The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part 2

This is one of the few times that I have seen the concluding film of a franchise without doing a marathon. Watching movie marathons for "The Good Dinosaur" and "Creed" were more important for me. I ended up making the right decision because I think "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part 2" would have been an even bigger let down for me if I had spent a few days to watch all the movies. Because I have not read the book, I can't tell whether this film appeals mostly to fans of the book rather than new fans like me. For all I know, the book might have been better. I did not like the end of this movie and by extension, the end of the film series because it was anti-climatic. "Part II" seemed to leading up to something big but failed to deliver. I will have to make comparisons with other franchises to make my point.

Jennifer Lawrence once again gives a believable and stirring performance but one actor cannot carry a film. Her best performance is when the gun is pointed at her throat. I was grateful for the conversation in the movie between Dale and Peeta. I was glad to learn that neither had hard feelings towards each other. Their plan to let Katniss decide was okay by me. The level of suspense in some moments of the film was quite good. For a while in the IMAX Theater, I was enjoying the ride because I couldn't tell what exactly would happen in the end. Thanks to the movie poster, I knew that Katniss was going to live but everything else was a mystery. I was successfully kept in the dark and I applaud that. Was Snow still playing everyone? Was there a traitor in the rebellion? The vibe I got was that there was going to be a story twist, even with Snow being sick. We were given a twist but it did not satisfy our subconscious desire, at least not for those who never read the books. I am one of those people. The movie started to fail with the death of Prim. We live this movie through Katniss' eyes and so we never really got to say goodbye to Prim. There was the wedding scene sure but even the Harry Potter franchise allowed us time with the characters that were soon to depart from the story through a sudden death. Prim was Katniss' motivation throughout the series and I was half expecting Prim to be kidnapped by the Snow by means of a mole or spy to be used in a trap for Katniss. That storyline could have allowed some way for Katniss to savor her last vision or moment with Prim if she was never meant by the author to survive. Her death in "Part 2" was unsatisfying because of how sudden it was. If the goal was to instill a sense of tragedy, they failed. Throughout the whole film series, I was hoping that Dale would be the one to end up with Katniss. But in one scene, Dale is banished from Katniss' life. After seeing him kidnapped, we go from fearing for his life to learning a terrible truth about him and he wasn't a spy (that would have been more dramatic I think). Again, this is too sudden for us who only know the movies. After spending a whole franchise with him, those who were in his favor should have been let down easily. I am not mad that Peeta ended up with Katniss, I am upset that Dale lost in a way that was rushed on screen. Speaking of rushed, the war is over? Some might say that the Clone Wars in "Revenge of the Sith" ended just as suddenly as this civil war but the difference was that in "Star Wars", we knew before the end of the war that each side was being manipulated. Up until the scene with Snow in confinement we still favor Coin despite the jealousy she might hold against Katniss. The epilogue was nice but this film had way too many endings. The reason why we can forgive "The Return of the King" for doing this was that we got such an amazing conclusion to the franchise that deep down, we didn't want it to end.

I wish that Philip Seymour Hoffman's last film could have been a better one. My guess is that Plutarch was supposed to speak to Katniss in person while she was in lockdown after the execution but the script was changed after the death of Hoffman. This movie was just as disappointing as "The Matrix Revolutions". Because I have not read the book however, I can't blame this on the filmmakers. I can only give my opinion from my point of view. The franchise won me over to a degree because each installment was just as good as the last until now. All the conclusions of the preceding films made you desirous for the next film so there was a lot riding on "Mockingjay: Part 2". Maybe like "The Hobbit" franchise, the addition of one more movie ruined everything. And thus another franchise falls short.

2.5 Stars