‘Mockingjay Part 2′ Review: A Slow Burner With A Rushed Finish

Director: Francis Lawrence
Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Julianne Moore, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jeffrey Wright, Willow Shields, Sam Claflin, Jena Malone, Natalie Dormer, Gwendoline Christie, Stanley Tucci, and Donald Sutherland
Running time: 137 mins
Rating: 12A
Release Date: November 19th, 2015

*SPOILERS AHEAD*

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 76th Hunger Games. Picking up from where we were left in MOCKINGJAY PART 1, the pace begins and continues to be slow in MOCKINGJAY PART 2 – the final chapter in the global blockbuster franchise. Bruised and traumatised, Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) attempts to speak following a near-death attack at the hands of a brainwashed Peeta (Josh Hutcherson). With Panem at war, Katniss teams up with Gale (Liam Hemsworth), Finnick (Sam Claflin), an unhinged Peeta and a unit from District 13 known as “Squad 451” to liberate the nation’s citizens – but Katniss has a secret assassination plan of her own for President Snow (Donald Sutherland).

We follow Katniss and her unit in the midst of action for the better part of the film, as a consequence the humorous and outright outrageous Caeser Flickerman (Stanley Tucci) and Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks) are missed with next to no screen time. While Woody Harrelson’s Haymitch is still a prominent figure, his usual dry, comedic flare that he had exhibited in the previous three films feels cut short.

Sutherland said during the film’s press conference, “Francis’ film is devoid of sentimentality. It makes no effort to appease an audience, it just tells the truth,” and a perfect example of this is with the unexpected death of Finnick. During the film’s best and most physically demanding scene which saw the cast wet for 12 hours a day for 3 weeks, an excellently executed and tensely claustrophobic chase scene through a sewer unfolds and concludes with Finnick’s demise.

After coming to the aid of Katniss, Finnick makes his way up a ladder to safety and almost evades the grip of the mutant mutts before he is pulled down to his death. It felt cruel and swift – echoing the sentiment, “It’s war. Sometimes killing people isn’t personal.” Granted, Claflin’s character who joined the cast in CATCHING FIRE began with less than redeeming qualities, but he quickly proved his worth.

As Panem is booby-trapped with “pods” left, right and centre, violence is a prominent theme in MOCKINGJAY PART 2, which Director Francis Lawrence acknowledges. With a 12A rating and a young target audience, there is a concern that this will isolate teenage viewers. But what THE HUNGER GAMES franchise cleverly achieves is drawing focus on the aftermath of violence; its effects and consequences, rather than the act itself. And although little time is spent lingering on the loss of Finnick and many of Squad 451, leaving little time for comprehension, we are given a glimpse of an expressive reaction to the violence that Katniss has witnessed and been subjected to when she returns home following an air strike which proved fatal for sister Primrose (Shields).

In a truly poignant scene in a kitchen involving only Lawrence and a cat, “the girl on fire” finally breaks down – releasing every heart-rending emotion from shock to trauma, to loss and grief, to anger and rage.

The film concludes with Katniss and Peeta, years later, embracing their devotion to each other with children to show for it, finally putting the enduring love triangle which once included Gale to bed. Although a conventional happy ending, the final face off with Snow feels rushed and the feeling is accentuated by an aura of uncertainness and sadness surrounding Katniss in the final shot. Nothing can prepare you for the end, and it seems Lawrence didn’t get the memo either.

Verdict

THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY – PART 2 is released in the UK on 19th November.

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