The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1
Run Time: 123 minutes
Overall Grade: A-
The final installment in the biggest blockbuster film of the year has begun. District 12 has been demolished and the revolution has begun. Katniss Everdeen is back with an even fierier attitude than ever before. The Capitol has taken her loved one, Peeta, and she is out for a vengeance.
The Capitol is after Katniss, who is tucked away in District 13. Katniss has used her anger towards the Capitol to start the revolution, and as part of that, Mockingjay: Part 1 shows Katniss leading District 13 in a propaganda video. In order to be the voice of the revolution, Katniss goes back to see the rubble of District 12. What she finds is horrifying and hard to look at. 915 out of 10,000 made it out of District 12 alive. As the learns president Snow's secrets, and the appalling truth of Peeta's well-being, they are able to feel every emotion that Katniss feels.
Mockingjay: Part 1 is easy to follow and the audience can become emotionally invested, all thanks to director Francis Lawrence, who uses close-up shots of the actors to let the audience get inside their minds and truly feel what that character feels. The script is well written, thanks to Peter Craig and Danny Strong. The acting takes the words from the page and portrays them on-screen more realistically than most movies.
While Jennifer Lawrence's performance is breathtaking, the film takes a look aside from Katniss. The war has taken over the dystopian world, and lives are lost along the way. Gale is shown as his over-protective self, and Prim is maturing into a young lady. Special effects are taken to a whole new level. The rubble of District 12 is believable, along with the rush of waters by the Capitol, and all of the blowing up portions between District 8 and District 13 are extremely realistic. Peeta is shown thinner and more brusies show up on his face as the film continues, and the effects to do this are extremely real. It is very clear that Lawrence had the funds to do this movie right.
The decision to split this film into two separate movies was a wise choice. This gives the film time to develop and lets the audience really understand what was going on. One of the biggest problems with the third book was that everything was jammed packed into one story, and this makes it hard for the reader to really invest in the story. With two separate movies moving at the pace that the filmmakers have chosen, this is certainly a promising future for the final movie, which is slated to premiere next fall.
Hunger Games fans will not be disappointed by Mockingjay: Part 1.
