We finally come to the end of another franchise – one that has pulled in enormous crowds for the past four years. Moreover, a film series that allows fans to witness the emergence of the very first Hunger Games competition, the identity of the original tributes, as well as all the societal growing pains involved sounds irresistible.
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And Roberts first thriller since 1993’s “The Pelican Brief” brought in $2.3 million and is looking at $7.1 million for STX.
Donald, who has won prestigious accolades and is recognised as a big hitter in Hollywood, returns with J-Law in Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2.
She is denied by District 13 President Coin and her gamemaker, Plutarch, played by Julianne Moore and the late Philip Seymour Hoffman, respectively. Together with her sort-of boyfriend Gale (Liam Hemsworth) and a crew of elite rebel fighters – including the propaganda producers Cressida (Natalie Dormer), Castor (Wes Chatham) and Pollux (Elden Henson) – Katniss heads to the Capital which has been cruelly booby-trapped by Snow’s retreating armies.
To complicate things, Katniss’s faux beau Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) is along for the ride, still recovering from his mind-bending torture experience at the hands of Snow, and fighting the periodic urge to kill his fellow champion. Lawrence has elevated these films, creating a potent, complex heroine, but her performance here is somewhat undercut by smooth edges, such as the saintly glow that surrounds Katniss and her revolutionary endeavours. Then again, none of the films have been, but this one takes it to a new level. I can, however, reveal that Lawrence finishes the series on a powerful and commanding note, with Katniss a strong and independent role model for young ladies like my daughter. Katniss give Lawernce the chance to be ferocious, passionate and contradictorily docile and Lawrence further proves her versatility in this “Hunger Games” addition. Although the character’s motives seem muddled, Lawrence powers though with an authenticity that she lacked in the penultimate installment. Four years clearly wasn’t fast enough for “The Hunger Games”.
Maybe one of the best parts of The Hunger Games series as a whole could be its sound direction. Francis Lawrence is able to show his observations on the absence of mercy in war, but, ultimately, this thematic heft is left isolated when the rest of the film falls flat.
Lionsgate, the studio behind the series, reportedly spent almost $200million on “Mockingjay 2“, including production and marketing costs. Packed with characters and plot, and given sharp teeth by angry political allegory, “Mockingjay-Part 2” provides a ripping conclusion to Katniss Everdeen’s unhappy arc. This leads to a few exciting and deadly encounters in between all the brooding.
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And Lawrence, still the magnetic center of the saga, can elevate the material only so much.
