Bad? No. Great?...Also No

Rating: 2/10 (5 December 2014)

I may be the minority, but as a Hunger Games fan...I was a bit disappointed.
"THe Hunger Games: Mockingjay part 1" is the first part of the final "Hunger Games" trilogy by Suzanne Collins. In it, our beloved Katniss Everdeen is put in a situation where she becomes a symbol of a revolution. With an entire District looking up to her, she has to lead them to rebel against the Capital. The film is rated PG-13.
Again, I reiterate: the movie was a bit disappointing, for me at least. The performance of Jennifer Lawrence as the heroine was still above fantastic. The visuals got an upgrade, having the best CGI of the series. The action scenes were intense and exciting, which has become a staple for the series. It IS called "The Hunger Games".
Unfortunately, the compliments stop there. As much as I tried to take away the fact that it is only the first part, there were some aspects that just felt off. First, the rest of the characters. With Katniss, Plutarch and Coin being great in the film, everyone else felt expendable. Characters like Natalie Dormer's Cressida and even Finnick and Gale weren't relevant enough in the film to care about them. Also, there were a lot of slow moments in the film, especially near the beginning. You'll be on the edge of your seat...waiting for the movie to get rolling. Even when it does get going, it's rather unfulfilling. It is a big propaganda piece that I think that feminists might really enjoy, as it deals with Katniss fighting the government. That's not a bad thing, but it is something to note. The thing that really brings it down is the fact that it is split into to two parts. With the book being a little longer that "Catching Fire", it doesn't seem right to split it apart other than for the almighty dollar. It's just a cash grab, but a successful cash grab, with the movie grossing $245 million.
"Mockingjay" isn't the best "Hunger Games" movie ever. It's not the best movie of the year ("Guardians" holds that title). But it's not horrible. It has good things, but is completely overshadowed by it's flaws. I still recommend at least one watch, but just one. If you like it, then fine. I wasn't a fan of the first part.