Money Making Gimmick but the Film is Good

Rating: Null/10 (7 December 2014)

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part 1 (2014)
*** (out of 4)
The third film in the popular series appears to be getting some heat from fans and critics and for some pretty good reasons but at the end of the day there's no question that the film contains the great acting and compelling characters from the previous two. This time out, Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) is recruited by President Coin (Julianne Moore) to lead the rebellion against the Capitol but her heart remains with Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) and makes her question what she should do.
I guess I'll start with the controversy. People have complained that not much really happens in this film and I would certain agree with that. It's clear that the studio wanted to make as much money as possible so they broke this final film into two so that people would have to fork over double the money. By doing that they've made part 1 someone laid back, character driven and without too much action. I understand the studio wanting to make money but at the same time I can't help but think that everything covered in this here's two-hour running time could have been done in forty-five minutes and then we could have gotten to the events that are going to be in part 2.
WIth that said, it's somewhat hard to really be too critical of the actual part 1 because once the second film is released we can just view them as one and when that happens, I think fans and critics will be a little kinder to this here.
I thought for the most part the story was good and I didn't mind too much that they tried to deliver more of a character and emotional drama than just pure action. I thought there was one reason this work and that's because we're given such a terrific cast who are strong enough of actors that they can keep us drawn in. Lawrence, who has obviously became one of the best actresses out there today, has no problem in her role, although I must admit that I wondered if the screenwriter was just wanting to see how many different ways she could cry. Either way, Lawrence was terrific as is Woody Harrelson, Donald Sutherland, Moore and of course the late Philip Seymour Hoffman. Both Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth are good as well.
I will say that visual the film was pretty impressive and I thought the CGI here was much better than in the previous two movies. The music score is top-notch as you'd expect and there's no doubt that the cinematography perfectly captures everything. Again, I understand why people feel ripped off but in the end, the entertainment value is what counts and while this is the weakest of the three films, there's no question that it does its job in making you want to see the next installment.
F.T.B.