Movie Review: "The Hunger Games Mockingjay Part 2"

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2 (2015)

PG-13

2.5 Stars out of 5

Director                                Francis Lawrence
Writer                                   Peter Craig and Danny Strong (Screenplay); Suzanne Collins (novel)

Jennifer Lawrence              Katniss Everdeen
Josh Hutcherson                 Peeta Mellark
Liam Helmsworth               Gale Hawthorne
Woody Harrelson               Haymitch Abnerathy
Donald Sutherland             President Snow
Philip Seymour Hoffman   Plurtach Heavensbee
Julianne Moore                   President Alma Coin
Elizabeth Banks                   Effie Trinket

 

How does one judge a Young Adult (YA) movie these days? So many of them have decided to go the post-apocalyptic route (e.g. Divergent, Maze Runner), or at least the ones adapted to the big screen, have done so. Should you compare them to earlier versions of the series from which they spring; perhaps to the book that inspired the movie; or perhaps to a comic book movie? One certainly should not use the standards used in evaluating a thoughtful movie from the same year (e.g. “Spotlight”); well maybe then to an action movie from the same year (e.g. “Mad Max: Fury Road”); no that seems unfair, too. Okay, then let’s compare it to the movies from earlier in the Hunger Games Series; e.g. Mockingjay, Part 1 and to the original book trilogy.

Suzanne Collins created in the original series of books a good build up to her climatic confrontation between evil President Snow (Donald Sutherland) and Collins’ heroine, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence). Both the movie and book series depict a post-apocalyptic world where the remnants of the United States haven broken into 13 districts and a Capitol City to comprise Panem. Each district seems to represent certain parts of the old US: southern agrarian, Rocky Mountain mining/military headquarters, etc. One big difference from the US and its states is that the people of the districts are treated like second class citizens relative to the decadent Capitol City residents: they suffer under the lash of the police, get too little to eat, and must send each year to the Hunger Games two adolescent tributes. Having fought her way to success as one of these tributes in the previous two books and three movies, Katniss has acquired the aura of “Hero of the Revolution”; for indeed, the districts are for the most part in rebellion by the end of the series. The clever thing about this series (which has become something of a benchmark for contemporary YA authors) is that it is hard to impossible to tell the difference in the morality (as displayed by their orders to their military forces) of President Snow and the leader of the rebel force, Alma Coin (Julianne Moore).

The first three movies got Katniss into the position of being the de facto leader of the rebellion, even as Coin is the actual leader. Coin will use Katniss in a variety of tasks designed to take advantage of her star power in a series of propaganda movies made to inspire the rebels. However, Katniss soon learns that Coin has other plans for her as well. These plans will ensure that Katniss will not survive the coming final battle with Snow. It won’t surprise the reader or viewer that Katniss does survive, of course. She does it in part by winning over through her courage and integrity some of those set to destroy her. These are good lessons for teenagers, I agree, but a little too idealistic for the real world; or as we shall see, even for Panem. Nevertheless, Katniss reaches Capitol City and witnesses a scene of startling inhumanity. This atrocity was so well described in the books, that it might bring you to tears (as it did me). It is a scene filled with a specific loss to Katniss, a general loss to many of the citizens of Capitol City, and as an example to the viewer of just how amorally cruel some leaders can be as they strive to keep (or gain) power. It is a powerful scene – perhaps the best in the book. It was unfortunately far less effective in the movie.

And that is also unfortunately, the problem with “Mockingjay, Part 2”. Peter Collins and Rodney Strong as the screenplay writers along with director Francis Lawrence have simply failed to show cinematically the conflict of emotions running through Katniss as the truth of her situation slowly begins to dawn upon her; it frankly even fails to convey one tenth the pathos of the scene of mass murder referred to above. There is emotion and feeling throughout the books, and to some extent the first two movies in the Hunger Games series, but it is almost wholly absent in this final installment. This movie is little more than several action scenes in the last half of the movie following a slow, grim build-up in the first half.

“Mockingjay Part 2” even lacks to the extent displayed in the previous three movies the art as shown in the costume design, make-up and set design. Much of this might be excused due to the exigencies of “Part 2’s” story line being primarily one of guerilla-like warfare, but in effect it leaves the movie looking and feeling very drab. There are scenes where Katniss acts out her downtrodden state and her disconsolate mood in the same drab manner; in many ways, her mood seems an unintended metaphor for the theme of the first half of the movie. This series though has had previously a good narrative flow that features action scenes of Katniss overcoming her enemies. “Part 2” does this too in one extended sequence in the sewer system of Capitol City where Katniss and her allies are pursued by exceptionally fast and fierce mutant lizard-dogs (I guess they were dogs once, or maybe lizards). This scene has more going for it than just its effects on the viewer in terms of action. Katniss and her allies are chased so viciously and so relentlessly, they hardly know where to turn to save themselves. There is a sense of paranoia created by the mutants’ determined ferocity that is almost overwhelming to Katniss and company. It is one of the few times in the movie where the characters emotions are laid bare to be felt by the film’s audience.

The movie is filled with first rate actors: Lawrence, Moore, Sutherland as previously noted, but also Phillip Seymour Hoffman as Plutarch Heavensbee (Games Master); Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket (make-up consultant); Stanley Tucci as Ceasar Flickerman (over the top TV host); and Jeffery Wright as Beetee (electronics genius ally of Katniss). However, with the exception of Snow/Sutherland and Katniss/Lawrence each of these roles are fairly minor in terms of screen time in “Part 2”. Banks and Tucci had their moments in earlier movies and quite frankly brought some needed comedy to the series. The role of Beetee was an intriguing one in the books, but largely under-used in terms of character development in all the movies. Even the marvelous Julianne Moore cannot do much more than look sinister as she prepares to replace President Snow – there is far too little to her character in the movies to properly develop the storyline of her deceitful behavior; even her come-uppance when it comes, flies by so fast that there is little impact, let alone emotional release.

Lawrence as she always does makes her character one that can be believed; she really seems to be living in a world filled with internal conflict: who is the real villain, Snow or Coin, or both; who does she really love, long- time boyfriend/rebel army hero Gale (Liam Helmsworth), or the former bakers’ boy, the now broken Peeta (Josh Hucherson). Again, much of her conflict is better explored in the books as the reader is better able to experience her emotions. In the movie, in the manner in which it is written, her feelings are harder to determine in all the gun-play, running, and noise of the various action set pieces. Lawrence to her credit makes much of her emotions open to the viewer to see, if not feel.

Even better in terms of acting and perhaps it is because his character is so obviously evil and knowing, is Sutherland’s performance as Snow. He has continually played the manipulative liar in the earlier editions of this series; so much so, that Katniss hardly knows what to believe when the movie’s final awful scenes of death and destruction as the Capitol is over-run are fully explained to her by Snow. Katniss will make a decision regarding Snow’s explanation. But it is one of the movie’s few examples of cleverness that at this late point in the story, Katniss is so confused, she no longer is certain that she knows what is true and what is not. Sutherland’s scene where he explains reality to Katniss and the later one as he ruefully laughs at Katniss’ final arrow shot were for me the actual dramatic highlights of the cinematic version of “Mockingjay, Part 2”.

Weirdly or perhaps quite in character for this poor written movie, the film ends on a very different emotional note (as did the book). If the purpose of the series was to reach the dramatic point in the tale where Katniss can hardly tell up from down, or must sadly conclude that in the world she lives in, they are all doomed to have one bad leader after another, then the movie’s and series’ ending scenes with a happy and presumably politically disconnected Katniss is a very odd final lesson to the series’ young readers/viewers. Maybe it is a mistake to look for intelligent writing in Hollywood versions of YA fiction. It is just that the Hunger Games writers and directors managed to set the bar quite bit higher in the first two movies than where “Part 1” and “Part 2” reached.

There is simply too little to praise about P"art 2"; it is in effect a disappointing conclusion to a series that started so well in the first two movies of the Hunger Games series. I am tempted to call attention to the fact that Part 3 in the books was (as is now the routine for a Hollywood all too often only interested in ROI) broken into two movies. Did the screenplay writers have too little to work with in order to make two movies out of one, or did they think that they could jettison character development, tone and theme for action scenes as they sought to entertain their presumed adolescent market? Whatever the root cause for the failure of Part 2, it is there for anyone who wishes to do so, to ponder. I recommend skipping it.