Shailene Woodley and her co-star Theo James (love interest Four) offer solid performances, which are usually upstaged by Miles Teller as the hard-to-figure Peter (friend or betrayer?).
But it’s the eye-popping and satisfying visuals that are the true star here, with shots on a train and shots from atop skyscrapers utilizing the combined effect of the giant screen and 3D for maximum impact.
Only occasionally are some of the fast pans a little blurry and therefore somewhat of a distraction or annoyance or in some cases slightly bothersome.
But for the most part the filmmakers were not shy about creating great depth in nearly every scene instead of the usual, more conservative approach that is barely noticeable (and therefore leaves customers wondering why they paid the extra premium price).
There is no question you are getting your money’s worth from every frame of “The Divergent Series: Insurgent” in IMAX 3D.
— By Scott Hettrick