This small, incomplete review holds no real spoilers.

Jennifer Lawrence turned up the acting switch a notch. Might be her best performance till date overshadowing 'winter's bone' while showing her great talent and potential of her becoming a movie superstar (if she isn't already bc of her internet popularity and looks.)

This part was more balanced as the last movie, and sets the emotional trigger on sharp for the finale next year.
Again a compliment to Elizabeth Banks who captures the role of Effie amazingly well. Even though she originally wasn't supposed to be on screen until the finale, the creators and writer Suzanne Collins decided to let her replace Plutarch's assistent so she could be in this movie, which was a wise decision imho to use a familiar face in stead of a unknown side character.
I was a bit disappointed about the lack of influence of Natalie Dormer, but we might have to wait for the last movie for that to happen.
Sidenote: It is harder to find a movie without Julianne Moore nowadays, than one with her lol.

There is a lot of conversation, the biggest part due to this being the politics part in the story. This is a big part of stories base after all, and is important in its message.
I really was surprised they used the 'Hanging tree' song in the movie, I kinda suspected they would skip it, and it was a great surprise and a good decision the didn't. It has a lot of importance for Katniss, since it depicts the struggle of the districts against the capitol, and her relationship with her family (mainly her dad) and later with Peeta.
Lawrence is definitely not a singer though, she doesn't have the voice for it hehe. Good thing they have computers nowadays.

Depending on how part 2 will turn out, I think they made a good choice in splitting the movie in two, even though it is probably done just for the cash and not for storytelling.

This is the third movie in the Hunger Games series. I better state right away that I have not read the books so I do not know how good the books are or if the movies actually follow the book. However, if the movies are any indicator then I will probably not bother to read the books. So far these movies have been a display in overhyped mediocrity as far as I am concerned.

The previous movies had a somewhat ludicrous setup with people running around in ridiculous hair-do and makeup. I was not too thrilled about it but at least it gave the movie some originality. So did the games themselves. This one lacks all of that. It could be any one of a dozen post-apocalyptic stories.

The movie plods along at a fairly leisurely pace, sometimes it is quite dull and slow, with some outbursts of action. Katniss herself is really not taking much active part except for being a front figure and propaganda element for the rebellion. In order to milk the series as much as possible for money (I see no other reason why it was done) it was decided to break the third book into two movies. I would say that this movie is a good example as to why that is generally not a good idea.

The acting is on par with the movie. It is decent enough but nothing to write home about. Then since most of the movie really is about Katniss hulking and moaning about the unfairness of it all it is maybe not too surprising that I found most of it somewhat uninspired and dull. The same can be said about the special effects. Actually I found most of them to be rather underwhelming. There were also a fair amount of lost moments. For instance the attack on the dam. It could have been made into something nice but instead we get a ludicrous display of a bunch of unarmed people running straight against machine guns planting some bombs and then poof goes a model dam.

Having now seen three out of the planned four movies I am of course going to see the fourth one as well but I am definitely not going to be in a rush to go and see it.

A very different film from the first two, not least because there are no actual games, rather the film picks up straight after the last entry to deal with the consequences of that finale. And in truth, whilst this may be down to the source material, it is a welcome decision as another games would have been repetitive and they have fulfilled their purpose both in the context of the story and the themes they explored. Unfortunately this film has two key flaws - the decision to split the film into two was clearly financial and it shows too, despite the best efforts of the filmmakers. And in focusing more on the least interesting aspect of the plot so far - that of the dull love triangle that our heroine up to now has pushed to one side - they diminish the strong character they have worked so hard to establish as Katniss pines over her lost boyfriend instead of focusing on the far more important aspect of winning a revolution. But despite these flaws, the film is still a worthwhile entry. Jennifer Lawrence has been fantastic as Katniss and she continues to show her worth to this series, lending Katniss a vulnerability beneath her strength and determination that make her so watchable. Put simply these films would not work as well without her. Despite the decision to split the story into two, the filmmakers have also hit upon an interesting theme to explore, bringing to the fore the role of the media in manipulating the public. It was always present in the films, but here it is far more prevalent. Terrorist or freedom fighter ? It is certainly an interesting vein to develop though in truth there is a lot of padding to ensure a further entry and the film never escapes from the feeling that a single entry to complete the story would have resulted in a much stronger film.

**THE UGLY: ‘THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY - PART 1’**

WRITING: 65
ACTING: 75
LOOK: 70
SOUND: 50
FEEL: 60
NOVELTY: 50
ENJOYMENT: 60
RE-WATCHABILITY: 45
INTRIGUE: 50
EXPECTATIONS: 40

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**THE GOOD:**

This film and the second part are easily the most depressing and dark entries in the series. The film manages to capture the fierce force of the resistance and the terrors of the Capitol better than the novel ever did and there is a sense of war and uprising never palpably present in the book.

With Peeta mostly left in the shadows, the story allows Katniss and Gale to bond in ways they haven't been able to until now.

Unlike the source novel, which left much of the action to the background, this film drops us into the middle of it. We go beyond Katniss' point of view, which is better for the overall story.

Suzanne Collins manages to make President Coin an incredibly repulsive and annoying character in the novel, and that carries over to the film, mostly thanks to a fine performance from Julianne Moore.

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**THE BAD:**

The war propaganda filmmaking is a lengthy and mostly pointless part of the last novel, and it doesn't feel much better in the film version, despite being a good way to naturally bring in some emotional moments into the story.

Katniss is a constant pain in the ass throughout this entire movie so it’s difficult to sympathize with her.

I can't help but feel that this film is just a lengthy introduction to the emotional finale that is Part 2. As such, this is the weakest entry in the series.

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**THE UGLY:**

Katniss going from a reality show star to a TV ad star feels like a career downgrade.

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**THE VERDICT:**

_The first half of the final Hunger Games movie is a lengthy introduction to the final battle, with a slower pace and lesser tension than in the previous entries, making this the weakest film in the franchise._

**57% = :heavy_minus_sign: = UGLY**

Yet more of the same extended in an inexcusable way. Let's hope the last movie of the saga can get a proper end.