Suffers as Setup to next film in Trilogy

Rating: 6/10 (5 December 2013)

Having not read any of the books, and seeing a trend here (Ender's GAME), or a trailer shown before this film (Divergent), they all reflect what the latest generation is reading therefore finding as the preferred escapism. Here it is the blend of teenage rebellion and teenage emotional struggles with relationships. As important as this is in understanding what drives a character, I once again thought it unnecessary to drag the film over two hours. No question it was the second act where we seem to be building up to the next big event, only for Katniss for some reason popping up back home to get some more quality time with her loved ones. This second act obviously wanted to be longer, as subplot after subplot accumulated, especially around Philip Seymour Hoffman's character (a fresh baddie). Yet the expected resolution of these subplots are either skipped over or lightly touched upon. The third act thankfully found a lot of fresh dynamics to the actual game. This prevents a been-there-done-that sequel pitfall. For the most part, I felt this film was no better or worse than the first film, which I reluctantly liked.
Hand it to the able creative and technical crew, with perhaps only a handful of CGI shots that looked iffy. Jennifer Lawrence does her best looking frightened most of the time, thankfully the brutality that was just hinted in the first film is hinted just a little more for PG-13. The biggest problem is the story, suffering from the middling 2nd part of a trilogy. The story isn't allowed to get too far in the resolution of the anticipated confrontation. So that forces many characters to remain in a holding pattern as the wheels spin for an extra half hour beyond the normal running time. As for the sequel bait, the same complaint can be made for many other recent last second revelations. It is a table turning moment that would have made the film we've just watched far more interesting. It reminds me of the long dragged out process over three films for Anakin Skywalker to become Darth Vader. It took two long films for him to just lose his hand! I think others in the audience had the same letdown as I did about the ending hinting at more interesting fireworks to come.