Another Clumsy Ripoff From Lion$gate

Rating: Null/10 (14 February 2016)

Not surprisingly, Francis Lawrence makes yet another rip-off (the Japanese movie 'Battle Royale II') and, of course, with the added recycled Twilight material (romantic triangle -as evident in 'Divergent' and 'the Huntsman'), clumsy sex scenes and the Hollywood ingredients (PG-13 violence and family friendly, offscreen gore, including the required item number). It may not be among the most expensive films but it's quite apparent that a lot of money has been spent. However, 'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1' still looks and feels like a B-movie. Camera-work is overdone. Editing is shoddy. Too many subplots that aren't fleshed out, lots of plot holes. The use of light is ineffective especially in the nocturnal sequences. Most of the performances are average at best. Donald Pleasance does go overboard in several scenes. Jennifer Lawrence seems to only have been required as the directors daughter. Philip Kaufman does a confident job and... if there is one reason to watch 'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1' at all then that's Josh Huckman who easily steals the show as the male love interest. One good that came from the box office success of this forgettable, rather lacklustre thriller is the appreciation of this actor, most of whose memorable works received little recognition.