The Hunger Games film saga ended with this month’s Mockingjay, Part 2, the second film based on Suzanne Collins’ novel of the same name. Splitting things in two is all the rage in Hollywood these days, so we at the Emerald decided to give two of our writers the chance to air their thoughts on the end of the Hunger Games. Here are Anna Lieberman and Jordyn Brown’s opinions on Mockingjay, Part 2.
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Sadness: the most fitting word to describe Mockingjay, Part 2. From the dark aesthetic to the somber score, the final Hunger Games film touched on every negative human emotion. It explored the concept of loss, of material, of character, of friendship, of life and of hope.
The first half of the film was slow, showing there was no need for the Mockingjay novel to be split into two films. Part 1 had gratifying and moving moments where audiences saw the reality of a revolution in a positive light for the main characters of the film. The second movie was devoid of such pleasures. From start to finish, audiences watched the death, destruction and hopelessness of war. It was just as upsetting as the book, to which it stayed faithful.
Although the whole movie was hard to watch, this speaks to the quality of the visual effects, music and acting throughout the film. The acting of Donald Sutherland (President Snow) and Julianne Moore (President Coin) were particularly commendable. They each portrayed antagonists in the film, the confidence of their characters contrasting with their cruel intentions.
Mockingjay, Part 2 did its book counterpart justice, successfully expressing each somber theme present in Suzanne Collins’ novel. That said, it would have been more successful if the final two films were merged into one.
__Anna Lieberman
As an epic dystopian story that captured cinematic and literary fans alike finally closes, it’s hard not to be gripped by the empty feeling that comes with the knowledge that it truly is the end of the Hunger Games legacy.
The final film in the series, Mockingjay, Part 2, did not disappoint. While the producers jumping on the split-part finale bandwagon was off-putting, the film was well-executed in the end.
The stunning performances by Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson bring the movie to life. We continue to see the strain the Capitol has put on the relationship between Katniss and Peeta, as Peeta does his best to recover and discern what is reality and what is a Capitol fabrication.
The beginning felt disjointed, as if a commercial break had cut off a previous scene, leaving us wondering what we had missed. The real action doesn’t start until well into the movie, when our beloved characters make their way into the city to finally put an end to the war.
Even though the film was filled with realizations of loss for our characters – their sanity, their way of life and for some, their lives – it was a chilling and satisfying way to tie the final knot in a story of life and death, wealth and poverty and the destruction people can bring on themselves.
___Jordyn Brown