In which I finally review Insurgent

The usual disclaimers apply. These are my opinions, not endorsed by anyone but me. Also, major SPOILERS of both the book and movie Insurgent.

I thought I might get around to rereading Insurgent before I gave my review, but alas, I have too many writing projects in my head right now. So I will give my review now. Another reason I haven't done this is just because there were so many differences between the book and the movie (and I have been so spoiled with the Hunger Games movies following the plots of the books so well!)

It's been a while since I read it, but I've read it more than once, and I am quite certain that the first half of the book focuses on Marcus (Four's father) wanting to leave Amnity so that he could go back and get important information that Abnegation had been in charge of. And nobody really trusted Marcus, and Four didn't want anything to do with his abusive father. But Tris wants to believe that her parents died for something important, so she goes behind Four's back and helps Marcus get the information. Then there is a pretty moving scene at the end where Tris asks Four to trust her despite the fact that she went behind his back, and he does and broadcasts the message to everybody. Yeah, NONE of that happened in the movie. In fact, I think Marcus was in the movie a whole two minutes.

Instead the movie focuses on this BOX that contains the important message, but only someone who is truly Divergent can open it because they have to pass a simulation for each faction. Um. What? Not to mention, I'll give you one guess who the one is that can open it. Hmmm. It's really tough: Tris.
Some things they did get right, sort of. Caleb betrays Tris and rejoins Erudite. Though they really didn't make a big deal about it. Peter is the one that helps Tris escape, though his motives were kind of off. In the book, Tris has an opportunity to kill Peter but doesn't so Peter feels he owes her. In the movie the chance to kill Peter comes in a simulation, so what we he owe her, really? They got most of the part where Tris and Four are in Candor right, or at least close enough. Erudite does inject everyone so that they can use them in simulations whenever they feel like and Jeanine does make people jump off buildings trying to motivate Tris to turn herself in, and she does turn herself in. But the girl who falls to her death, we don't even know her name until after she's dead. And I thought I didn't feel enough emotion toward them in the book!
There were a couple of things they missed that I think we're pretty significant. For starters, they don't have Tris get injected in Amnity with the calming serum. It's important we know that every faction has its own serum! Also, at the end, the all important message doesn't include the fact that it is Tris's grandmother. And then after the message, all the people everywhere start making their way to the fence. I'm. Only a handful of them leave in Allegient.

Afterward, I couldn't help but wonder how much creative control Veronica Roth has over the films. And then if she doesn't have as much control as Suzanne Collins is that because of the director or the negotiated contract or is someone just convincing Veronica that the changes will improve on the movie?
 Respectful comments welcome.