Above-Average But Dreary "Hunger Games" Sequel

Rating: 7/10 (8 December 2014)

As much as "The Hunger Games" and "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" captivated me, I'm less than elated that Lionsgate has split the final novel of Suzanne Collins' bestselling trilogy into two movies. Watching "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1" is like watching half of a good movie. Worse, Lionsgate plans to make audiences wait for another year before they fold this franchise. Of course, the "Harry Potter" and the "Twilight" franchises made a mint with this shrewd strategy, so it's no surprise Lionsgate, the same studio that released the "Twilight" epics, would not pass up such an obvious opportunity. As fastidious and well-made as "Mockingjay Part 1" remains, all "Catching Fire" director Francis Lawrence and scenarists Peter Craig of "The Town" and Danny Strong of "The Butler" have done is produce a potboiler that simmers more often than sizzles for two hours and three minutes. Indeed, this qualifies as the shortest entry in "Hunger Games" franchise. Comparatively, "The Hunger Games" clocked in at 142 minutes, while "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" edged it out at 146 minutes. The way they've made "Mockingjay Part 1," we see more of Katniss Everdeen and Plutarch Heavensbee than President Snow, Haymitch Abernathy, Gale Hawthorne, Effie Trinket, Finnick Odair, Caesar Flickerman, and Johanna Mason. Oscar-winner Jennifer Lawrence spends more time shedding tears than shooting arrows. Indeed, she shoots only one arrow in this installment. Making the most of his handful of scenes, a gleefully wicked Donald Sutherland delivers the best line: "Miss Everdeen, it is the things we love most that destroy us."
"The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1" picks up the plot after Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence), Beetee (Jeffrey Wright of "Casino Royale"), and Finnick Odair (Sam Claflin of "The Quiet Ones") have been rescued. Unfortunately, the treacherous Plutarch Heavensbee (the late Phillip Seymour Hoffman of "Doubt") and the resistance have failed to liberate Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson of "Red Dawn"), Johanna Mason (Jena Malone of "Sucker Punch") and Annie Cresta (Stef Dawson of "Manhaters") in the aftermath. Meantime, Katniss and her traumatized companions are recuperating from their tribulations in District 13, but our heroine doesn't know if Peeta managed to survive Panem's third Quarter Quell. If you haven't seen "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire," you may be at a disadvantage. Eventually, she learns that Peeta is alive, but he is being held in the Capitol by President Snow. Plutarch and District 13 President Alma Coin (Julianne Moore of "The Big Lebowski") convince Katniss to serve as their standard-bearer for the rebellion. They need her "anger-driven defiance" desperately to shore up the sagging support among the other districts in the wake of District 12's annihilation. Remember, Katniss, Peeta, and Gale Hawthorne all (Liam Hemsworth of "The Expendables 2") grew up in District 12.
The action alternates between above ground and below ground. The above ground scenes where either Katniss or the rebels battle the enemy provide the most excitement. The scenes below ground in District 13's deeply entrenched bunkers, where Katniss agonizes over poor Peeta's ordeal, constitute classic, four-handkerchief, hand-wringing, chick flick fodder. Worse, the scenes involving the secret mission to snatch Peeta from under Snow's nose yield only a modicum of suspense. Nevertheless, as static as this sophomore sequel is, "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1" easily surpasses the half of the novel that it depicts without sacrificing much source material fidelity.
Essentially, "Mockingjay Part 1" combines elements of a war movie with a love story. The war story sequences generate fewer thrills than the tournament sequences in the two previous outings, while the scenes between a love-sick Katniss and a tortured Peeta are histrionic in every negative sense of the word. Katniss wanders around and whines, while a visibly wretched Peeta looks woebegone and far away. These scenes are as dreary as the air-raid sequence is tedious. The scenes of the lumberjacks scrambling up trees to avoid being massacred by President Snow's trigger-happy soldiers and later the assault on the dam are sensational, but these scenes cannot compensate from the loquacious inactivity during the subterranean sequences. The new characters that flesh out the action are fresh, but they lack charisma, while the regulars have been confined largely to the sidelines in cameos. Of course, each will play a larger part in the second half.
Mind you, "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1" looks terrific. The producers have blown a bundle on every scene. The destruction of the District 5 dam is nothing short of spectacular, with a chorus of suicidal heroes storming a gauntlet of soldiers to detonate crates of explosives. The concrete mountains of rubble, twisted metal, and skeletons galore in District 12 appear thoroughly convincing, too. Philip Messina's production designs, Larry Dias' set decoration, and the art direction by Andrew Max Cahn, Lauren E. Polizzi, David Scheunemann, Steve Summersgill, and Dan Webster enhance the atmosphere and credibility of the film. The sumptuous looking sets and slick production values, however, don't offset the film's sluggish pace.
Basically, nothing groundbreaking happens in "Mockingjay Part 1." The best scenes occur in the final moments, while most everything else serves as expository filler. Indeed, you know neither Katniss nor Peeta are in jeopardy. In other words, neither are going to die, and what happens to Peeta is the equivalent of having a regular series character slip into a coma while the filmmakers pause the plot to conjure up suspense. Altogether, neither Lawrence nor his scenarists have done anything in "Mockingjay Part I" other than delay the inevitable. The hospital bombing sequence, the air raid scene, Katniss' propaganda speeches to arouse the other districts as well as singing a song are dreary. Jennifer Lawrence has a few good lines. Unfortunately, when she isn't decked out in her combat fatigues with a bow and arrow in her fists, she doesn't cut the mustard. Lawrence looks ridiculous in her baggy uniform, and Julianne Moore actually upstages her. Hopefully, Lionsgate is saving the best for "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2."