The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2

Reluctant symbol of the revolution, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) leads a small group of freedom fighters into Panem to try and assassinate the wicked President Snow (Donald Sutherland).

When they split Mockingjay into 2 parts, presumably for no other reason than financial gain, there was always the concern that the story would be far too drawn out (as with The Hobbit). And despite several decent action scenes (including booby-trap pods, a tidal wave of tar, and a mutt attack) that's precisely what has happened: at a whopping 137 minutes, this last film in the series feels like the proverbial dead horse has been well and truly flogged.

I watched purely for the sake of completion, but at no point did I feel involved in the story or engaged with the characters. I just sat there waiting for the whole thing to end so I could move on to something else. A shame, because if they had taken the good bits from both Mockingjay movies and combined them into one (slightly longer) film, it might have been the best of the series and a fitting finalé for Katniss and co.

The franchise started with such promise but seemed to lessen with each film. In this one, the journey towards President Snow was laboured and repetitive. Character development was paint by numbers to non existent. Films 3 and 4 might have been more impactful if retained in one film. But we get the ending... that's something.

This film managed something quite unusual for me: it moved me to tears. While some scenes might feel a bit slow at first, it's all worth it to create the steady build up to the conclusion. Jennifer Lawrence is flawless as Katniss, as are all the other actors. The tone throughout the film can be bleak and unsettling, but it also reflects what some on our planet have to endure, something many of us find hard to imagine. This film is unforgiving, but you won't regret a single moment of it.

What began as a funny 'Battle Royal' for teens comes to a conclusion as one of the best blockbusters in recent memory. It's almost unbelievable how the tone progressively changed from the colorful brutality of the first film to the grayscale palate of a very real world portrayed in Mockingjay - Part 2.

The conclusion to 'The Hunger Games' saga is slow, dark and heavy. Starts gloomy and goes downhill from there. It feels anti-climatic and manages to achieve levels of tension only grasped by the previous films. All at the same time.

The fascinating thing about the film is how unexpected and unforgiven it is. The struggles feel real as do the consequences, and hopelessness permeates all of it.

The film has its shortcomings. It starts slows, drags a little on some scenes and contains some lazy writing, but other than that it's almost perfectly executed. Jennifer Lawrence is flawless as Katniss and majestically leads the devastating journey towards its conclusion.

Part 2 is bold and devastating. It may not be the conclusion some fans wanted, it sure wasn't what they're expected, but it's a way better conclusion than one could hope for.

A thank you note to Francis Lawrence for the eerie sewer tunnel scene, which plays as the love child of "Alien" and "The Descent" - very unusual in tone and something no one is expecting to watch in a blockbuster​ of this size.

I always saw The Hunger Games' movies as a thrilling representation of the corruption and tyranny that's invading this world, and as a young Egyptian who lived through two recent revolutions, we know a great deal about the consequences of civil war, and how dirty the fight can be over political power. This movie hits right home with this theme in a way that democratic and luxurious societies won't understand or enjoy.

Mockingjay pt2 delivers a suspenseful and emotional ride as Katniss and the other rebels set out on a mission to kill the ruthless president Snow. The film plays heavy on its politics, showing the ugly side of revolutions. It would have been easy to make a pure good vs. pure evil scenario, but the movie shows a lot of gray areas and stresses on the fact the no one is incorruptible, which is far more enjoyable in terms of storytelling.

The film also does justice to its characters in their final journey, and has great performances by its two leads. J.Lawrence excels in portraying a determined Katniss fighting to subdue her tortured emotions for the sake of a bigger cause, she perfectly balances the strength of making sacrifices and becoming merciless in war without losing her humanity. Hutcherson gives his best acting shot as a confused Peeta fighting battles both on the ground and within his mind, and his monologues arrive with several meaningful moments that remind us of what 'The Hunger Games' were all about. However, its D.Sutherland's and J.Moore's sickening performances as two similar nemeses, that elevated this young-adult film to a whole new level.

But the film is anything but flawless, it has several problems which we can blame on the editing team, the slow pace of the film focuses too much on Katniss and her group that makes you forget about the outside war, and when the time came when the size of the rebellion showed itself, you don't get enough of it, which in my opinion is the biggest issue with the film. However, this was never meant to be a full scale war film, it was always, presented from one person's point of view, which is understandable. Another issue I found was in how the movie had several deaths of main characters but doesn't spend enough time to pay tribute to them, not as much as they did with Rue in the first film.

Nevertheless, instead of lingering on the imperfections, I applaud Mockingjay Part 2 for the bigger message its trying to convey, for creating a satisfying resolution to one of the strongest and most enduring heroines in cinema, and for respecting its audience and not sugarcoating anything. People are complaining about this final chapter being too grim, my parents thought it was too realistic, too similar to what's happening in our country and so many others, but to me...that was necessary. I can only wish that movies like this will in some way contribute in making a wiser next generation of political leaders, which is what the film offers ultimately as consolation; a last sense of hope for the future.