Written by: Rheagen King – Derby High
“Are you? Are you? Coming to the tree.” Walking out of the Mockingjay premiere left viewers a little dazed… and humming to ‘The Hanging Tree,’ the new song Jennifer Lawrence sang. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part I did everything but fail to disappoint. How could it not? Oscar Winner Lawrence was ready to fight with a vengeance. The suspense was killer. Not the suspense from the games — there weren’t any in this film, but the suspense of the hunt… the beginning of a war and extra film time to develop the characters.
In fact, the annual games with murderous teenagers, are no more. President Snow (Donald Sutherland) must find another way to subdue the 12 districts that rebelled against him.
As for Katniss, her home has been destroyed, leaving her broken and bruised in the earlier portions of the film. In addition, Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) has been taken into the capital. (Who’s loving who now?) Her mother (Paula Malcomson) and sister (Willow Shields) are missing. It’s hard to say if she will ever be the same.
Luckily, Mockingjay powers through a well-written tale about finding oneself, and ending the corrupt government known as The Capitol. Katniss has been called to the underground District 13 to become the living symbol of the Mockingjay, a revolutionary bird. “If we burn, you burn with us!” she shouts. She makes us feel something, which Katniss has had trouble doing in the past, with the charmer Peeta around. Her role, however, is evolving. Is she actually developing feelings?
Overall, the film was truly riveting for the die-hard book fans and moviegoers alike. There were two hiccups, however. Splitting the movie in two was a bit of a stretch, and the relationship that is apparent between Gale (Liam Hemsworth), Peeta and Katniss isn’t as developed as it could’ve been. For non readers, it might be hard to know that this love-triangle has been an ongoing issue since the first book/film, but what the heck, “Kudos to you, Francis Lawrence.”
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