The Hunger Games Series

[absnow54]

I think they were in a bit of an awkward place there, because in the book that whole series of developments is really hurried through; to dramatize effectively, they'd really have to devote a bit of time to it, and the story by that point is really over.  It's all just an epilogue.  So I can see why they went for the quicker resolution.

You're right. The end of the book is pretty short on content, but Katniss is so broken, and the story's only shown through her eyes, it's easy to lose track of what's going on in the Capitol and focus solely on her recovery. The movie gave us a much broader view of things, and put so much focus on the politics that -- I don't want to say lack of resolution, but the quick and too good to be true resolution was jarring. 

[GaT]

I saw this today & I enjoyed it. I thought it was pretty true to the book, & I loved the laugh Snow gave when Katniss shot Coin.

[bluvelvet]

Just got back from seeing this and I'm not really sure how I feel about it. I will say that it took me a while at appreciate MJ1 and CF is still my favorite movie. I thought it had some strong moments, but I do feel there was a pacing issue, like I was jumping from scene to scene. The emotional notes were very well done, Katniss in general, Katniss and Peeta, Katniss and Boggs and even Katniss and Johanna.

Even though I knew Finnick died, he went out like a boss!

It's been a while since I read the book but I thought Tigress had intentionally made herself look like a cat, I don't recall her being a victim of Snow in the book. Donald Sutherland was a delight and Julianne Moore played Coin just right. You could see the calculations in everything she did.

Of course I wish there was more Peeta since he was my favorite character and I wish the "stay with me " moment didn't feel so rushed. In the books it was a huge emotional moment between the two. I liked the ending but I wish Katniss had mentioned that Peeta also still had issues in her monologue to baby girl Mellark.

Also the Haymitch/Effie kiss at the end, totally a shout out to the shippers.

Okay so after typing all that overall I would say I enjoyed it.

Edited November 21, 2015 by bluvelvet

[truthaboutluv]

It's too bad Hoffman didn't get to film his final scene with Katniss, but I thought using Haymitch instead was a decent substitute.

 

 

It's weird, even though consciously I know he passed away, I still sort of forgot while watching the film and so when Haymitch started reading the letter that I knew were Plutarch's lines, my first thought was, "why did they do that scene that way?" And then immediately it was, "oh right, that must have been one of the two scenes Philip still had to film when he passed. 

 

Overall I liked it but I agree with the above comment that it was odd that the film seemed at times simultaneously too slow and too rushed. I thought some of the emotional scenes could have had a bit more weight. I agree about the "stay with me" scene, even though it was still pretty good and yeah Josh really nailed hijacked Peeta (I also thought the ending sequence of him coming home, them healing together with Haymitch and her going to him in his bed was great. Jennifer nailed the look of complete love when Katniss was watching Peeta stare at the rain).

 

I also thought there could have been more of a reaction to Finnick's death, although I guess they were in survival mode and "we have to keep moving, we have to keep moving." And to be fair Katniss did have a mini-breakdown when they got to Tigress. And yeah, Finnick went out like a total bad ass. 

 

Also, I love Peeta but I have to say, seeing it on screen, I did kind of laugh at the fact that Peeta somehow survives all this - dude was totally batshit, hand-cuffed the whole time while they were running from all kinds of stuff and hell in the book he also had an artificial leg and yet somehow he survives all that. My biggest disappointment though (and to be clear it's not that I hated it but just wanted more) was Prim. It just felt so quick.

 

I wished they had built up Katniss seeing her and walking towards her and made it a little longer. Kind of like how long they dragged out the lizard mutts showing up. That took like 5 minutes of tension before they showed up. But Katniss saw Prim, called her and then a second later the bomb went off. I'm no director but if it were me, I would have shown a flashback of Katniss volunteering for Prim for the Games while she walked towards her, right before the bomb went off. 

 

But that said, I did enjoy the movie. I can definitely see why Catching Fire will probably always be most people's favorite from the whole franchise though. Because that one introduced so many new cool characters like Finnick and Johanna, the rebellion was just starting up and picking up speed and the action in the Games never stopped because as Johanna herself said in the book, they were really going through those victors like speed. It was one threat after another and there was barely a moment to catch your breath. So I can definitely see why some loved it so much and why Mockingjay was a disappointment to some coming off that which is pretty much the same reaction some had to the books when they were released. 

 

But again in all, I enjoyed it and as others said, it was a more than satisfying end to the series. And I applaud all the actors (yeah, yeah even Hemsworth I guess) and director and everyone on a pretty good adaptation of the franchise. It wasn't perfect but adaptations rarely ever are. Jennifer Lawrence more than delivered as Katniss and did an amazing job showing who Katniss was. There was never a time I didn't believe her and what she was doing.

 

Donald Sutherland's Snow was just perfection. Those eyes, dude had the cold, evil thing down perfectly. And Elizabeth Banks, making Effie such a scene stealing character that they kept her in longer in the movies than she actually was in the books and of course Woody and Josh who while the writing may not have always been there, did great with what he was given, etc. So a great franchise that I'm sure I'll get the box set when it's released. 

 

It's been a while since I read the book but I thought Tigress had intentionally made herself look like a cat, I don't recall her being a victim of Snow in the book.

 

 

She did intentionally make herself look like a cat and I'm not sure the movie was suggesting Snow did it to her but more that once she looked like a freak and wasn't pretty enough, she was expendable like everyone else to Snow. I guess maybe the delivery was kind of confusing. Because in the book she does say she was rejected when she was no longer pretty enough and Katniss feels sorry for her that she willingly did this to herself, wanting so much to be pretty and special and instead she turned herself into a freak who was later rejected by the same people she wanted to impress. 

Edited November 21, 2015 by truthaboutluv

[absnow54]

Also, I love Peeta but I have to say, seeing it on screen, I did kind of laugh at the fact that Peeta somehow survives - dude was totally batshit, hand-cuffed the whole time while they running from all kinds of stuff and hell in the book he also had an artificial leg and yet somehow he survives all that

I know. I love that Squad 451 was made up of a bunch of combat experts, yet the only people to survive were a bunch of untrained kids and a camera crew. Although I have to say, Peeta taking on the lizard mutts completely unarmed really put the whole "he's so whimpy" argument to rest. Sadly, Katniss, Finnick, and Peeta were truly in their elements during that scene because of their past experience in the Arena. My friends were skeptical about how seamlessly Katniss and Peeta seemed to work together during the hand to hand combat, but then we started to recall them fighting Cato and then the monkey mutts, it's not like this was their first time in the ring.

[SeanC]

One thing from the book that I missed was the extended Katniss/Johanna training sequences, but I understand why they cut that.  It's too bad, in that Johanna as a result is little more than a cameo in the Mockingjay films, but the movie was busy enough without spending a lot of time just to establish why Johanna isn't going into battle.

[bluvelvet]

Oh yes the mutts, it took a long time for them to show up and I was tense the entire time. Heck I may have even held my breath. Those things were creepy and scary.

[benteen]

I was disappointed we never got to hear about Haymitch's Hunger Games and the consequences of it.

 

I didn't feel any sadness for Prim's death because it was indeed rushed without any kind of a build-up.  It's so quick and abrupt and the CGI explosion just covered up everything.  Agreed a brief flashback would have worked there.  Then they barely have Katniss acknowledge it until much later.

 

Sutherland absolutely rocked it as Snow.  80 years old and he truly brought it as a very memorable villain.  I did like when he got mobbed at the end and if I'm not mistaken, Katniss seemed to smile at that.

Edited November 21, 2015 by benteen

[Raja]

The series was like a long running but not historic TV series. The first just good enough to get more made the middle years being okay to pretty good and the last proving they stayed on too long. It might be okay and not the worst but a definite drop off. Although Divergent seems to have beaten the odds along with others with series in mind as they trot out bad, badder...but still have to make it to the four including the episode III part 2 movies.

 

As for the Hunger Games I and a few others audibly groaned at the post war political maneuverings which seemed to prove the source material was aimed at children but at least Haymitch spoke up for us  

[Browncoat]

I didn't have much immediate reaction to Prim's death -- partly, I think because I was expecting it -- but when Katniss was yelling at Buttercup and lost it, so did I.  Jennifer killed that scene.

 

Donald Sutherland was perfectly cast as Snow.  His small smile after Katniss killed Coin was priceless.

[shipmate]

I thought one of the most emotional moments was Katniss' emotional outburst at Prim's cat.  That was one moment I actually choked up some.

[topanga]

I saw it today and enjoyed it. I agree with what a lot of others have said, that there was some great, tension-filled action interspersed with too-slow scenes. I agree that the tension leading up to the reveal of the underground mutts was great, but the entire underground section could have been trimmed down, IMO.

 

And I wish more time could have been spend on Prim's death.

 

I did like the ending. But where Peeta and Katniss the only people living in District 12? With no food unless Katniss Hunts, no electricity, running water, etc? It seems like a lonely and tough existence. Unless they want it that way.

 

 

As for the Hunger Games I and a few others audibly groaned at the post war political maneuverings which seemed to prove the source material was aimed at children but at least Haymitch spoke up for us

I wish people wouldn't get so angry or disappointed about some of the common YA tropes (like the love triangle, or the heroine being a "special flower" plucked out of obscurity). The filmmakers did a great job of making the series appealing for adults, but it was also true to the source material. This was a YA series, so common YA themes will always be there.

[truthaboutluv]

I did like the ending. But where Peeta and Katniss the only people living in District 12? With no food unless Katniss Hunts, no electricity, running water, etc? It seems like a lonely and tough existence. Unless they want it that way.

 

 

They didn't specify it in the film but in the book it does say that many of surviving District 12 residents did come back to try and rebuild the district because as bad as it was, it was still home to them. I think Katniss and Peeta did have things like electricity and running water since they lived in their Victor's Village homes. Also, the books mention that it took 15 years for Katniss to agree to have children so I imagine during that time things changed for the districts since the country was no longer the cruel dictatorship with only the Capitol having a good life. 

[Rick Kitchen]

I thought one of the most emotional moments was Katniss' emotional outburst at Prim's cat.  That was one moment I actually choked up some.

 

I was horrified at that scene.  I was so afraid for that poor cat.

 

This was my second favorite film of the series, after the original.  Very emotional.  And Josh did great, his acting was the best of the movie.

[Guest]

I thought one of the most emotional moments was Katniss' emotional outburst at Prim's cat. That was one moment I actually choked up some.

That was the only moment I cried. I traded up a little at Finnick died, but none of it was unexpected (read the book three or four times). But the cat scene got me.

It was what I expected- tense, depressing, but well done. :)

[JessePinkman]

I didn't like this or the last one at all and I loved the books.

They've known since the first movie that Prim dies so why did they do absolutely nothing to make us care about her? She had maybe 10 lines across 4 movies. I cared more about poor Rue and she died 3 movies ago. The audience I was with had a nonplussed reaction to Prim dying, I really don't think it was handled well at all.

And how did the Capitol have video of that town square getting covered in oil and the storm troopers (that's what I'm gonna call them) blowing up that building but NO video or Katniss and krew running away? That made no sense. And they just hid in some random building? I mean okay.

Also why does everyone in the Capitol dress like a pimp from blaxploitation movie?

The whole thing just dragged. I know they were going for sparse and profound or whatever but it just felt lethargic.

[absnow54]

And how did the Capitol have video of that town square getting covered in oil and the storm troopers (that's what I'm gonna call them) blowing up that building but NO video or Katniss and krew running away? That made no sense. And they just hid in some random building? I mean okay.

I agree with you that it's kind of ridiculous, but the Capitol's footage of that plaza was from before it was completely flushed out by the oil. Gale mentions that the cameras are covered before they move to the next building, so the Capitol doesn't see them running away. The footage of the Peacekeeper's bombing them is from a Peacekeeper's dash cam.

[Guest]

I didn't like this or the last one at all and I loved the books.

And how did the Capitol have video of that town square getting covered in oil and the storm troopers (that's what I'm gonna call them) blowing up that building but NO video or Katniss and krew running away? That made no sense. And they just hid in some random building? .

I assumed the cameras were destroyed by the oil, but they sent a camera crew with the peace keepers to film "Katniss' death."

[JessePinkman]

I agree with you that it's kind of ridiculous, but the Capitol's footage of that plaza was from before it was completely flushed out by the oil. Gale mentions that the cameras are covered before they move to the next building, so the Capitol doesn't see them running away. The footage of the Peacekeeper's bombing them is from a Peacekeeper's dash cam.

Oh ok that makes sense, and I do recall Gale saying that.

[topanga]

I've only read the book once, and that was a few years ago. 

 

How true was the book to the source material when it came to things like Coin asking the tributes to vote on a new Hunger Games and the scene with the 2 assassinations? Both were beautifully-shot scenes, especially the scene in the Capital courtyard. 

[BatmanBeatles]

 

How true was the book to the source material when it came to things like Coin asking the tributes to vote on a new Hunger Games and the scene with the 2 assassinations?

That happened in the book.

[Guest]

I've only read the book once, and that was a few years ago.

How true was the book to the source material when it came to things like Coin asking the tributes to vote on a new Hunger Games and the scene with the 2 assassinations? Both were beautifully-shot scenes, especially the scene in the Capital courtyard.

I'd say spot- on.

Overall, I thought the movie was well done but suffered from lack of star power. Because of how they split the books, there was little of some of the favorite characters outside of Katniss, Peeta, and Gale. I think Haymitch had about 10 lines. Again, true to source material, but he'd had a bigger part in the first half of the book.

[bluvelvet]

So I noticed that they didn't age up Peeta and Katniss at the end, in the book it took 15 years for them to have kids and they also did a switcharoo on the children. That being said, loved the scene with Peeta and his son in the meadow with a dandelion, and that part where he jumped in his arms just melted my heart. That was Jennifer's nephew from what I understand.

Also Katniss, while no visible aging was seen Jennifer sold me a Katniss that had lived through a horror and came out on the other side. She had a maturity about her of a woman (not a girl) who had lived, loved and lost but somehow survived and is happy and content.

[absnow54]

Yeah, it didn't seem like 15 years had passed, but I think they aged them a little. Peeta was shot from so far away, but the wig they chose seemed like their way of aging him. And I thought Katniss's hair and dress made her look older too. It wasn't like Harry Potter where 20 year old actors were playing parents of 11 year olds, Katniss's remarks about her lists getting "tedious after all these years" was enough to show that some amount of time had passed. 

 

And both of the kids in the epilogue were played by Jennifer Lawrence's nephews. The infant had her eyes, which was really sweet, and the little boy hurling himself at Josh/Peeta because he wasn't paying attention to him was the cutest freaking thing.

[benteen]

Another small character that I thought they did a good job with was Commander Paylor.

[methodwriter85]

Another small character that I thought they did a good job with was Commander Paylor.

 

She was originally going to be played by Lily Rabe, but I thought the actress who replaced her did a good job.

[revbfc]

One thing that I kept thinking about through all the movies was how the rest of the world related to Panem. There must be other countries still, so having Snow deal with diplomats in the Capitol would have been interesting to me. I get why they didn't. It's not about the rest of the world, it's about Panem. Also (from what I have been told) such stuff wasn't in the books. Still, the question of what the rest of the world was up to at the time of THG nags at me.

[NoWillToResist]

I did like the ending. But where Peeta and Katniss the only people living in District 12? With no food unless Katniss Hunts, no electricity, running water, etc? It seems like a lonely and tough existence. Unless they want it that way.

 

I think they would have been happy to be the only people there. I suspect that after the horrors they'd seen and been a part of, 'retiring' to a rural area and being left the hell alone would have been high on their list of wants.

 

I didn't like this or the last one at all and I loved the books.

They've known since the first movie that Prim dies so why did they do absolutely nothing to make us care about her? She had maybe 10 lines across 4 movies. I cared more about poor Rue and she died 3 movies ago. The audience I was with had a nonplussed reaction to Prim dying, I really don't think it was handled well at all.

 

It's funny; I had heard about the triangle resolution and Prim's death before I really knew anything about the books/movies. I made the connection only when I had heard buzz about these movies being made. I'm not sure how much of that really affected my impression of the movies, but...well...I just didn't care at all. About any of them, really. This series did absolutely NOTHING for me. 

 

I lost count of the number of times I rolled my eyes in this one when the love triangle was brought to the forefront. Like, y'all could be dead in a minute, so who the fuck needs to talk about who Katniss will fucking deign to bestow her heart upon? Bah. I just felt that any momentum ground to a halt whenever that shit got trotted out. Every time Katniss blubbered on about Peeta or macked on Gale, I groaned. Was I supposed to care about this shit in the midst of all this chaos?

 

And Prim. What a pointless waste of attempted emotional manipulation. Girl had no screen time, so I'm supposed to care that she's dead? Literally hundreds and thousands of people have died in this war, but I'm supposed to be gutted by the loss of one girl? Sorry, but no. Maybe if the movies had spent any time developing her, I might have felt something when she died but they didn't so I didn't. And by the time Katniss broke down, I was immune to Jennifer Lawrence's tears; I'd seen them too much.

 

Was there supposed to be any point to the near-loss of her voice at the beginning of the film? I mean, in practically the next scene, she's able to yell and speechify, just fine, so couldn't that whole bullshit have been cut?

 

After much soul searching and imdb research, I fear I have come to an odd conclusion: Jennifer Lawrence does nothing for me. I have not liked a single one of her movies or her portrayal of any character. I am glad this movie series is done.

[SeanC]

One thing that I kept thinking about through all the movies was how the rest of the world related to Panem. There must be other countries still, so having Snow deal with diplomats in the Capitol would have been interesting to me. I get why they didn't. It's not about the rest of the world, it's about Panem. Also (from what I have been told) such stuff wasn't in the books. Still, the question of what the rest of the world was up to at the time of THG nags at me.

The status of the rest of the world isn't addressed in the books at all; by implication, there isn't anything known to be out there, since the world is vaguely post-apocalyptic.

Was there supposed to be any point to the near-loss of her voice at the beginning of the film? I mean, in practically the next scene, she's able to yell and speechify, just fine, so couldn't that whole bullshit have been cut?

The point is to show Katniss recovering from the assault that almost killed her. Edited November 23, 2015 by SeanC

[absnow54]

I lost count of the number of times I rolled my eyes in this one when the love triangle was brought to the forefront. Like, y'all could be dead in a minute, so who the fuck needs to talk about who Katniss will fucking deign to bestow her heart upon? Bah. I just felt that any momentum ground to a halt whenever that shit got trotted out. Every time Katniss blubbered on about Peeta or macked on Gale, I groaned. Was I supposed to care about this shit in the midst of all this chaos?

The best was when they were hiding in the basement after half their squad had died, and Gale and Peeta had a slumber party chat over who they thought Katniss would pick. At least Peeta sounded uncomfortable to be talking about it, but Gale was all "Hopefully one of us will die to resolve this love triangle, am I right?" So awkward.

[topanga]

I did like that there at least 2 (maybe 3) Game of Throne actors in this installment: Gwendoline Christie and Natalie Dormer, and I thought Jacob Anderson was one of the members of Katniss's battalion (with Boggs, Jackson, the Leeg sisters, etc), but I don't see his name in the cast list on IMDB, and I can't find confirmation anywhere on the web. So there was someone in the group who looked like Jacob Anderson 

[NoWillToResist]

The best was when they were hiding in the basement after half their squad had died, and Gale and Peeta had a slumber party chat over who they thought Katniss would pick. At least Peeta sounded uncomfortable to be talking about it, but Gale was all "Hopefully one of us will die to resolve this love triangle, am I right?" So awkward.

 

Heh. What was weird though was that I thought the triangle had basically been resolved in the last one (unless I'm mixing the two Mockingjay movies up). I thought Gale had basically acknowledged that she loved Peeta and that she only showed Gale affection (i.e. kisses) when Gale is sad/needy. Hardly a ringing endorsement for their relationship and I thought he'd basically bowed out. So, going into this film, I thought I'd be spared the waffling between the two guys. But then Kat kisses Gale again and Gale was all "Peeta has to get better or else I'll never have a shot because you won't leave him if he's not all better" and I was all "what in the hell, Gale?"

 

Ugh. Their differing political views were a relief. Something needed to cause an irreparable rift and I didn't give a flying fuck what it would be. I just needed the see saw to be over. What's so disappointing is that, on paper, I find the triangle compelling: Gale and Kat spend tons of time together hunting etc. There's a sense that they're on the cusp of something...and then the Hunger Games happen and she and Peeta have this kind of 'fellow soldier/been through some shit' bond that Gale can't hope to compete with. Kat is stuck between pre-Hunger Games 'love' and post-Hunger Games love. She's changed and which guy meets her emotional needs now? Cue drama.

 

Except somehow, the compelling framework just...wasn't the slightest bit compelling on screen (to me). I felt that she was half cheating on Peeta and stringing Gale along as a back up or something. It just...pissed me off.

Edited November 23, 2015 by NoWillToResist

[scarynikki12]

Collins originally didn't have a love triangle in the books.  Her publisher told her to add one, so she did the bare minimum on purpose (my spec), which is why we have Gale saying stuff about how he had no shot with Katniss if Peeta didn't get better while in the middle of a war. 

 

I enjoyed this movie and the series but I do agree that more time should have been devoted to Prim and Katniss' relationship with her.  Then, not only would her death make more of an impact, but Katniss ending her friendship with Gale would as well.  Gale helped design the bombs that killed Prim and those around her and, while Katniss knows he didn't intend for them to be used like that and wasn't involved in the plans for that particular attack on the Capitol, she's now unable to look at him without thinking of Prim and how she died.  And Gale knows and accepts it. 

 

I wish there had been a way to incorporate everything Katniss went through after Prim died but before she returned to 12, because she went through a ton of physical and emotional fallout from that bomb ending the war.  I like that they kept in her breakdown when she sees Buttercup but there was so much more that demonstrated how badly screwed up Prim's death had left her. 

 

I also enjoyed seeing Patina Miller as Paylor and wish we'd had more scenes with her.  Ah well, there's always Broadway.

[bluvelvet]

Yeah in the books there was trial held so Katniss spent some time in the Capitol after she shot Coin. Even when she went home, she was a mess for some time.

In the books the "triangle" really was secondary and bare bones as one poster said. In the movies it's played up a lot more because you know... Hollywood.

[Demented Daisy]

I'm still annoyed that we don't know what happened to Joanna.  I was hoping the movie would clear that up, since the book didn't.

[funkopop]

If anyone hadn't read the books that long ass dizzying hug Katniss gives Prim at the wedding telegraphed her death.

 

I did like the adaptation and the only change I miss was that they literally threw Katniss back into the thick of things.  I wanted to see her at least train a little bit.

Edited November 23, 2015 by funkopop

[NoWillToResist]

If anyone hadn't read the books that long ass dizzying hug Katniss gives Prim at the wedding telegraphed her death.

 

 

I had to close my eyes after five seconds; the spinning went on way too long for me.

 

It's funny because, like I said, I knew that Prim was going to die before I even saw the first movie (I've never read the books). And so I found myself really surprised at the lack of attention that Prim was given. I mean, knowing that the little sister Kat volunteered as tribute for ended up dying anyway, I was like 'wow that will suck for Katniss on multiple levels' but I didn't FEEL it at all. As each movie passed, I kept wondering when we'd see more of the sisterly bond because, since Prim was toast, wouldn't the films want max emotional impact from that? But instead, I got lots of teh love triangle with an occasional cameo from Prim.

 

Also, after the first Mockingjay movie, when Prim nearly got herself and Gale killed in the District 13 attack because she had to go back for her fucking cat, I was ready for her to die anyway. Yeah, yeah, I'm supposed to be touched at her generous heart and innocence or whatever, but Gale and Katniss could have died because she wanted her kitty cat. Blah. On that note, was it ever explained why Gale was with her? I thought he'd at least get a thank you from Katniss but I don't recall her even acknowledging that he escorted Prim to safety.

 

And on a completely separate note: congratulations to Finnick (or whatever the dude's name was) who was apparently so virile (or whose timing was so spot on) that one night with the wife was enough to knock her up...

Edited November 23, 2015 by NoWillToResist

[Guest]

The best was when they were hiding in the basement after half their squad had died, and Gale and Peeta had a slumber party chat over who they thought Katniss would pick. At least Peeta sounded uncomfortable to be talking about it, but Gale was all "Hopefully one of us will die to resolve this love triangle, am I right?" So awkward.

That was one of the worst scenes of the series. Almost as bad as Gale's final scenes where I literally burst out laughing at his bad acting.

 

And Prim. What a pointless waste of attempted emotional manipulation. Girl had no screen time, so I'm supposed to care that she's dead? Literally hundreds and thousands of people have died in this war, but I'm supposed to be gutted by the loss of one girl? Sorry, but no. Maybe if the movies had spent any time developing her, I might have felt something when she died but they didn't so I didn't. And by the time Katniss broke down, I was immune to Jennifer Lawrence's tears; I'd seen them too much.

 

In the books where there is more character development and more about Katniss' feeling toward Prim, it feels like a much bigger loss.  The whole thing started because of Katniss' actions to protect Prim, and then she loses her anyway.  There's also scenes in the book when you realize Katniss has been underestimating Prim, etc.  The movie didn't develop their relationship well at all, in my opinion.

[truthaboutluv]

The Gale and Peeta scene was ridiculous and I loved how in the book, Katniss gets annoyed at both of them and basically is irritated that they just assume there is some decision to be made, that she even still wanted either of them. And I will say that the scene was mostly annoying on Gale's part because I agree with someone else that Peeta seemed a bit uncomfortable and was mostly just responding to Gale, which makes sense because Peeta was busy still trying to figure out what was real and not and trying not to be batshit crazy.

 

I especially rolled my eyes VERY hard when Gale said he should have volunteered in Peeta's place because either way it's insulting. He would only do so because he believed that Katniss needed him there to protect her but let's be really honest, he knows he lost her to Peeta the second they went into the Games and had that shared experience that he would never fully understand. And it's like really dude - the Games fucked all these people up A LOT but let's reduce it to "that's what made me lose her to Peeta so I should have volunteered in his place". Ugh...

[Proclone]

I saw MockingJay part 2 last night.  Overall I thought it was a good wrap up to the series, though I agree that there was some pacing issues mostly caused by splinting the book.  I'm not sure how it could have been solved though.  But I did like that they stayed true to the books rather bleak ending.  The books weren't ever about a girl becoming a hero, they were about a girl who inadvertently got caught up in something much bigger than herself and was used by everyone for their own purposes.  The story is ultimately a shaggy dog story.  A girl risks her life to save her sister, but in the end not only can't she save her sister, it is the revolution she sparked that kills the sister.

 

I always gave the book MockingJay credit for showing the reality that no one really wins in a war even if it is for a noble cause, and that even the "good" guys can do some pretty heinous things.  I give the movie credit for staying true to that.

 

That being said, I do wish they had done a little bit more with Prim's character to make her death have more impact.  A conversation between her and Katniss probably would have served that better that they overly long hug that telegraphed her death.  Though to be fair, even in the books I wasn't really upset about Prim's death because I particularly cared about her as a character but rather because I cared about Katniss and Katniss loved Prim.  Jennifer Lawrence did a good job with the scene with Buttercup though.  I do disagree with those that would have added a flash back or something to Prim's death.  I kind of liked that her death was quick and sudden.  There are no slow motion walks and flash backs in a war zone, people are there one moment and gone the next.  I did like that Katniss wound up after the explosion being literally "The Girl on Fire."  It had a eerie symmetry with first movie, and sort of highlighted that the fire Katniss started wound up burning her in the end.

 

I'm not typically a YA reader but The Hunger Game novels rank up there on my favorite series list.  I'm very glad the movies as whole did them justice.  I'm glad (especially with this movie) that they didn't really try to make the themes of the books more Hollywood friendly.  They didn't sugarcoat how deeply Katniss and everyone else who was involved in the games and the revolution was screwed up by the things they saw and/or did.  I'm really glad Jennifer Lawrence played Katniss, because in the hand of a less talented actress she could have become a really unlikable character especially since we aren't privy to her internal thoughts like we are in the books.

[jah1986]

I saw it with my mom over the weekend and came away underwhelmed.  It was good, but I have previously read the books so I knew what to expect but my mom hasn't read the books and she didn't say one thing, good or bad about the movie which is unusual for her. I will say seeing the Mutts on-screen freaked me out and Finnick died like a boss.  I was over Gale in the first movie so nothing changed here. I just felt the movie...went on too long? I'm not sure, I know the book had a Prologue/Epilogue (?) I forget which is which that I enjoyed but in the movie it just seemed to go on forever and didn't seem to fit the rest of the movie. Maybe this is the problems with pacing that others have mentioned.  I won't pay money to see it again in theaters but do look forward to seeing again in the comfort of my own home.

 

I was also surprised but the lack of a large crowd at my theater.

[Guest]

I will say seeing the Mutts on-screen freaked me out and Finnick died like a boss.

Those mutts were the stuff of nightmares.

[absnow54]

That being said, I do wish they had done a little bit more with Prim's character to make her death have more impact.  A conversation between her and Katniss probably would have served that better that they overly long hug that telegraphed her death.

Unfortunately all of Katniss and Prim's scenes were in Part 1. Even in the books though, once Katniss volunteers and wins the Games, Prim becomes an afterthought, because she's safe, and with Peeta constantly in harms way, Katniss is mostly focused on protecting him.

 

I'm in the same boat as you. I couldn't care less about Prim as a character, because she's more like a plot device than a person, but I care about Katniss. The same could be said about Finnick and Annie. Annie is barely a character, but I know that Finnick loved her, and therefore rooted for them to be reunited. 

 

In the books the "triangle" really was secondary and bare bones as one poster said. In the movies it's played up a lot more because you know... Hollywood.

I don't know, I thought the triangle was really bad in Mockingjay. At least they cut the scene in the cafeteria where Peeta calls Katniss and Gale out for kind of sort of being together, and Johanna teases them for their will they/won't they routine before Peeta threatens to pursue Annie. That scene made me cringe worse than Peeta and Gale's basement chat.

[revbfc]

I heard that Katnis gets half her face burned in the book. If so, why didn't the movie do this? I'm sure JL would have been OK with some burn make up, and I don't think the audience would have been angry about it either.

[topanga]

 

Unfortunately all of Katniss and Prim's scenes were in Part 1. Even in the books though, once Katniss volunteers and wins the Games, Prim becomes an afterthought, because she's safe, and with Peeta constantly in harms way, Katniss is mostly focused on protecting him.

The books did a much better job (as books often do) of establishing Katniss and Prim's relationship--but that was done in the first book, even before the Reaping and the Games themselves. I learned within the first 5 pages how much Katniss loved her sister and how much it was her duty to protect her. But the book was in 1st person, so there was lots of internal monologue. Sometimes it's hard to translate the telling of a relationship to the showing of that relationship on-screen. 

 

Not to be mean to a child, but perhaps it was the actress playing Prim. I found myself not feeling any emotions about her. Her line delivery was very flat throughout the films. In fact, I felt more for the little girl in the yellow dress who recognized Katniss and almost outed her. Of course I didn't know anything about her, but her face was so expressive that I was drawn to her. 

[Guest]

I heard that Katnis gets half her face burned in the book. If so, why didn't the movie do this? I'm sure JL would have been OK with some burn make up, and I don't think the audience would have been angry about it either.

They cut out a lot at the very end to wrap it up, I think. I think it's because in the book, it was mainly just Katniss is completely out of it but she later hears XYZ went on behind the scenes. Both her injuries (though I don't remember it being that bad of a burn but I would need to re-read) as well as the trial for her shooting President Coin. In the movie it seemed like they just put her in a separate room for a few hours.

I did wonder if originally they were going to have Plutarch talk to her before she left and the letter ended up being because of Hoffman's death. I liked that it gave her and Haymitch another scene together.

[scarynikki12]

Her injuries were pretty bad. The bomb that kills Prim sets her (Katniss) on fire and she loses most of her hair and needs new skin made for her back. She's out of it for most of her recovery but is told what happened so the scene plays differently than if she was in the throes of the pain and physical trauma.

[bluvelvet]

Unfortunately all of Katniss and Prim's scenes were in Part 1. Even in the books though, once Katniss volunteers and wins the Games, Prim becomes an afterthought, because she's safe, and with Peeta constantly in harms way, Katniss is mostly focused on protecting him.

 

In the books Katniss focus moves away from Prim and came to settle on keeping Peeta alive. She notices Prim throughout the series in the sense that her sister is growing up and becoming an intelligent woman but since the reaping I don't think she really thinks of Prim in terms of needing her protection.  In the beginning of MJ1 book, Katniss's internal monologue essentially tells us that she wants to leave and disappear, the only thing keeping her in district 13 was the fact that she didn't know if Peeta was alive or dead. If Peeta was dead, she would have left Prim and her mother and gone off even though they both technically could be in danger from Snow.  I also wasn't really attached to Prim, but I cared because of how her death affected Katniss.

 

Her injuries were pretty bad. The bomb that kills Prim sets her (Katniss) on fire and she loses most of her hair and needs new skin made for her back. She's out of it for most of her recovery but is told what happened so the scene plays differently than if she was in the throes of the pain and physical trauma.

 

One things the movies didn't do was show the injuries that Peeta and Katniss obtained over the course of the series, starting when they had Peeta keep his leg in Hunger Games. I think by the end of the war they both had significant scars..

[methodwriter85]

Not to be mean to a child, but perhaps it was the actress playing Prim. I found myself not feeling any emotions about her. Her line delivery was very flat throughout the films. In fact, I felt more for the little girl in the yellow dress who recognized Katniss and almost outed her. Of course I didn't know anything about her, but her face was so expressive that I was drawn to her. 

 

I do think it might be the actress. I mean, Rue really only got about three scenes(only 2 of which had real lines), and she made a much bigger impact to me because Amandla had such great, expressive eyes. Willow is pretty stiff. I'm wondering if that's why they cut scenes of Prim and Gale hunting in the first one.

Edited November 24, 2015 by methodwriter85

[Spartan Girl]

I just got back from it. I don't know if it was just a cosmic coincidence that it was released right when the Paris attacks and all the fallout concerning Syrian refugees happened, but so much of the plot couldn't help but make think of what was going on. Especially the issue of civilian casualties. God, the bombing of those Capitol kids was so brutal to watch.

Jennifer Lawrence and Donald Sutherland were the MVPs hands down. I waited years for the "Oh my dear Miss Everdeen, I thought we agreed not to lie to each other" line and Sutherland NAILED it. Also loved that last laugh.

And that Katniss' breakdown with the cat...screw Team Gale and Team Peeta, I'm Team Buttercup! LOL.

Edited November 25, 2015 by Spartan Girl