The Panther Newspaper: Third time’s not the charm for 'Hunger Games' saga
Jennifer Lawrence continues to set the world on fire through her performance as Katniss Everdeen, but that may be the only aspect of the film that made it worthwhile. “The Hunger Games” saga continues with “Mockingjay, Part 1” released Nov. 21.
The film follows Katniss to District 13, which was thought to have been destroyed. After her antics during the Quarter Quell, a special edition of the Hunger Games that occurs every 25 years, Katniss has changed the games and the entire world of Panem forever.
As an attempt to save Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) from the grasp of President Snow (Donald Sutherland), Katniss agrees to be the face of the rebellion against the Capitol. President Coin (Julianne Moore) of District 13 and the rebels call her the Mockingjay.
The third installment of “The Hunger Games” drew in $123 million in ticket sales during its opening weekend, a box office record for this year. However, if you’re looking for a movie similar to the first two films that includes fun bursts of color, extravagant costumes and dramatic scenes filled with action, you will be thoroughly disappointed.
The film is mainly set in District 13, where everyone lives underground and wears identical gray jumpsuits. Without the radical hair and makeup that we’ve seen in the past, everyone appears plain and dull. Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks) is actually unrecognizable when she first appears on screen because of this new, minimalistic lifestyle that the characters have been forced into.
After watching tributes fight to the death in heart-wrenching scenes throughout the first two films, the lack of action in the third film is highly unsatisfying. Granted, there are war scenes, but the biggest bits of activity happen off-screen. Now where’s the fun in that?
This movie’s biggest asset is Lawrence’s remarkable acting. She truly embodies the character of Katniss through the compelling way she delivers her lines, her emotional interactions with other characters and her powerful body language. She is the one aspect of the film that will keep audiences interested until the very end.
The main thing that “Mockingjay, Part 1” does successfully is set everything up perfectly for the next half of the story.
Hopefully, the final film in this saga will make up for how stagnant the first half was.
3.5/5 Panther paws.
Photo courtesy BagoGames.
