The Giver directed by Phillip Noyce is based off of a book, written by Lois Lowry. This story confines Jonas in a world where no one has true emotions. Jonas is selected to receive memories from “The Giver” an older man who was in charge of keeping memories before everything changed, this society is safe and orderly but very dull. As Jonas starts receiving memories from The Giver, he discovers love, pain, and joy, things that are unknown to his friends and family. This then causes Jonas to want to tell others about what he has been informed. This shows characterization because it presents his nature of being curious and ambitious. Jeff Bridges fills a lot of depth into The Giver and brings the character to life, making him feel wise, and full of memories. The relationship between Jonas and The Giver is one of my favorite parts in this film. It really shows how important our experiences and emotions are.
The visuals of this film really help put it together. The dull gray scenes contrast with the bright colored aspects that Jonas looks at after he comes into real emotions. This shows the film’s main ideas about being unique and really feeling emotions. I would highly recommend reading the book before watching the movie, as the pace of the movie is sometimes very fast. The fast pace makes it confusing at times, which would make it easy to lose track of what is happening if you do not have the background information from the book.
Overall, The Giver is a very good movie and it really emphasizes the importance of emotions. I would rate this movie a 4/5, the only thing I would change is how the pace varies throughout the movie. I still highly recommend this movie, you can stream it on Max, Filmbox+, Max Amazon Channel or rent/purchase it on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, and Fandango at Home.
