Hunger Games of Thrones

Of all the movies which have followed the recent trend of splitting up the final novel of a vastly popular series into two films, Mockingjay – Part 1 was the worst, or at least, the most incompetently-handled.

A year ago, I gave it a scathing review thanks to almost the entire run time comprising of drawn-out expository dialogue and foundation-building for the avalanche of climactic set-pieces to come. It was practically devoid of any of the exhilarating action sequences and tension-filled thrills which have become associated with the series and it felt like exactly what it was, a half-finished film.

Fast-forward a year, and we finally get the chance to witness the pay-off to what was the world’s longest prologue. I’ll allay some fears and admit that this is much better than the last film and draws the series to a satisfying conclusion, but there’s still the disappointing realisation that Part 2 is still some way short of the explosive, gut-wrenching finale it could, and perhaps should, have been.

For the uninitiated, this is not the place to start. It should be obvious from the film’s title, but occasionally you can get away with coming into a series this late and catching the gist of what’s going on via the ‘previously on …’ montage or the awkwardly crowbarred-in two-minute ‘this is what’s just happened’ conversation between main characters.

Not here; the audience is thrown right into the deep end where the previous film left off. Literally, mid-scene. It’s as if the pause button wore out once its year-long warranty was up.

Even long-term fans might need a refresher as there’s simply no time here, as every second of the 137-minute run time is wrung out as it tries to pay-off not just the last film’s set-up, but the entire series as a whole, while being a commanding film in its own right. It has lofty ideas, but ends up spreading itself too thin and sags under the gravity of trying to do too much.

The story at least is straightforward. In relative terms, anyway. If you still don’t know your mockingjays from your jabberjays, then I suggest you turn around now and start from the beginning, else you won’t have a tracker jacker’s chance in Panem of grasping it. Capisce?

After becoming a propagandist symbol of rebellion, rallying the world’s Districts to her cause, Katniss Everdeen (Lawrence) is ready to take down the Capitol by killing its leader President Snow (Sutherland), and she will do it by any means necessary. Snow’s torture of Katniss’ on-off love interest Peeta (Hutcherson) that muddied his memories is the final straw, and she sets off to the frontlines, against the wishes of the rebellion’s political leaders.

Tagging along with her is on-off love interest #2, Gale (Hemsworth), and other familiar faces such as Finnick, Castor, Pollux, Boggs and Cressida. However, President Snow, in a last desperate attempt to keep hold of his power, sends an onslaught of contraptions, obstacles and creatures against the squad, essentially creating what will be the final Hunger Games, one way or another.

To its credit, when Part 2 is good, it is very, very good. The decision to hold back and put almost every egg in this one explosive basket does achieve success in the hugely enjoyable and thrilling action scenes. The Hunger Games themselves are the focal point of the series and what it’s known for, so it was a good directorial decision to make the bulk of this film harken back to that with its layout.

Sadly, the quieter moments fall flat, and a major twist at the end is so blatantly telegraphed (even to non-book readers I’ll wager) that it isn’t particularly surprising.

The film, as have all the others, leans heavily on Jennifer Lawrence, and her performance delivers. At the heart of the franchise as much as her Katniss is the heart of the rebellion, without her impressive performance it wouldn’t work. Her blank face and middle-distance stare offers a window into her soul as we see how this four-movie odyssey has worn down Katniss, and a few emotional outbursts show her inner pain.

Unfortunately, the rest of the cast get somewhat side-lined in this Katniss vs. Snow battle, and fan favourite characters who were given substantial backstories and dimensions in previous films have disappointingly reduced roles or are disposed of with little emotional remuneration.

One of the great strengths of the Hunger Games books was that it pushed the boundaries of young adult fiction by treating its audience as exactly that. There are many heavy, sombre elements and it seems that this film has gone all the way with that too.

It’s dark (literally so at times, the cinematographer seems to have lost all of his colour palettes except greyscale) and the political machinations and substantial body count means this should probably have carried the name ‘The Hunger Games of Thrones’ instead. This is certainly not for children below teens; it’s a war movie, bloody, brutal and frightening at times.

Overall, Part 2 features a tremendous performance from Lawrence and some superb action scenes. Unfortunately, the emotional gravity it should contain ends up being blunted by the strong focus on darkness grief, and the insistence on having Katniss represent the horrors and morality of war. It’s a satisfying conclusion, but it never inspires the same wonder or enjoyment as the first two movies which focussed narrowly on Katniss and her handful of fellow tributes in the Games, rather than the wide spectrum of Panem and the rebellious masses.

Showing Cineco, Seef II, Saar, Al Jazira, Novo Cinemas, Dana Cineplex