With Division 19 the concept was great, the execution was not

Division 19 is a movie that paints a picture of a very realistic dystopian future. But does the latest release from Uncork’d Entertainment deliver?

Division 19 had so much potential. Very early in the film all of the players are handed to you. People are in poverty, corporations are running the prisons, prisoners are used as a primary source of entertainment, and there is an off the grid group trying to disrupt the system. It all sounds great and just leaves the question of how the story will be told.

Through the first 30 minutes or so it feels like the table is being set for something epic but then there’s no event or moment that works to draw you in the way you would hope.

Synopsis

Division 19 is a dystopian future film that is set in a world where the lives of prisoners are broadcast as reality tv. Panopticon TV broadcasts their lives into homes and on the street. Prison fights are also aired and people can bet on them. The prisoners have fans and a following and the politicians want to take all of this to another level.

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There are also poverty and unemployment issues in this future world and the television people are proposing starting a city where they will place the poor people alongside ex-cons. The city would be experimental and would also be broadcast live. The idea is that they would make money by broadcasting it, the most violent criminals would have the opportunity to gain their freedom by proving they could co-exist with regular citizens, and the poor would get job placement opportunities.

It could be a win for all involved in this new city. Their star will be a prisoner who has won the hearts of audiences. That is until a group of cyber rebels, led by his younger brother, breaks him out of prison while he’s being transferred.

What worked

Use of technology

Though not a big budget movie I felt that they did a good enough job with the visual effects to make it passable. A few of the scenes reminded me of the show Colony. The shots of the video screens throughout the city and the drones that monitor activity on the streets do enough to let you know that you’re in a futuristic city.

The dirty appearance does a great job of setting the feel for the disparity between the elite and the common citizens. I truly appreciated that the film didn’t attempt to lean on technology or its futuristic environment to make the movie. They clearly understood their limitations and worked within them.

The vision

The next thing that I appreciated about the film was the vision behind the idea. The writer clearly has a lot of feelings about the way our society currently operates. Politicians treating the common citizens as disposable, exploiting prisoners for personal gain, and a group of smart young people trying to disrupt the machine.

All of it is relevant to current issues and translated to these futuristic times. It was easy to picture our society getting to this point and it made me feel like I was watching an episode of Black Mirror. It required very little effort for me to accept the world that was presented.

What didn’t work

Division 19 gives you a ton of kindling, some gasoline, and a match but it never lights the fire. There is a scene early on that tries to strike the match but it sparks and fizzles out immediately. From there you’re just staring at the many great pieces they have to work with and waiting for it to come together but it never does.

I went too long with the analogy but all of this to say that there was no moment that really stuck with me. There was no moment that made me genuinely care for the well-being of the main characters (you notice I haven’t felt the need to name them). Because there are not enough tense moments the movie feels longer than it is. You’re waiting for a grand moment that never comes.

Division 19 is currently out in select theaters or available via VOD platforms.