Allegiant by Veronica Roth (*spoliers*)
Posted: 05 Apr 2014, 19:43
Let me preface this by stating that I don't hate the fact that the story ends with the main character's death. I don't need a happy ending wrapped in a pretty bow. When I got spoiled on the ending prior to reading the book, I was somewhat shocked, a little bit sad, but I wasn't mad. After I got over my annoyance at getting spoiled by accident, I thought it was pretty cool. How often does the main character die in these things? I've always thought it was a little unrealistic how the hero always manages to escape unscathed after staring danger and death in the face over and over again. I was intrigued, and I couldn't wait to read the book to see how it all played out.
Oh, boy.
I expected there to be a point, I expected it to have a purpose, I expected it to provide closure. This book did none of these things. It's not only not a happy ending, it's a pointless ending. And I actually am concerned that when words get out about this to people outside of the fandom, it might hurt the Divergent movie.
The CEO at Lionsgate came out the other day with a statement, for the benefit of the stock analysts who broached their concern over Allegiant's poor reception, that he doesn't think Allegiant will hurt Divergent's prospects at the box office. He says a little controversy never hurt. I think he's underestimating the situation, as well as what people want from a movie. Because the expectations and tolerance levels for a movie audience are different from a book audience. Because more people, different kinds of people, hell, simpler people with simple expectations -- more of them watch TV/movies than read books.
The key to success in this type of business is to play to your base. Appeal to the very basic things that almost everyone can agree that they like. Why do you think the Twilight and Hunger Games series were so successful? They were both very basic stories, and in the end, they delivered what everyone basically wants – a happy ending for the characters. Twilight is a basic story about a girl in love with a boy, and after all the trials and troubles, they wind up together in the end as a family. The Hunger Games is a basic story about a girl fighting back against tyranny, and after war and death and devastation, she still comes out a victor over the bad guys and winds up with her true love. I believe a story is only as good as its ending. People will forgive a mediocre or even a bad beginning and middle as long as there is a payoff in the end to make it worthwhile. This is why Allegiant has gotten so many bad reviews, and I think this is how Allegiant is going to cost Divergent at the box office.
Let's face it. Everyone enjoys a happy ending. There are people who oddly claim to only be satisfied with a happy ending and automatically reject a story that doesn't have one -- which I think is unfair and unrealistic -- but there are also people who enjoy a happy ending as much as the next person but are perfectly fine with unhappy or unresolved endings as long as they serve a purpose and provide closure. But no one actually dislikes a happy ending. This is the base. This is the widespread appeal that draws a general audience. Everyone’s basic desires are met with a happy or triumphant ending. That is why people invested in the Twilight and Hunger Games franchises. They weren't perfect, and they both stumbled in their final installments, but the movie audience showed up because they knew how the stories ultimately ended and they knew that, despite the missteps along the way, they would get their payoff. People can sit through crap as long as it's worth it in the end. They will not tolerate crap that ends in crap, and most importantly to the topic at hand, they will likely not bother even with a good story if it ends in crap.
The studio was undoubtedly banking on the final book in the series to increase interest in the franchise. They wanted people to finish the trilogy with satisfaction and happiness and recommend to friends and family to read the books so they can watch the movie in a few months. It cannot be a good thing when half the fanbase finishes the last book and tells people that they wished they'd never started the series. The potential general audience will either read the books as recommended and come away with the exact same reaction and not want to watch the movie, or they will just hear about the ending and decide not to bother with any of it. Because it goes against the base.
I personally don't care that Allegiant ended sadly; I just hate how poorly it was done. But by general audience standards, moviegoers will likely just hate that it ends this way, period. Allegiant does not provide what the base wants. There is a very real chance that the general audience appeal will suffer when people get to learn how the story ultimately ends and decide not to get invested in something that doesn’t pay off the way they want. Because unlike books, a movie's success is dependent on a general rather than a specific niche audience, and people, in general, are simple and want a simple thing. People like their expectations to be satisfied. When they watch an action movie, there is a certain formula that must be followed, and it is expected that things will go a certain way. A murder mystery is expected to go a certain way. A tragic love story is expected to go a certain way. And the still new genre of YA dystopia is expected to go a certain way. People IN GENERAL are conditioned to expect these formulas and playing to that general base is the key to these franchises' successes. You MUST appeal to the base audience. Veronica broke the formula and provided an ending that doesn't play to the base -- it's an ending that people did not expect and, by general audience expectations, most do not want. With this unhappy and frankly depressing ending, the general audience appeal is lost.
Of course I am only one person, so what do you guys think?
Oh, boy.
I expected there to be a point, I expected it to have a purpose, I expected it to provide closure. This book did none of these things. It's not only not a happy ending, it's a pointless ending. And I actually am concerned that when words get out about this to people outside of the fandom, it might hurt the Divergent movie.
The CEO at Lionsgate came out the other day with a statement, for the benefit of the stock analysts who broached their concern over Allegiant's poor reception, that he doesn't think Allegiant will hurt Divergent's prospects at the box office. He says a little controversy never hurt. I think he's underestimating the situation, as well as what people want from a movie. Because the expectations and tolerance levels for a movie audience are different from a book audience. Because more people, different kinds of people, hell, simpler people with simple expectations -- more of them watch TV/movies than read books.
The key to success in this type of business is to play to your base. Appeal to the very basic things that almost everyone can agree that they like. Why do you think the Twilight and Hunger Games series were so successful? They were both very basic stories, and in the end, they delivered what everyone basically wants – a happy ending for the characters. Twilight is a basic story about a girl in love with a boy, and after all the trials and troubles, they wind up together in the end as a family. The Hunger Games is a basic story about a girl fighting back against tyranny, and after war and death and devastation, she still comes out a victor over the bad guys and winds up with her true love. I believe a story is only as good as its ending. People will forgive a mediocre or even a bad beginning and middle as long as there is a payoff in the end to make it worthwhile. This is why Allegiant has gotten so many bad reviews, and I think this is how Allegiant is going to cost Divergent at the box office.
Let's face it. Everyone enjoys a happy ending. There are people who oddly claim to only be satisfied with a happy ending and automatically reject a story that doesn't have one -- which I think is unfair and unrealistic -- but there are also people who enjoy a happy ending as much as the next person but are perfectly fine with unhappy or unresolved endings as long as they serve a purpose and provide closure. But no one actually dislikes a happy ending. This is the base. This is the widespread appeal that draws a general audience. Everyone’s basic desires are met with a happy or triumphant ending. That is why people invested in the Twilight and Hunger Games franchises. They weren't perfect, and they both stumbled in their final installments, but the movie audience showed up because they knew how the stories ultimately ended and they knew that, despite the missteps along the way, they would get their payoff. People can sit through crap as long as it's worth it in the end. They will not tolerate crap that ends in crap, and most importantly to the topic at hand, they will likely not bother even with a good story if it ends in crap.
The studio was undoubtedly banking on the final book in the series to increase interest in the franchise. They wanted people to finish the trilogy with satisfaction and happiness and recommend to friends and family to read the books so they can watch the movie in a few months. It cannot be a good thing when half the fanbase finishes the last book and tells people that they wished they'd never started the series. The potential general audience will either read the books as recommended and come away with the exact same reaction and not want to watch the movie, or they will just hear about the ending and decide not to bother with any of it. Because it goes against the base.
I personally don't care that Allegiant ended sadly; I just hate how poorly it was done. But by general audience standards, moviegoers will likely just hate that it ends this way, period. Allegiant does not provide what the base wants. There is a very real chance that the general audience appeal will suffer when people get to learn how the story ultimately ends and decide not to get invested in something that doesn’t pay off the way they want. Because unlike books, a movie's success is dependent on a general rather than a specific niche audience, and people, in general, are simple and want a simple thing. People like their expectations to be satisfied. When they watch an action movie, there is a certain formula that must be followed, and it is expected that things will go a certain way. A murder mystery is expected to go a certain way. A tragic love story is expected to go a certain way. And the still new genre of YA dystopia is expected to go a certain way. People IN GENERAL are conditioned to expect these formulas and playing to that general base is the key to these franchises' successes. You MUST appeal to the base audience. Veronica broke the formula and provided an ending that doesn't play to the base -- it's an ending that people did not expect and, by general audience expectations, most do not want. With this unhappy and frankly depressing ending, the general audience appeal is lost.
Of course I am only one person, so what do you guys think?