The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1

The year 2012 was a surprisingly big year for movies. We've had the Avengers assemble for the first time, Ben Affleck gave us his Best Picture winning film “Argo,” Quentin Tarantino gave us a tribute to spaghetti westerns and black-sploitation films with “Django Unchained,” and Jennifer Lawrence rose to the top of the Hollywood ladder. Beforehand, Lawrence had only been best known for working on films like “Winter's bone,” but after “X-Men First Class,” she started to gain a bit more recognition. During that year, she starred in “Silver Lining's Playbook” which won her the Oscar for Best Actress, and she starred in the new young adult book adaptation, “The Hunger Games.”

The first film, written and directed by Gary Ross, was set in the post-apocalyptic world of “Panem,” each of the 13 districts must offer two tributes for the annual Hunger Games. When her sister is chosen to participate, Katniss Everdeen offers herself as tribute in order to save her sister. Now she, and her friend Peeta, must appeal to the crowds and survive the games as this year's champions. It has been said countless times that the film is just an American version of “Battle Royale,” which I can totally see why. And while I do think “Battle Royale” is a superior movie, I still like this film just the same, for it's protagonists and it's satire on reality T.V. and celebrity life. The shaky cam action scenes do get obnoxious though.

The sequel, “Catching Fire,” was a big step up from the previous film. The action scenes were done better, thanks to Frances Lawrence taking over as director, the stakes were higher, and the acting had gotten better. As the recent winners of the Hunger Games, Katniss and Peeta now had to appeal to the City Capitol and President Snow, if they wish to survive and gain the support they need for the 75^th annual games, where they compete against the survivors of the previous 25 years. Looking back at “Catching Fire,” I keep loving it more and more, seeing how much improvement could be done with a film such as this. It didn't quite fill up the void that “Harry Potter” left when the series was done, but I'm at least glad that it was able to wash away the memory of some of the crap that Stephanie Meyer has been putting out.

Now we move onto the first part of the final chapter of this series, “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1.” After recovering from the trauma she endured from the last Hunger Games, Katniss has been chosen to represent the rebellion hiding in District 13. When she agrees to the terms, she requests that Peeta and the other victors that were left behind be saved and spared, during the mission to take out City Capitol and influencing the other districts to fight back with her.

One of the major key factors that I love about these films is its take on propaganda and the news. They play with the fact that not every person that appears on T.V. is who they really are, but just an act to appeal to whomever is watching, including the people behind the camera. Scenes like when they try to make Katniss seem like an epic war rebel in front of a green-screen is both clever and occasionally funny. The film also dives into the question of who is actually the right side here? Is the rebellion against the Capitol a good idea, or will it lead to a civil war that no one can recover from? Questions like that really do get a person invested in the story, and eager to find out what happens. Needless to say, I'm looking forward to Part 2.

Much like the previous installments, Jennifer Lawrence gives a great performance as Katniss. While there wasn't as much development with her, like in “Catching Fire,” she makes up for it with her inner struggles about the rebellion, and with Peeta being within the Capitol and saying all those things about them. She does have a breaking point, and you do see her care about those around her, even if it means disobeying orders. Lawrence is a fantastic actress, and after looking back at who they originally wanted for Katniss (Hailee Steinfeld, Chloe Moretz, Abigail Breslin, and Emma Roberts), you can't really picture anyone else for the role better than her at this point. Liam Hemsworth as Gale manages to get a bigger part in the series this time around, as one of the people who partake in the rebellion. While being part of the filming team, at first, he brings that sense of humanity and urgency to Katniss, as he and her family are all that she's got left to remember of her district.

Josh Hutcherson as Peeta, while he has a smaller role than before, still makes it as memorable as possible. The scenes where he's on the news and is spilling out all the talk about the rebellion to Katniss, is really effective. The look in his eyes obviously tells you that he doesn't want to say it, but has no choice if he wants to keep himself alive for both his and Katniss's sake. Hutcherson, too, has come a long way in his career, and I can only hope for the best with what comes for him. Other cast members such as Woody Harrelson as Haymitch, Donald Sutherland as President Snow, Elizabeth Banks as Trinket, and Phillip Seymour Hoffman (may he rest in peace) as Plutarch were all fantastic in their returning roles. I also got to give props to Julianne Moore, as the leader of District 13, Alma Coin. She has claimed to be a big fan of the books, so the fact that she was able to get invested in what her character does and what goes on around her makes it easy to work with.

This time around, the script was written by Daniel Strong and Peter Craig. Craig is best known for co-writing “The Town,” and Strong is well known for writing for “Lee Daniel's The Butler,” as well as playing Jonathan on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” The two manage to make the script work well to its advantage, and Frances Lawrence still keeps it fresh and exciting. There isn't much in the way of action, aside from the district rebellions and a few intense scenes, but I can get past that. You want there to be a big build up, and this one has a lot.

Overall, “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1” was a definite win/win for me. I saw the film opening day with my buddy Zack, and we enjoyed it a lot. With “Part 2” coming out next year, along with “Jurassic World,” “Tomorrowland,” and many others, I have a feeling it'll be a good year...ESPECIALLY with how annoying THIS year was.

Rating: 10/10