Score: **** out of ***** (A-)
Directed by Francis Lawrence
Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Julianne Moore, Donald Sutherland, et. al.
Running time: 137 minutes
Rated PG-13
Long Story Short: The epic, blockbuster YA Hunger Games franchise comes to its conclusion in Mockingjay Part 2 - and it goes out on a high note. Jennifer Lawrence finally turns Katniss into the interesting, complex character that the books created. Even as the final part of the journey enters darker territory than before in the books, the film embraces this tone better than any of the others. Highly recommended for those who've followed the series.
Katniss Everdeen (Lawrence) begins the final chapter of her journey with a single, overwhelming goal: to kill the leader of the future, dystopian land: President Snow (Sutherland). Having just recovered from an attack by her mind-warped fellow survivor Peeta (Hutcherson), Katniss assists the rebels of Panem to conquer the final fortress leading to the Capitol itself. For the final attack, however, the rebel commander Coin (Moore) tries to hold Katniss back to use her for more propaganda material, spurring on the troops as a symbol. Katniss sneaks her way to the front lines regardless, but her fame prevents her from hiding any longer, allowing Coin to adjust her plans to protect the Mockingjay.
Working their way through the devastated but still dangerous streets of the Capitol, Katniss' new "all-star" propaganda team includes the still-unstable Peeta and her lifelong friend Gale (Hemsworth). Things go awry as they do in war, though, and Katniss seizes the opportunity to resume her original mission. She may not control the army that seeks to bring down a murderous regime, but her actions and status as the Mockingjay will shape the world to come.
All the familiar Hunger Games faces return for the finale, to a greater or lesser extent, providing a nice send off. However, it's significant improvement in Lawrence's performance (with no small amount of help from the script) that leads the way. I have noted in my reviews of the other Hunger Games films that Lawrence is talented but either uncomfortable or unsuitable in the role of Katniss. Well, better late than never. Lawrence seems to have connected with Katniss, particularly her relationships and motivations, rather than acting generically sullen with the occasional (and unconvincing) dollop of distress. Thanks to her performance, I felt that Katniss was at last a character worth investing in for the journey. Hutcherson is still a bit uneven in his acting (sometimes over-the-top) but overall solid, and his Peeta gets a nice part to play here. Woody Harrelson's Haymitch and Elizabeth Banks's Effie get very little screen time, which is the biggest disappointment of the film - but their characters simply aren't major parts of the story, so it's better than trying to awkwardly stuff them in. The two leaders in the film, Coin and Snow, are portrayed excellently by the veteran actors Julianne Moore and Donald Sutherland, which is crucial given their importance here.
Mockingjay Part 2 is the best film in the Hunger Games series. Certainly, Lawrence's aforementioned improvement (and in addition, Katniss as a character) is a major part of that. The other characters have also become settled in. Peeta's new potential threat status mixes quite interestingly with his gentle, quiet personality, and Gale (played by the hopeless younger Hemsworth) accepts the role of simple, hardened rebel soldier. The chess match between Coin and Snow, mostly felt in the background but felt powerfully in a few personal moments, adds intrigue and complexity. The other parts of the film are great, too - the action and adventure. The level of suspense and quality of choreography and effects are at least as high here as they were in the second best film, Catching Fire. And now we get all of that in a new, urban warfare environment, where the danger feels even more ubiquitous. Clever traps are still everywhere, and a dark, frenetic battle against freaky monsters in the sewers is expertly done (and allows Katniss's skill with the bow to shine).
The biggest reason that this film is the best of the Hunger Games, though, is that it embraces the dark tone of the books, which is even more so in this final part of Katniss's story. Catching Fire did this alright, too, but it was by far the biggest problem in the first film. The story would have had to be changed significantly, particularly toward the end, to avoid this darker tone - but I wouldn't have been at all surprised if the usually over-cautious studios had done just that. Instead, we thankfully get a film that really probably should be rated R; it is not for younger viewers. Mockingjay Part 2 does still revert to some of the franchise's worse habits, like Peeta and Gale's awkward, forced discussions about Katniss (only one here!), but these elements are minimized and usually at least serve some small role in the plot. The events of this film gradually shift Katniss's perspective, from that of revenge (albeit in service of a good outcome) to justice and peace. When tragedy strikes, it only seals that transformation and earns Katniss the eloquently depicted ending that she receives.
***
Although I looked forward to seeing the conclusion to the Hunger Games film franchise, it was not among the top of my most anticipated films for 2015. Due to the uneven quality of the previous films and their star, I largely felt compelled to see how it all ended up. Thus I was quite surprised - pleasantly - that it turned out to be the best of the series. Jennifer Lawrence's performance and the film's unflinching portrayal of the dark, complex plot are certainly the main reasons, but those are well supported by the other characters, good pacing, action scenes, and so on. There still might be enough nits to pick for some to lower this to an A- or so, but I'm impressed that they got as much out of this as possible so it earns an A from me (note: in fact, later I did in fact move it back a notch to A-). While the franchise doesn't measure up to the top tier of its sci-fi and fantasy peers like Lord of the Rings and Star Wars, this high-quality conclusion ensures that it is a journey worth returning to some day. Highly recommended, but of course that's only if you've seen the previous films (or at least read the books).
"Mockingjay Part 2 Poster" by Source. Licensed under Fair use via Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mockingjay_Part_2_Poster.jpg#/media/File:Mockingjay_Part_2_Poster.jpg
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