**SPOILER ALERT**
The game has come to its end.
The last installment of “The Hunger Games” series will leave you hanging on to your seat and looking for the nearest tissues.
In other words, “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2” was an emotional roller coaster from start to end, especially for those who have followed these movies and books for so long.
“The Hunger Games” novel, written by Suzanne Collins, was published in 2008, followed by “Catching Fire” (2009) and “Mockingjay” (2010).
By the release of the first movie installment in 2012, over 26 million copies of “The Hunger Games” trilogy books were available in print.
Ever since then, the movies grew in popularity and became a force to be reckoned with.
The story about Katniss Everdeen, played by Jennifer Lawrence, who becomes the face of a rebellion, has captivated people’s attention. We all followed her footsteps, from when she was just a District 12 citizen to when she became the Mockingjay symbol of the rebellion, sparking hope across Panem.
After five years of waiting for the movies to come out, conflicted from agonizing cliff-hangers, get ready to say goodbye to “The Hunger Games” trilogy.
It won’t be a complete farewell for those who will continue to cherish this series. Katniss is a role model to many, including myself, mainly due to her resistance and perseverance in a time of horror and confusion.
The character developments of not only Katniss but also her love interest Peeta Mellark and friend Gale Hawthorne have been hair-raising. The actors who took on this role, Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and Liam Hemsworth, did an amazing job of portraying how these characters matured throughout the series.
An important plot twist in “Mockingjay” was Peeta’s hijacking (distorting images of a person or something to make them seem life-threatening). Hutcherson, who played Peeta, did not fail to deliver this heart-wrenching role.
There is an advantage to those who have read the books: “Mockingjay – Part 2” contains the most important book quotes. It gets better: they were delivered with such fervor and energy that you might get goosebumps.
One example of this was the line, “Real or not real?” delivered by Peeta, as he tried to figure out what was real and what was not, due to his hijacking.
Throughout the movies, Peeta started remembering his past, with the help of Katniss. At the end, when Peeta said, “You love me, real or not real?” to Katniss, she said, “Real.” Even after everything that happened to both of them, they were able to find peace.
The epilogue of the Mockingjay book, where Peeta and Katniss get married and have kids, was beautifully portrayed in the movie. In my opinion, this was the most moving scene in the whole series, not only because of Lawrence and Hutcherson’s strong emotions, but also because it marked the end of the trilogy.
In “Mockingjay – Part 2,” relationships like Peeta and Katniss’ were mended, broken, or lost, all with deep sentiment.
One of the most important relationships of this whole series was between Katniss and her little sister, Primrose “Prim” Everdeen.
“I volunteer as tribute!” exclaimed Katniss in the first movie, as she took her sister’s place in the 74th annual Hunger Games. Prim grew in emotional strength and maturity, as she stood by Katniss throughout all of the series.
In “Mockingjay,” we say goodbye to Prim due to an explosion during the rebellion. This is one of the biggest plot twists in the story, as Katniss’ main driving force since the beginning perished.
Suzanne Collins didn’t sacrifice Prim’s life for nothing. Katniss’ main goal had always been to keep Prim safe and sound; now that she was not there, Katniss could make a life of her own. In addition, that grief made her stronger. She understood that Prim would want her to be happy.
“The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2” was a spectacular film to wrap up this heartening series.
Remember, “There are much worse games to play.”
[star rating=”5″]
DIEGOOOO • Nov 25, 2015 at 6:28 pm
NICE REVIEW ??????I AGREE