Mockingjay Part 2 Spoiler-Free Review

The Hunger Games just released the final installment in the epic saga, and I had the pleasure of seeing the film this week. Usually I re-watch the previous movies before I check out the final installment in a trilogy, but I just wasn’t in the mood.

Thinking about the previous films I found that the original film was a good introduction to the universe, and one of my first encounters with Jennifer Lawrence where I was like “This girl can act!”. Catching Fire was an amazing step up from this film with a nice balance of action and politics, and Mockingjay Part 1 was… okay I guess.

I praised a few things about Mockingjay Part 1 in my original review, but over time I’ve grown to dislike the film more and more. I just generally hate two-part final chapters these days, as the first film ends up being a nothing-film; a cash grab by Hollywood studios.

Click here to read my review for The Hunger Games Mockingjay Part 1

But back to Mockingjay Part 2: The film picks up right where the last one left off: with Peeta pretty much screwed up, Katniss ready to rumble, and Gale just kinda over this love triangle bullshit and ready to go to war and avenge his district and family.

That basically sums up the major character details that affect the plot. There’s still a heavy propaganda movement for the rebellion which Katniss is the key to; but this doesn’t slow down the narrative as much as it did in Part 1.

I was a huge fan of the action and explosions of violence in this film. Yes, it’s okay to be a fan of how violent moments are executed. The closeness of the camera during explosions, the sheer magnitude of explosions (which always seemed to be about 5 times bigger than you expected) and the damage done to buildings and people was extremely gut-wrenching. This move towards more raw, vivid images of war made me feel like I was out there, on the front lines with Katniss and the rest. This makes it worth seeing on the big screen; whether the 3D element of it is a must is another story altogether, as I was not impressed with it.

Mockingjay Part 2 has no intention of keeping everyone alive. No spoilers, but quite a number of people die, and we get the sense (more so than ever before) that things have escalated quite significantly and that yes, this means war.

Out of all of the dystopian youth fantasy franchises I’ve encountered in recent years, The Hunger Games does the best job of drawing parallels with the way things are set up in the real world; crafting beautiful metaphors that illustrate what being young means, especially in a world where there are so many people fighting for your voice, your vote and what makes you a person, physically, mentally and emotionally.

Here’s the IMDB sysnopsis for the latest installment in The Hunger Games franchise: Mokingjay Part 2:

“As the war of Panem escalates to the destruction of other districts by the Capitol, Katniss Everdeen, the reluctant leader of the rebellion, must bring together an army against President Snow, while all she holds dear hangs in the balance.”

Rating: 7/10

Favourite Part: The conversation with a loyalist.

See it/ Don’t See it: Yes, definitely check it out on the big screen. This makes a cool squad outing with your buddies, or a great date movie too.