The Giver

Starring: Brenton Thwaites, Jeff Bridges, Meryl Streep
Directed By: Phillip Noyce
Reviewed by Brendan Dousi

[Rating: 3/5]

As you’ve no doubt noticed, the developing of ‘Young Adult’ (more commonly referred to as ‘Tween’) has become quit the fad. But, until recently the biz has been mostly focused on the Female protagonist, either a role model for young girls to look up to (Hunger Games) or a blank slate for them to project on to (Twilight/basically everything else). This year in what I’m going to call ‘Yodult’ genre it seems studios are branching out to include, “hot young guy for young girls to want to be with” in their list of protagonist archetypes. Included in this new rush of Yodult films is The Giver, readying to test the waters for The Maze Runner’s debut later this month.

The Giver follows the story of Jonas (Brenton Thwaites), a young man on the cusp of adulthood, who has grown up in a peaceful yet constantly surveyed community that seem to be the only remnants left of Humankind. Strong emotion has been foregone in favour of peace, harmony and uniformity, an equilibrium that the society’s Elders, led by the Chief Elder (Meryl Streep), are willing to protect at all costs. Jonas’ world is called into question when he is chosen as a successor to the current ‘Giver’ (Jeff Bridges), the first to be chosen in ten years after the last one mysteriously failed at their duties. As The Giver, it is their job to consult the Elders with wisdom of the past, knowledge of the world gone-by that they and they alone are privileged to. It is during the process of unlocking this knowledge where Jonas starts to learn the truth about the society he lives in and the wonders they are all missing out on.

There is a problem that seems more and more apparently with book adaptations, especially in the last few years. You can see the potential that the film has, all of the right pieces are there to craft a truly gripping and memorable film but the problem is films like The Giver seem utterly too wrapped up in being ‘faithful to the book’. I haven’t read The Giver, nor do I feel a need to now, because this film is laid out exactly like a novel. It’s a stream of events that when read would have been really compelling, but when put on screen come off as a little lacklustre. The problem lies in the plotting of the film. The best book adaptations tear down its source material and builds up a workable plot with the best pieces of the novel. Adaptations like The Giver simply come across as lazy screenwriting where all the film seems to want to achieve is a basic retelling of beats from its inspired material. Basically, what could have been a fantastic film based off of intriguing source material just ends up kind of existing in a weird limbo between book and film.

It’s disappointing mostly because of the talent behind this film. Brenton Thwaites does a fantastic job portraying the naivety and innocence of Jonas that slowly morphs into awareness and paranoia of his surroundings. The power-hitters, though, really drive things home. Meryl Streep’s Chief Elder is a foreboding force, a monotonous and determined authority that beams into houses and keeps that ever watchful eye on our protagonist. The real brunt of the film, however, comes from Bridges as The Giver. He gives such a raw and engaging performance that it almost makes up for the films lacklustre plotting and stunted visuals.

Unfortunately, this is an amazing concept that seems to have had most of the potential strangled out of it by its target demographic and its label as a ‘Yodult’ genre film. Despite this, the performances shine and the world is fleshed out enough that it keeps you truly engaged and invested in what’s going to happen to it. The problem is you just can’t help shake that feeling that everything could have been a whole lot better under different circumstances.