Mockingjay Part 2: Ends in a Glorious Blaze

As the final chapter of the movie adaptation of Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games series comes to a close; I can't help but feel as if the end of an era has come to pass-and ladies and gentlemen, it does not disappoint. 

From someone who has read the books, Mockingjay Part 2 was a well adapted movie. If you can re-watch Part 1 (or even yet the entire series), you really should. It will definitely help get your head "back in the game" (pun intended).  

The movie opens with an injured Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) as she comes to terms with what the Capitol has done with Peeta (Josh Hutcherson). The rebel forces are making their move towards the Capitol and Katniss finds herself in the heart of the battle as she dangerously inches her way to killing the evil that is President Snow (Donald Sutherland). 

Director Francis Lawerence pushes the envelope in the last movie as disturbing images and questions on morality are presented to the audience. Mockingjay Part 2 has become more than the Young Adult Dystopian, its predecessors initially were. It has become a reality check on the truth & cruelty of war. As I was watching the movie I was rather emotional, with my thoughts on the recent events in our world, which has left so many innocent lives lost and the seeds of hatred sown. 

There were so many lines in the film that could fit in the context of the events in the news, I can't help get goosebumps. I came to the realization that in war, it doesn't matter whether it is in history books or in non-fiction books, in war, we all loose something, even the 'victors'.  

There are a lot of things to reflect on in the themes of the movie, but it doesn't lack in the high-octane action and suspense (which the movies are well known for) as well. If you think that the challenges in the arena were disturbing-Katniss et al face even more frightening forces. 

I love that the local distributors of the film (Pioneer /Viewer's Choice Philippines) chose to align early promotions of the movie with our upcoming National Elections. I hope that the Political angles of the film would resonate to the viewers; especially to the youth, that they may become more active and more involved with political concerns, as well as take their social responsibility to heart.

Mockingjay Part 2 takes a closer look at the political themes of the story, it makes the audiences think and as I've written on the blog before, I appreciate movies  like that.  

Early Promotions from Viewer's Choice Philippines aligning Mockingjay Part 2 with the upcoming National Elections. 

Looking back as to what I've written so far, I feel as if I've written an essay for class but I can't help but have these thoughts and feelings. I just hope that somehow the viewers would not only see the movie as a form of entertainment but a film with relevant themes, resounding during these trying times.    

Now, dear reader if you will oblige me to put on my 'movie critic hat' and continue I will be more than grateful. 

9 out of 10 stars - Mockingjay Part 2 is a powerful culmination to the franchise. Sitting with the audience and watching the film, its like everyone already knew the characters, it's like they were all old friends and just catching up. Well, if you've read the books and seen the films, you would in a way be old friends with these characters. You could hear the audience laugh and giggle, whenever the most awkward love triangle in history (Katniss, Peeta and Gale) would get in close proximity. 

Of course we all know that Philip Seymour Hoffman passed away without finishing all of his scenes for Mockingjay Part 2. My fellow movie reviewer friend and I were talking to each other, trying to make out scenes were images of the late actor were just super-imposed. Will definitely miss this talented actor :( 

I have to say that I was a little disappointed that Game Of Thrones' Gwendoline Christie just had a small part and had little screen time in the film. Although, I enjoyed seeing her tower over everyone else in the room :P   

For a franchise that I religiously followed, reading one book after the next and seeing one movie after the other, eagerly anticipating for the next, I can't believe that it has come to an end, it's bittersweet really but my only consolation is that it was ended really well, everything comes full circle and as a fan, you can't really ask for anything else. 

Mockingjay Part 2 is now showing in cinemas and is distributed by Pioneer Films.  

Jennifer Lawrence is 'The Girl on Fire' for the last time in Mockingjay Part II

It seems that it was just a few years ago when our humble book-club of sorts in the office was going crazy over 'The Hunger Games' series. I enjoyed the Young Adult Dystopian books by Suzanne Collins, which has then soared to become a force to be reckoned with in the box office. 

The first three instalments of the global blockbuster Hunger Games franchise have grossed more than $2.2 billion at the worldwide box office and counting.  The last two installments of The Hunger Games franchise (Catching Fire and Mockingjay – Part 1) have become the highest-grossing releases at the domestic box office each of the past two years, the first time ever for back-to-back sequels. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire also holds the record as the 10th highest-grossing domestic release of all time.

The franchise has also helped cement it's lead actress Jennifer Lawrence to Hollywood royalty and who at 25 is an award winning actress and is the highest paid action-actress of 2015. 

The movies have also attracted veteran actors and actresses such as Donald Sutherland, Julian Moore and the late Philip Seymour-Hoffman to be part of the phenomenon. 

Early reviews for the last installment of the franchise have been positive, claiming it to be "the best one yet" and as someone who has read the books I know thta there is a lot of juicy material for them to work with. 

Says director Francis Lawrence: “In this film, Katniss takes the action back into her own hands and goes after Snow personally. The movie really opens up as we go deep into the streets of the Capitol, coming full circle from Katniss’s journey there in the first film. There’s more action, more scope, more emotion and most of all, this film brings the story to its moving conclusion.”

              “This is the chapter when Katniss really starts to believe in the impact that she can have,” Lawrence comments. “She’s always been so reluctant and has always found herself in situations where all she can do is try to survive, but now she’s turning the tables. I was excited for her to finally take her place as a leader. At the end of Mockingjay – Part 1, she was kind of numb, and genuinely unsure if she wanted to go on. In Mockingjay – Part 2 she starts seeing the bigger picture. She’s looking beyond her own personal losses and gains to focus on making a better future.”

              Now, Katniss’s concerns are being channeled directly into action – taking the character for the first time into all-out combat beyond the controlled confines of an arena. Raising the stakes, Katniss’s little sister Prim, long her motivation to fight against the Capitol, is now a medic in the battle zone.

              “The action scenes in Mockingjay – Part 2 are incredible,” Jennifer says. “Some of it was difficult – shooting in wet tunnels, in and out of the water and doing fight choreography with 20 pounds of waterlogged gear – but it was totally worth it because it is going to look fantastically real for audiences.”

              It all brings Katniss to the denouement of her world-changing tale. Concluding the series is bittersweet for Jennifer Lawrence, but she is intrigued to leave Katniss at the most promising juncture of her life. “She’s started to see the beauty in humanity in this film,” Jennifer observes. “In the beginning she had a short view of the way things are because of her upbringing. She did not have much hope then, and she felt alone for a lot of her life. During everything that has happened – in the Games, in District 13, in the Capitol at the end of this story – she found herself more and more connected to people.”

              Jennifer has tremendous gratitude for being granted the chance to embody Katniss. “I have loved being a part of a film that sparks some really cool conversations,” she concludes. “It’s been an incredible chapter in my life, and the way the films have resonated with people has been amazing.”

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire: Movie Review

So I'm a little disappointed in myself since my review came in later than I wanted. I usually start working on my movie reviews the minute I get home from the premiere but when I got home- my mom's home not our home, the mouse was acting up and this was already at 1:00 AM so I just decided to go to sleep and work on the review the next day - so here I am now busy typing away a movie review to a movie I really enjoyed. :) 

Just some personal thoughts before diving right in to the movie review. You can jump right in at the Movie Review below :P 

I have been going to movie premieres for some time now so I pretty much know what happens. So imagine my surprise when I saw the large number of people lined up to see The Hunger Games: Catching Fire it was unlike any other movie premiere I have ever attended and there were at least 3 cinemas having the premieres and all of them had long lines! Talk about being the anticipated movie of the year! 

The firsts didn't stop there though since another first encounter for a movie premiere was the fact that ALL phones and gadgets with cameras were collected before the movie. While I know and understand that this was all for the fight against piracy it was a pain in the ass. 

Can you imagine collecting every phone and gadget in a theater full of people? Yeah you do the math, especially in this day and age where everyone has at least one cellphone or gadget. Collecting the phones may not have been much of a problem but everyone claiming their phones after the movie all at the same time - well that's another story. 

And since I didn't have a watch I couldn't tell what time it is or update my mom and my husband how I was doing, I was with my baby brother for the movie so my mom really wanted updates. We came in the movie house around 7:00PM and left at past 11:50PM. It was an inconvenience but you know what? The movie really made up for it and all of that was worth it in the end :P

Me at around 12:00 AM with our movie premiere tickets. :P

On to the movie review! 

So for everyone's reference I actually read the books - the whole trilogy about three years ago so I pretty much had an idea of what the story was about. Now even if I have read the books and am a fan of the franchise I was not going to go 'Oh it was a great movie!' blindly since I actually did not enjoy (the first movie) - Hunger Games last year. I was really disappointed at the last part in the movie since it failed to capture the hanging by a moment, nail biter ending in the book. With that being said I can critically say that the second installment Catching Fire - was AMAZING! 

From the beginning of the movie until the end you find yourself in an emotional and political arena (pun intended) where you have to deal with the dynamic of a rebellion unfolding and of course all the emotional baggage that the characters carry. 

The Odds are never in your favor. Scene from Catching Fire. 

When The Hunger Games came out last year I had to roll my eyes so many times and bite my tongue since people thought the movie was all about a battle to the death of children (which is why it was compared a lot to Battle Royale) when in fact the whole battle to the death was just the tip of the ice burg and that the story actually deals with a more complicated political dynamic. I was glad that this was touched on in the second movie and I was really glad that they included (SPOILER ALERT) the scene in the Presidential Ball where Peeta is offered a purple elixir to drink so that he can throw up what he ate - just so he can eat some more and try everything was very important to me at least and I really felt strongly about this scene (also when I read it in the book) because as Peeta put it: "People in District 12 have nothing to eat while in the Capitol people where gorging themselves sick from eating too much food" and surprisingly this is something that we don't just read in books and watch in movies because it actually happens in real life! 

Some people have so much and too much while others have nothing at all. I was really glad that they included this scene in the movie, although it was really short it was really powerful for me and really spoke a hundred words. I hope that the people who come to watch the movie catch it also. It's really important to understand especially to get an idea of what the rebellion is all about. 

Amazing cast and amazing acting  

In case you guys didn't know Jennifer Lawrence is actually an Academy Award Winner for her role as Tiffany Maxwell in Silver Linings Playbook. She isn't just some actress known for being the lead in a well known franchise but she also has the acting chops to back it up.Which is a good thing since the character of Katniss Everdeen is very complicated as she becomes the reluctant symbol of a rebellion and is torn between the love of a long time friend and the love of a fellow tribute. Some things that people don't realize or maybe forget is that unlike the Careers who spend their lives training and wanting to be part of The Hunger Games and winning at all cost, Katniss is a great archer and hunter because she had to be, she had to learn how to hunt in order to provide food for her family. She didn't pick up the bow and arrow to learn how to make pin cushions out of other tributes but she picked it up (and became good at it) so her family can eat. There is a lot of ugly crying and ugly shouting that Katniss does throughout the movie but Jennifer Lawrence delivers it in a convincing way and that is real acting. 

Smile for the cameras. Oddly enough the victors' celebrity status and Katniss and Peeta's on-screen romance so that people would 'forget' the real problems is eerily familiar to how we follow and poke into the lives of real celebrities for our own pleasure and amusement.

Listen to Coldplay's Catching Fire Song ATLAS ~ Full version! :)

While a lot of people are excited and there is much buzz with the 'ber months' being official, what with Christmas and 13th month pay just around the corner but aside from bringing out the old Christmas tree people are also excited about Hunger Games: Catching Fire hitting cinemas on November! 

Cue in the screams and applause. 

While trailers of the upcoming movie have fans giddy with excitement another cause for good news is the upcoming soundtrack. If you remember the first movie had the hauntingly beautiful 'Safe and Sound' song from Taylor Swift ft. The Civil Wars well for Catching Fire get ready for a historical and hair rising song since Coldplay (arguably one of the most iconic bands of our generation) will be contributing a song to the movie! 

Coldplay's contribution to the Catching Fire soundtrack ~ Atlas is the first song the band has recorded for a movie soundtrack. 

COLDPLAY ~ Need I say more? 

Catching Fire director, Francis Lawrence is thrilled with Coldplay's contribution to the movie, he said: "I have great respect and admiration for Coldplay and we are thrilled with how well they have connected to the themes and ideas within the film".    

You can listen to Atlas in the video below!

Lyrics Below! 

Some saw the sun

Some saw the smoke

Some heard the gun

Some bent the bow