I loved it! It was awesome! It upped the action, the sacrifice, the emotions, the stakes, the characters... This movie was amazing, it was much much better than the first one! Buuuut... it could've been even better.
4.5 out of 5 stars.
SPOILER ALERT!!! (For both the movie and the book.)
Let's start with the good:
I'm going to go into details about what's so amazing about every scene, so instead I will say what I liked in the movie better than I did in the book/the previous movie.
1. Effie
I loved Effie and even more so in the films. Elizabeth Banks is amazing and she looks like she's having the time of her life. I always like Effie, but I could really feel how much she cares here.
2. 'The Odds Are Never in Our Favor'
Damn, that graffiti on a wall in Panem gave me a geekgasm every time I saw it in the trailer and the scene in the film was no less chilling. A bit on the nose possibly, but also pretty realistic for the situation (as well as real life).
3. Snow's granddaughter.
It was mentioned that he had one in the books, but we could never get an emotional attachment, because we never saw her. We do here and she's just a young girl, who wants to fit in. Sure, she is privileged and sheltered and raised on the Capitol's propaganda, but that's not her fault.
4. "Someday I'll volunteer like you did!"
Amazing commentary on celebrity culture, but Katniss's face however was the most powerful thing about the scene. This is a great example of how the visual medium can improve on be - just one facial expression manages to convey so much.
5. I understand Katniss a lot better.
I thought that the first movie made Katniss more likable than she's in the books and it's the same with this film. For instance, the scene where Katniss has to choose allies and she goes for the ones that seem the oddest: in the books it felt like she was purposefully separating herself from the rest of the victors just to be stubborn, but in the movie, when you actually see the rest of the victors, it's easy to really understand and sympathize with Katniss.
6. Peeta (compared to the first film)
When the first movie came out, it was around the time everyone wanted to emulate Twilight, and you can see the writers trying so hard to make Peeta Edward Light. Peeta was the furthest thing from Edward in the books. He was likable, accessible, friendly, very talented, but also extremely self-conscious. But all the first movie wanted was to make him all emo and tormented. This movie really felt like an apology for all of that.
Now the Bad!
1. The info-dumps! (Snow and Plutarch conversations & other things outside of Katniss's POV)
Maybe I'm coming from the PoV of a book fan here and these scenes were actually helpful for audience members, who only watch the movies, but I really think this movie really did a lot more telling than showing. In the first film, there were a few of them, but here, I just felt beaten over the head with it. We get it, Snow is a bad guy, move on, please!
2. Missing scenes:
- Plutarch's mockingjay clock.
This scene was a major plot point in the book! That's how Katniss is tipped off about the arena and that there is something going on and maybe Plutarch is part of it. They already added the dancing scene, would it have been that much of a bother to add like 5-10 more seconds of screen time, so he can flash the clock at her?!
- The truth about 13
13 is the major source of revolution and it will be a very, very important setting in movie 3. Yes, they dump 13 on us at the end, but it didn't just come out of nowhere in the books.
- Katniss and Peeta bonding
Yeah, they talk about their favorite colors in the film, whoopty-do! Their connection felt much stronger in the book. We get the scene where he stays to sleep next to her, which was pretty great, but we don't actually see them spend quality time together.
- Peeta's paintings of their Hunger Games and Katniss's reaction to them
They show us Katniss's PTSD, but what about Peeta - did he just went on unscarred by the Games? I think a scene like this would have also helped my previous point about the bonding.
- Peeta and Katniss watching Haymitch's Hunger Games
Yeah, it's not like that was important plot point in the book or anything, because that's why Katniss decides to destroy the force field at the end an showed us the characters in a different light. Not like the fans wanted to see it so bad, they made their own fan videos or anything...
- The bread that signified the plan for interrupting the games
I'm not that bothered by the fact that they missed this one, but it was important in the book, so I' thought I'd point it out.
3. This movie could've benefited from (at least) two montages with:
- Katniss and Peeta bonding/victims of the new regime in 12 montage.
This could've been great montage, combining both happy and sad and comparing life of the 1% with the life of the rest of the population. It could've shown Katniss explaining plants to Peeta and him painting them, while her broken foot heals (which also wasn't in the movie); then cut away to the whipped people Katniss's mother and sister heal, then cut to Katniss and Peeta helping, then cut to them and the plants, then cut to more victims of the Capitol. It could've been a beautiful bit and it didn't need to be longer than 2-3 minutes. It didn't have to be there, but it would have been nice.
- Training/Film reel from previous Hunger Games montage
Yes, the scenes where Katniss, Peeta and Haymitch face the idea of going back into the arena and Haymitch teaching them about the other victors were still pretty great, but they could've been better, by cutting from their training to videos from previous Games with Haymitch's voice over explaining what is going on.
4. Games related pet-peeves
Why were some tributes shown and interviewed together and others not?! And did ya' miss a canon or two, there (AGAIN)?!
But all of those are nit picks.
Here are my two actual problems with this film:
5. Johanna Mason is hilariously miscast
I was so happy with the casting in this film, everyone just fits their role perfectly! Well, everyone except for my favorite character - Johanna Mason. She is a tough character to cast and I was especially worried when I found out they were casting one of the girls from Sucker Punch. Yeah, great choice, director! Jena Malone is cute, but in all honesty she wasn't even convincing in that movie as the smart-assed, bitchy one of the group (and there it was all an act, because inside she was actually a dreamer inside), let alone here.
In all fairness I think that the writers and director did a decent job with her character and the actress god-bless her, does her best, but... she just looked like she was trying too hard! Whenever I saw Johanna on screen... she just looked like an angry teenager acting out, because her mother grounded her for a month, and now she has to miss prom. She didn't look like someone who's every reason for existence has been slowly and painfully stripped from them in attempts to break her, but instead turned her into a weapon for the rebellion. I mean, Katniss seems much more hurt, rebellious, hardened and sarcastic than Johanna and she has not suffered nearly as much. It's not a competition of course, it's just that the book gave me a very different Johanna than the movie did.
6. 12A (UK)/ PG13 (USA) Rating
This as an adaptation of a book focused around teenagers killing each other and people dying on daily basics how does that not get at least an R rating?! It's filled with violence and heavy themes and because of that stupid rating we got to see none of it! They either cut away from the violence through ridiculously fast editing or used my 'favorite' shaky-cam technique. Also Johanna's cursing was actually censored! I... no, just no!
It may seem like I am bitching a lot, but I always do that, so do not be fooled: I loved the movie, I thought it was awesome, I did not feel how the time passed by and I wholeheartedly recommend it.
