Book & Movie Review | The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken

So, I fail when it comes to time management. I had every intention of rereading The Darkest Minds before the release of the movie on August 3rd. I even had plans to do full recaps of the trilogy in preparation for the movie and the release of Zu’s story, The Darkest Legacy. But here we are, a full week after the release of the film, and all I have to show for it is a movie stub. No reread, no recaps, just simply watching a movie. There were parts I remembered and some I didn’t, but I had my friend Summer with me — she’s great at remembering book details! So, without any further ado, let’s talk about the book-to-movie adaptation!

Pros

The Cast

I really enjoyed the cast members of this! Amandla is a great Ruby, and she has great chemistry with Harris —who, by the way, is an awesome Liam. Everyone was skeptical of him when he was cast, but I think he fit the role quiet well and was one of my favorite parts of the whole thing.

Another favorite is Skylan Brooks, aka Chubs. He brought much needed humor to the movie, and I really enjoyed his scenes. Miya Chec, despite never saying a word, was adorable and seeing her portrayal of Zu made me want to get to The Darkest Legacy even faster.

The Filming

I really enjoyed the cinematography, which honestly isn’t something people care too much about usually, but I thought the locations where they filmed were pretty accurate compared to what I imagined while reading.

No Dramatic/Unnecessary Changes

Don’t get me wrong, changes were made, yes. But it’s a movie, so of course there will be differences from the book. I don’t think the changes that were made affected the story negatively, however. Things were different for cinematic purposes, and honestly, nothing made me truly upset. Let’s not bring up Ready Player One though, because that is an example of horrendously negative changes.

Cons

The Pace

I felt like there was so much back story left out. Audiences, if you haven’t read the book, are going to feel like there’s so much that they’re missing. Where did the disease come from? What has happened to the rest of the world? Why did Mandy Moore’s character, Kate, not show back up until the end? It feels like so much happens so quickly and nothing is truly fleshed out. I hope the movie does well enough to get a sequel made because I’d love to see it expand on all of these things.

Character Relationships

Everyone seemed so easy to trust. I honestly can’t remember much from the book minus some major plot points, but I don’t feel like they were as trusting with strangers as they are in the film. Ruby and Liam are quickly thrown together, and the inevitability of their romance is pretty cheesy, to be honest. I don’t recall them instantly falling for each other, but I can be forgiving of the movie for that. No one wants to wait hours for characters to flirt with each other, I get it.

Clancy

The scenes with Ruby and Clancy were so quickly thrown together, it felt so out of place. Which is crazy considering they’re much need plot points. I felt like Clancy was inside Ruby’s head once, and then he just instantly knew what to do to win? It felt weird and rushed, and I think people who didn’t read the book will feel utterly confused.

Overall, I’d give the movie a solid C+. It was entertaining, but it definitely needs a sequel to really delve into the heart of the book. I liked how certain scenes from the book were translated straight from page to screen, but most of the story left too many questions for non-readers. As rough as the ending was, it didn’t pack as much emotion for me like the book did.