Many MHS students have been obsessed with Suzanne Collins’s “Hunger Games” trilogy since its publication in 2012. The obsession resurfaced when the trilogy hit the theaters, but now it is all finally coming to an end with the release of the last installment “Mockingjay– Part 2” on November 16, 2015.
From Katniss Everdeen volunteering as tribute in the 74th annual Hunger Games to protect her sister Prim to the mind of Peeta being hijacked by the Capitol, fans have eagerly been waiting for the finale of the series on film.

Sophia Riportella, freshman, who has seen all the movies said that “[the movie series] is an action-packed trilogy for boys and girls, filled with drama that can be very interesting.”

Specifically, viewers expected tragedy and excitement, as some of the main characters die off in the end.

Riportella, for example, was curious to see the fall of her least favorite character.

“I have hated [Prim] from the start of the books,” she said.

Some of the anticipation for the last movie stems from the previous ones often ending on cliffhangers and a desire to see how Director Francis Lawrence brought the series’ conclusion to life on the big screen.

But anticipation began building when the complete trailer for “Mockingjay– Part 2” came out on July 23.

The trailer shows character President Snow saying, “The game is coming to an end”, which hints at how this movie is going to broadcast the rebellion against the Capitol. The trailer also had an intensity about it that none of the other trailers ever had, which again highlighted that “this is the end.”

But in the end, the movie received mixed reviews.

Variety‘s Peter Debruge wrote before the movie came out that “though the script adheres to Collins’ novel, everything that follows feels extraneous, with a succession of endings straining the patience somewhat. While the series remarkably managed to sustain its cast and credibility across four increasingly ambitious features, [Director] Francis Lawrence doesn’t quite recognize when it’s game over.”

For Debruge, the many endings within the film apparently did not seem like a satisfying conclusion to the series.

Other critics seem to differ from that opinion by claiming that this movie was one of the best in the series.

Tom Huddleston stated in a review that “this might be the most downbeat blockbuster in memory, a film that starts out pitiless and goes downhill from there, save for a fleeting glimmer of hope in the final moments. It’s a bold statement about the unforgiving nature of war, unashamedly political in its motives and quietly devastating in its emotional effect.”

Huddleston seemed to appreciate the film for the intensity it maintained to make a thematic point.

I personally found “Mockingjay– Part 2” intense and thrilling.

The movie started off right from where the plot had ended in the last movie, which was a good start to the end.

It was nice to see the progression of characters through this movie, such as Katniss and Gale, as both of them became heavily involved with the war.

But more intriguing, was the progression of Peeta. The audience was able  to see Peeta survive a difficult time, as he tried to figure out what was real and what the Capitol convinced him to believe. Seeing Katniss balance the rebellion and the development of her relationship with Peeta added even more interest to this character.

Jennifer Lawrence did a fantastic job showing Katniss’s emotions in this final movie. One of the best scenes for Lawrence was when Katniss came home after the rebellion, saw her sister’s cat and broke down in tears. Her breakdown performance was just right because, as a viewer, one could really feel the sadness of the moment.

And it wasn’t just this scene that was done well. Lawrence created scenes that didn’t look outrageously impossible but rather very realistic.

One of the best scenes had to be the part where the star group (the fighters, including Katniss, Peeta and Gale, who were used as propaganda for the war) was in the sewerage, and the mutts that the Capitol programmed came to attack. The way the mutts looked was very creepy with their long limbs and their gruesome-looking faces.

Despite several powerful scenes, the movie lacked in other scenes.

An article from commonsencemedia.org said, “ “It fast-forwards a few dramatic elements that some book fans will no doubt miss, like the blossoming friendship between Katniss and Johanna that gets compressed into a couple of conversations, or the strength of Katniss’ platonic feelings for fellow Hunger Games victor Finnick, whose marriage to Annie is similarly glossed over in a scene.”

This movie had many scenes to shove into the film, and consequently, some important elements of the plot are rushed while other scenes seem increasingly slow.

One scene that was rushed and sadly had been an extremely important scene was when Finnick dies in the sewer. The scene leading up to the death had been fast-paced and intense, but when it came to Finnick’s death, no feeling of sadness was created. A character loved by many died, and it wasn’t shown in a way that had any real effect on the audience as much as it should have. It should have been the same with Prim’s death, but at least the scene with the cat and Katniss made up for the quickness of her passing.

Despite these drawbacks, the end of the movie provided a satisfying close to the entire series. The last words of the book turned into a beautiful moment between Peeta and Katniss, as they spend time in a meadow with their two children. This scene became an incredibly monumental moment, as it symbolized the ability of all to overcome hardship for a hopeful future, even if it’s the end to the “Girl on Fire.”