In another utopian-society-with-a-darkside story, “The Giver,” is a must-see, only after it leaves theaters and becomes available on blu-ray or DVD, on a Tuesday night, when you have absolutely nothing better to do.

It wasn’t all bad. If you read the book in high school, you might enjoy witnessing scenes from your imagination come to life on the big screen.

“The Giver” just felt like an unfinished story. After the credits I said to myself “Well, that happened.” It didn’t really move me one way or the other, which is frustrating because I expected more impact after the emotional momentum the film had towards the end.

I often thought to myself, “OK this is what’s going to happen next,” and it did. The golden moments of the film occurred when I knew what was coming, but found myself excited to see how it was carried out and the impact it had due to the acting.

I couldn’t see anyone other than Jeff Bridges playing The Giver himself. His performance was excellent. I enjoyed any scene with Jeff Bridges and protagonist Jonas, played by Brenton Thwaites.

There is the constant, unsubtle, theme of repressed emotions. The community-wide repression is heralded by the “Utopian” leadership. Meryl Streep nails the role of Chief Elder, presenting the character as cold and easy to hate.

The story has moments that will hit you on an emotional level. Hard-hitting scenes are the one redeeming quality of this story. I will try to avoid any spoilers for those who haven’t already read the book, but any instance of emotion leaking through the grayness of the world, is a powerful one, that may just “leak” through the fourth wall and touch you.

The story felt a little generic, and never surprised me. Despite the occasional emotional punch to the stomach, I can’t recommend you see this film in theaters, just as I wouldn’t recommend an album because of one good song; however, I will say, it’s good a way to spend a lazy night at the house.