Tashneem

Do you remember a 2008 dystopian movie, The City of Ember? Unable to recall the film starring Bill Murray and a young Saoirse Ronan? Well, it was one of the very first Young Adult films based on a novel of the same name. The immemorable film didn’t quite reach the megahit status Hollywood desired, so they discontinued the franchise.

A couple of years later another YA dystopian film was released, instantly satiating that blockbuster craving, the 2012 hit Hunger Games. Personally, this was the start of a very tiring and cliched movie genre that has presently become unoriginal, monotonous and stale. The exact words used to describe the newest addition to the collection, The Darkest Minds.

The revolutionary face that leads the charge is Hunger Games alum, Amandla Stenberg, who went from one powerful hand gesture to another. Stenberg and the rest of the cast’s acting is easily overlooked due to the mediocrity of the ‘been there done that’ storyline. A storyline that might resonate with Tweens and teenagers alike, based on all the angst undertones and the fundamental battle between children vs adults.

There are similarities between the movie and comic book, X-men. The Darkest Minds is an alternate reality without the existence of Professor Xavier. Without the tutelage of Prof. X, trusting kids with superpowers would run around like headless chicken trying to find a place they belong, all while gushing cheesy lines.

So don’t be fooled by the inviting trailer that leaves you with a lingering desire to decipher the enigmatic scenes and puzzling lines – the best scenes and lines are in the trailer!

PS. Before I am attacked by die hard book fans, I clearly haven’t read the series of books and it might actually be an amazing read that I might even fangirl over. However, in the oversaturated superhero climate we live in, it’s hard to like a movie that feels like a cheap knock-off.