The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1

As an avid reader and former media student, film adaptations and the way they are interpreted from the original source fascinate me because I like to see what is different and how (dis)loyal they are to key moments which is interesting as no two people see the world the same, even if it's imaginary; sometimes I am reluctant to see an adaptation if I really enjoyed the book a lot because I fear it may ruin the book for me but I know in the back of my mind that I have to put those feelings aside as I enjoy films too much.  I loved The Hunger Games books by Suzanne Collins because I liked the idea behind it: a young woman fighting to free her country from a tyrannical dictator who kills people on a whim as well as manipulating others to do it for him through various means so to control the population.  While I didn't see the first one in cinema because I was a poor first year student, I saw the last one and this one at the cinema with my family as the dates have coincided with my birthday (almost) so I thought I would share my thoughts and feelings on the film.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 is the third film in The Hunger Games franchise, an adaptation of Suzanne Collins's trilogy of the same name, and is directed by Francis Lawrence who directed the second film as well.  As the franchise has progressed, the cast has grown and includes Jennifer Lawerence (American Hustle), Josh Hutcherson (The Kids are Alright), Liam Hemsworth (The Expendables 2), Woody Harrelson (Zombieland), Elizabeth Banks (The 40-Year-Old Virgin), Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Boat That Rocked), Sam Claflin (Snow White and the Huntsman), Jena Malone (Donnie Darko), and Donald Sutherland (Pride & Prejudice) who were in at least one of the last two films of the franchise and Julianne Moore (The Kids are Alright) and Natalie Dormer (Game of Thrones) have joined the cast.  Originally, Katniss Everdeen (Lawerence) and Peeta (Hutchinson) were taken away from their families and friends in District to compete in the 74th Hunger Games in Panem, a totalitarian nation which is divided into twelve districts and the Capitol, to fight for survival against 22 other twelve to eighteen year olds that have been chosen from the other distrcits to participate all as a punishment for a rebellion decades ago and now for the entertainment of the Capitol.  Normally, only one child is supposed to survive in the Hunger Games to win but Katniss suggests to Peeta, when they are only ones left, that rather than killing one another, they eat poisonous berries which forces the Capitol's hand.  So that they have a winner, they stop the teenagers before they eat the berries and name both Katniss and Peeta Victors, which sparks a rebellion amongst the districts.  The following year, during the Victor Tour are forced to continue their star-crossed lovers story that they started in the Games which they are reluctant to do; Haymitch (Harrelson) gives them some home truths as they continue to fight - that they will never be able to have a relationship with anyone else, Gale (Hemsworth) for example, because the Capitol and President Snow (Sutherland) would never allow it and kill all of those involved.  Snow orders Katniss to convince Panem and him that she and Peeta are in love over the course of the Tour but they fail to convince Snow; out of revenge, Snow changes the rules of the 3rd Quarter Quell/75th Hunger Games, decreeing that the tributes for the next games will be taken from the Victors of each district.  Katniss and Peeta end up back in the arena and form an alliance with Finnick (Claflin), Johanna (Malone), Beetee (Jeffrey Wright, Casino Royale) and Mags who are really there to get Katniss out of the arena so that she can be the face of the rebellion.  Under the guise of a plan to stop some of the other Victors, Beetee concocts a plan to destroy the arena so the rebellion can get them all out but Katniss and Peeta are not in on the plan so when it comes to getting out of the arena, Peeta is unfortunately captured by the Capitol while Katniss is taken to District 13 where the rebellion is being organised with the help of Plutarch Heavensbee (Hoffman).  The Hunger Games: Catching Fire finishes with Gale telling Katniss there is no District 12 anymore as Snow had it destroyed to hurt Katniss and Peeta emotionally, breaking their spirits.

Rating: 9

Recommended To: Anyone - loads of action, romance thrown in, and a little sad

Favourite Characters: Peeta - always love him and like his arc in Mockingjay; Katniss - relatable

Favourite Part: Haymitch: I like you better without all the make-up.
Effie: I like you better when you're sober.

Good Points: Expanded scenes; all the characters have got better and better; laid good ground work for the climax

Bad Points: Explanation about Snow's roses was lost amongst the action

Now struggling with the effect two Hunger Games have had on her mental health as well as the anguish she feels about Peeta's capture at the hands of the Capitol (and the betrayal she feels because the rebellion didn't save him), Katniss is still recuperating but is reunited with her mother and sister.  She is then introduced to President Alma Coin (Moore), leader of District 13 and the rebellion, who tells Katniss that because of what she did in the arena, she has sparked riots and strikes against the Capitol; Coin asks her to be the vulnerable Katniss of the rebellion, the "Mockingjay", but Katniss refuses because they left Peeta behind for the Capitol to take hostage.  Heavensbee then suggests that Katniss goes to the ruins of District 12 to see what Snow has done as he ordered it to be bombed, completely levelling it.  However, Katniss's mind is not changed when she returns until she, Gale, and the other residents of District 13 see Peeta on Capitol TV being interviewed by Caesar Flickerman (Stanley Tucci, Easy A) as he tries to calm down the rebellion; Katniss then agrees, albeit reluctantly, to be the Mockingjay if Peeta and the other Victors are rescued ASAP without fear of consequence for their actions under the influence of the Capitol.  Coin agrees and Heavensbee, Haymitch, and Effie Trinket (Banks) who was saved by the rebellion begin to create Katniss into the face of the rebellion with the help of Cressida (Dormer) and her film crew who will film propos of Katniss that Beetee will force into the Capitol network.  And so Katniss's mission begins to save her world and get back to a normal life where she won't be hurt.

While many people have a problem when they add scenes or take some away from the original source in a film adaptation because it's "not the same" and it's been "ruined", I like to see what's different as it's interesting to see someone else's interpretation of a text.  Trying to not sound like an essay, the moment you change the format of any text (i.e. book to film), you lose fidelity because it has changed form (even TV and film are different).  I really liked the expanded and new scenes that were brought to The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 because we got to see more of the other characters interacting as the book is told from Katniss's point of view and that could become boring as you don't experience films the same as books.  It was great to see the rebellion first hand as they try to work out how to use Katniss's influence for their own means while Katniss struggles with the effect two Hunger Games have had on her mental health.

As the series has gone along, all of the actors have got better in my opinion as they've been able to develop their characters over the years, making them their own while trying to stay true to the essence of their book counterparts so fans won't be disappointed and how I can't imagine anyone else in these roles.  Katniss, Peeta, and Gale (Lawrence, Hutchinson, and Hemsworth respectively) moved me so much at certain points that I think my heart broke by the end as Josh and Liam played up on their characters' vulnerabilities and Josh's desperation and fear seemed genuine while Jennifer embodies Katniss so much that she genuinely looks like she's feeling raw and hurt from everything and is horrified that her world has come to this.  I can't wait to see the final chapter as all of the characters interact more and we come to the climax of the series.

Splitting the final book, like they did with the Harry Potter series, but it has allowed more of the original source to be used and the world to be expanded upon prior to the climax of the series.  Mockingjay Part 1 has enabled the team behind the franchise, crew and cast, to lay some solid foundations for the final film, setting up for the beginning of a war where both sides will suffer tragedy.  I for one was pleased with the split because now the finale has been built up to be something wonderful and as long as they keep up this standard that they have with the rest of the franchise, the final film will be fantastic.

While not in this film very much, Peeta was one of my favourite characters because we got to see a new part of his character as he is gradually tortured by the Capitol for their own means that aren't revealed until the end of the film.  It's heartbreaking at points as you see Peeta slowly become more battered and bruised as his appearances continued and this told more of a story, along with his behaviour, then his words ever did.  He seems scared and vulnerable as he is paraded on TV for the world - and more importantly, Katniss - to see what happens when you betray the Capitol; this was the best outing for Hutcherson in my opinion because he got to play a new side to a character he already knows really well and it was interesting to see him away from Katniss who is going for a tough time too as they can't rely on one another like they used to.  We never really see a violent side to Peeta in the first two films as he was always the nice guy really in comparison to the life-hardened Katniss, though he has slowly become darker since he and Katniss were faced with Cato at the end of the first film because he knew he had to become stronger so he could survive life with the Capitol interfering.  However, at the end, we see a vicious version of Peeta which is terrifying to see because it is such a contrast to previous appearances; I wondered how Hutcherson was going to handle this particular part (if you have seen the film or read the book you will know which part I mean) because it is such an important scene for Peeta's relationship with Katniss and I have never really seen Hutcherson do a scene like that and I was pleased with the outcome as it was just how I imagined it because it terrified me even though I knew it was coming and shows how great of an actor Hutcherson is as Peeta in my opinion because he has made Peeta more three dimensional than he was in the book.

I personally found Katniss relatable and always have because all she wanted to do, from the very beginning, was keep her sister safe and happy which she has tried her best to do all of her life.  While I have never been in the exact same situation as Katniss, I understand her reasons behind her actions because one of my priorities in life is to make sure my sister is safe and I know she is a grown woman now, I still feel protective of her and I always will because she is my baby sister and nothing will ever change that.  Like Prim, my sister has a cat she adores and my one demand if I lived in District 13 would be that my sister gets to keep her cat like Katniss does for Prim; an audience needs to identify with a main character and little things like keeping her sister happy and safe are some things that make Katniss more relatable than just sticking to the main plot as some people would expect and that is what makes a film great, the small details that help you connect.

While I know the significance of President Snow's roses as I've read the books, the explanation in the film that Finnick gives is lost amongst the action scenes occurring at the same time.  While it is necessary for these scenes to be playing simultaneously because they are interlinked, the gunfire and explosions drown Finnick out at certain moments and distracted me from his speech.  This however was the only thing I didn't like about Mockingjay Part 1 and is my reasoning behind the 9 star rating as it kind of spoilt for me because the roses are a significant part of Snow's character and downplaying it near the end of the film took its significance away.

Haymitch: I like you better without all the make-up.
Effie: I like you better when you're sober.

The small back and forth between Haymitch and Effie, a completely new addition to the film as Effie isn't in the book until right at the end, made the film for me because Banks has made the character her own and she has become a fan favourite and made Effie likeable which was helped along by her relationship with Harrelson's Haymitch.  These new details that cause a film differ from the original text make or break a film for me and this one definitely made it as it makes Effie a more important character in the whole story and she isn't just pushed aside as she is fairly important in the first two films, making sure her two tributes and later Victors are okay, probably just as important as Haymitch in the second film.  This flirty back and forth lightens the mood in quite a dark film and stays true to both characters and their relationship that has been created for the film and brings back memories of happier times of when the world hadn't fallen down around them all.  While they are not really comic relief, Haymitch and Effie having their normal dynamic almost brings a glimmer of hope that it is possible to have a sense of humour in these dark times because everyone else, understandably so, is very melancholy which becomes quite depressing towards the end.

Though it is a shame that Finnick's explanation of the significance of Snow's roses was lost amongst one of the final action sequences, this was a wonderful interpretation of the first half of Suzanne Collins's Mockingjay which was helped with new scenes that brought more interaction between the characters into the film and the fact that the actors have become even more comfortable in their respective roles hasn't hurt as they already know their characters from previous films and now get to explore new facets as the world changes around them.  The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 has laid some excellent ground work for the climax of the franchise in Part 2 and as long as they keep up the standard they have set throughout, the franchise will end on a high and hopefully make it iconic like previous film franchises, such as Harry Potter and Star Wars.

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