The end of an epic; the final film installment of the Hunger Games series certainly deserves that title. The film was everything that a grand finale should be: action, suspense, romance, special effects, you name it.
In the initial Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) started off as a hunter, barely surviving, along with her friend Gale (Liam Hemsworth). Since the first film, both Lawrence and her character, Miss Everdeen have grown exponentially. Each film to follow has been better than the last, providing great expectations for part two.
The plot rose and fell the way Suzanne Collins planned it to, the movie stayed true enough to the series that fans of the books will surely rave, but leaving enough room for a small surprise or two.
The film has an abrupt start, beginning just as the first installment of Mockingjay ended, with the love of Katniss’s life attempting to strangle her. The inhumane torture and brainwashing of her love, Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) deepens Katniss’ hatred for President Snow (Donald Sutherland) and the film catapults into action.
The action scenes, which made up most of the movie, were extremely suspenseful and had the entire audience tense, wondering when the next time something was going to startle them. Having read all of the series myself, I had assumed the flow of the movie would not be surprising but yet I caught myself wondering what was going to happen and when. Between sets of massive explosions, gunfire, “capitol mutts” and even oil that contained motion sensitive weaponry, the war was anything but disappointing. It brought back the gripping, edge-of-your-seat feeling that existed previously during the Capitol’s games.
If the film lacked anything at all, it would have to be the heart-wrenching emotion displayed in part one of Mockingjay. This installment was much more harsh, with more quick deaths and fewer vulnerable moments for the characters. The novels provided fans with more time to grieve the losses of their favorite characters and to ponder over the love triangle that is Gale, Peeta and Katniss. Overall, however, the movie was fulfilling and a worthy update to the other three moving films.
The only question left in my mind after the end of it all was, “can I watch it again?”
