Mockingjay Part 1 feels like it purposely left off the actual story for next year. I did not read the books, but based on the Wikipedia plot details of Suzanne Collins' novel, it seems like Part 1 only delivered the first 5 percent of the story (just the first two paragraphs in the Wiki plot outline) and stretched it for over two hours, resulting in a boring, monotonous, and empty experience.
Part 1 picks up from where Catching Fire left off: our revolutionary heroine, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), finds herself right in the heart of the new rebellion, District 13, under the rule of the obviously suspicious President Coin (Julianne Moore).
Distressed by the absence of Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), and with an all-consuming desire to reunite with him, the emotionally messed-up Katniss reluctantly agrees to Coin's proposal that she become the poster girl of rebellion: the Mockingjay.
And so we watch as Katniss becomes a puppet, allowing herself to be exploited in "propos" (TV propaganda clips) in between tears. And after more than two hours of fighting off sleep, you are given a vaguely interesting ending. And then, with horror, you see in your mind's eye the long stretch of calendar days until November 2015, before we finally watch a "real" movie.
Jennifer Lawrence has proven once again her consistently brilliant performance since the Hunger Games pilot in 2012. She is a master of internal turmoil, a ticking emotional time-bomb. Clearly, Lawrence has deep reverence for her character, giving the moviegoers the respect that we deserve, unlike the movie itself, helmed again by Francis Lawrence, which scrimps you off of anything substantial. In fact, Lawrence is so good and serious with her role that her noteworthy performance overly tipped the Mockingjay scales off balance, making her out of place in this shallow and poorly executed first half.
Of course, we anticipate that Part 2 will be intense and action-packed, as the actual story is clearly yet to happen. Meanwhile, go ahead and watch Part 1 just so you wouldn't miss the third installment of Hunger Games. It is, after all, still important to know the beginning of the story. But that's it. It's just literally the beginning.
1.5 out of 5 stars
Opens November 20, 2014
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