[Movie Review] The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 (2014)

Posted on November 21, 2014 by thegrandshuckett in Movie Reviews // 0 Comments

Director: Francis Lawrence

Writers: Peter Craig (screenplay), Danny Strong (screenplay)

Runtime:123 min

Main Cast:

Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen
Josh Hutcherson as Peeta Mellark
Liam Hemsworth as Gale Hawthorne
Woody Harrelson as Haymitch Abernathy
Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket
Julianne Moore as President Alma Coin
Philip Seymour Hoffman as Plutarch Heavensbee
Donald Sutherland as President Snow
Jeffrey Wright as Beetee
Stanley Tucci as Caesear Flickerman

Guest Review: by Erika T

Katniss Everdeen (played by Jennifer Lawrence) is back for the penultimate installment of the Hunger Games franchise. Split into two films, Mockingjay Part 1 sets the stage for the final show down. After Katniss once again foils the plans of the Capitol in Catching Fire, District 13 recruits her as their final hope, as the symbol of the rebellion.

What I Liked:

Let me preface this by saying that Mockingjay was my least favorite book in this franchise. It’s been quite a few years since I’ve read it and I can barely remember all that happened, but it left a bad taste in my mouth. It was boring, Katniss was annoying, and it almost soured me on the series as a whole.

Needless to say, I didn’t go into this very excited to begin with, but I must admit that the movie churned out a better product that was at least watchable. One benefit is that the film does not limit us to Katniss’s POV like the book does where she literally stays in one place while everything else is happening around her.

I thought it was emotionally stirring at times to see the destruction play out on screen. The effects were well done.

I also found myself laughing more than I remember doing while reading the book, and those moments were much needed to lighten the mood somewhat.

What I Didn’t Like:

The film also does a good job with Katniss, but that’s not really a good thing. I found her every bit as annoying as I did in the books. She is very whiny and childish yet again. Yeah, I know she’s only 18 but she’s been through some things and I wanted to see more character growth. I wanted a more admirable heroine. I wanted a personality.

This is the only installment without a portion focused on the games and you could argue that the film suffered for it. All the cool and brutal action is a part of what made the first two films so appealing. It’s missing that element in significant doses so the film has more slow moments than the prequels. Not to mention, most of the time when a final book is split into two films the pace tends to suffer for it. Of course because this is part 1 of 2 we have a cliffhanger so that annoys me because the story isn’t complete, but I know that comes with the territory when these book-to-film adaptations decide to ride on Harry Potter’s coat tails for more money.

3.5

Summary

I still like the Catching Fire film the most out of this franchise (yep, more than the book), and so far I think Mockingjay the film is worth more attention than Mockingjay the book is. That said, it is not the most exciting entry in the franchise making me think they are saving it up for Part 2.

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