THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY – PART 1

When Katniss destroys the games, she goes to District 13 after District 12 is destroyed. She meets President Coin who convinces her to be the symbol of rebellion, while trying to save Peeta from the Capitol. —IMDB

The mistake this episode makes is trying to spread the last book of the series into two parts – suspiciously like trying to extract as much money from fans as they can. MOCKINGJAY Part 1 plods along for most of the movie with little substance and becomes bogged down with repetition (scene after scene has a helicopter taking off and landing – and Katniss does a lot of crying). Katniss’s character is quite weakly represented in this movie, which is disappointing given the strength she has shown in previous episodes. There are intense moments and its actors do a great job with Jennifer Lawrence, despite the insipid script, remains charismatic. But it’s essentially pretty boring. Of course, those of us who have loved the series so far (and I’m one of them) have to see this episode for completeness. So go see it, but don’t expect too much.