Movie Review Monday: The Hunger Games - Mockingjay, Part 2

Welcome to another edition of Movie Review Monday!

This week's film is the recently released The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2 starring Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and Liam Hemsworth among many others.

I've reviewed the two previous films, Catching Fire and Mockingjay Part 1, here on the blog, and thinking back to all of them (even the original), I think Mockingjay Part 2 is the best of the bunch. It is a culmination of all of the plot threads of the franchise, and is an emotional, intense film. Everyone's performances are great, the action is awesome, the stakes are high and as someone who didn't read the books, I didn't know what was going to happen next.

I've warmed to this series more and more because I think the films have gotten better as the series went on as they focused more on the revolution than the Hunger Games since those were at best just different unusual action set pieces without much personal connection to what was going on. This movie is deeply personal, heavily narrative driven, and is just a thoughtful story.

I knew going in that some people did not like the ending from the book, but watching the movies and seeing what they emphasized, I felt as though the ending was good and made sense for the story. I really enjoyed how much the movies went into the politics and mechanics of a revolution versus it being just an action movie without any depth. How a revolution uses propaganda, treats the enemy, and transitions power are all interesting concepts to watch unfold on screen here and are just intriguing to me in general.

I encourage folks to check this entire franchise out (you can stream the first three installments). It is a great young adult franchise that seems to me to be far superior to the Divergent or the Maze Runner movies, which seem to be poor copies of the Hunger Games franchise (while they aren't exactly alike, they both seem to be going for the same exact market of dystopic light sci-fi action stories for young adults).

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Movie Review Monday: Hunger Games - Mockingjay, Part I

Welcome to another edition of Movie Review Monday!

This week's film is the 2014 blockbuster, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part I, starring Jennifer Lawrence and a stellar ensemble cast.

In anticipation of the final chapter of this film series coming out in a few weeks, I wanted to look back and review the most recent release (read my Catching Fire review too!) to get myself mentally prepared.

We pick up this movie right after Catching Fire and the plot focuses on Katniss (Lawrence) being strongly pushed into being the symbol for a growing revolution against the Capital. She has her reservations, partially being about not knowing how to be a rebel leader, and also not wanting to get the people she cares about (or anyone else for that matter) hurt or killed on her behalf. We see Katniss begin to warm to the idea as she realizes the true reach of the Capital's carnage.

We also see Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) become a weapon of the Capital's propoganda and he serves as their sort of antithesis to Katniss. An interesting part to this movie (since it is mostly slow moving) is the gradual tension, anticipation, and building up towards something more, as well as how much the importance of symbols is explored. People need something (or someone) to believe in, and a lot of times the images we use are very carefully crafted versus being genuine moments, and both sides in this story utilize artificial symbols to achieve their ends, further deepening the shades of grey for each.

While this movie isn't the best of the series, it is a solid movie which definitely is comparable to Deathly Hallows Part I in that it allows for some breathing room and plot development where if this was just one movie, it would feel rushed and/or shallow.

Make sure to catch up on the full story since you can find the other Hunger Games movies available to stream on Hulu and Amazon Prime right now (the original movie isn't on either service at the moment but you could just rent it from any video-on-demand provider). They're all great and it is a solid sci-fi universe to explore. I've only watched the movies and I enjoy it a lot.

Definitely check back here on the blog to get my thoughts on the final chapter, Mockingjay Part II, when it comes out in theaters on November 20.

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Top Movies I'm Looking Forward to in 2015

2015 is looking to be a standout year with some awesome big films on the horizon. While 2014 has its triumphs, the slate of movies coming down the pipeline have me really excited. Only time will tell if I still feel the same way this time next year, but for now, here is what I'm looking forward to this year in movies:

Avengers: Age of Ultron

This is pretty much a given. The two trailers we've gotten so far look amazing and I'm a big fan of what Marvel has been churning out lately with their movies and television offerings. Ant-Man has me curious but doesn't make the list since I have only seen the one trailer and have no basis for the character. Once some early reviews come in for that one I might come around but for now, Age of Ultron is going to be my big movie for the year that I know should be great.  If you haven't kept up with Marvel's movies and television shows, I recommend you catch up since this should be the movie event of the year!

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2

After seeing Part 1 this past fall, I am very eager to watch this final chapter. The previous movie did a good job of setting this one up for success and I have really gotten into the whole Hunger Games universe. It's an engaging, smart, mature story that is something good for young adults to explore. I haven't read the books so I don't know how it ends, but I have heard the ending isn't great so I'm curious to see if it is changed for the film at all. I didn't really expect to like this film series but after three solid movies, I'm hooked!

Inside Out

A new original concept from Pixar, Inside Out is about those emotional voices inside our heads and how we make decisions based off them. As many others also do I'm sure, I have loved pretty much all of Pixar's movies. The Toy Story movies, Up, and Wall-E, are some of my favorites of the bunch. This premise looks like it could be really good so I'm excited to check it out. I'm glad they're making some unique like this too, since something like Monsters University was good, but felt like a good concept was there that could have stood on its own without the Monsters Inc universe hovering over it.

Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

While this one should be another given, I'm still cautiously optimistic about this one until I see a full trailer. The teaser did get me excited but we still don't know a lot about the movie or characters. I'm always stoked to head back into the Star Wars universe but this movie could end up not being able to live up to the high expectations it has just like the Prequel Trilogy, and perhaps now it has even higher stakes because of the lackluster former movies. It has to be amazing in order to reclaim all the lost faith in the franchise, it can't just be okay. We'll see what comes of this soon as we see more and learn more about the film.

Pitch Perfect 2

The first film was a breakaway success, especially amongst the college aged crowd I am privileged to serve everyday. I enjoyed it as well, as it was a fast, fun, and smart movie with a great cast. While comedy sequels have classically struggled, I am willing to give this one a chance. Anna Kendrick is always awesome and I have faith she can carry the movie through well. This may be the most shaky movie on the list but I really hope it is good!

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Movie Review Monday: The Hunger Games - Catching Fire

Welcome to another edition of Movie Review Monday!

In honor of the upcoming release of Mockingjay, Part I next month, this week's movie is The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.

I enjoyed the first film in this saga, but I was left wanting more at the end. This movie definitely delivers. With a wider cast of engaging characters, heighten stakes, and a broader scope to the story, Catching Fire is a more exciting movie that gets me stoked for the next one.

The film's large ensemble cast has all the notable folks from the first film returning including, Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth, Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson, Stanley Tucci, Lenny Kravitz, Elizabeth Banks, and Donald Sutherland all return with solid newcomers Jena Malone and Sam Claflin (among many others).

The stellar story helps support the amazing ensemble of characters. As rebellion stirs in the thirteen districts following Katniss and Peeta's unprecedented victory, all the most recent former winners from all of the districts are forced into a new game for the 75th anniversary of the event. They all battle a more complex, brutal arena and they have to band together if they want to survive and fight back.

I don't want to spoil anything for this movie but just trust me when I say, as someone who didn't read the books, I found the plot to be exciting and engaging. No one is safe from the slaughter of The Hunger Games, and the action keeps you really connected since you don't know what will happen next. The light sci-fi, dystopic vibe to the universe also gets expanded here as Katniss and Peeta tour all of the districts following their victory in the previous film. We get to see firsthand how this world works, and really connect with the rebellion as a result.

I highly recommend Catching Fire (and the original to get caught up if you haven't seen it), especially since you have plenty of time to watch before the next film comes out Nov. 21.

Check it out right now streaming on Netflix!

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What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 09/19/14

Come geek out with me!

Hey there! Thanks for checking out what I'm geeking out about this week. This has been a random week of awesome stuff that I want to share with you all so lets dive in!

• The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 Trailer

This amazing trailer dropped this week and it is really getting me hyped for this movie. There isn't much else coming out this fall that I'm getting a lot of buzz for so I'm definitely going to look forward to seeing THG: Mockingjay P1 when it comes out November 21. I've warmed to this series of films, especially with Catching Fire being really great. The first movie didn't do too much for me and I was just left wanting basically what is happening in this movie to happen. Catching Fire was a solid bridge movie though and definitely worth a watch before Nov. 21!

• Apple iOS 8

I upgraded my various Apple devices this week to the new operating system and have been loving all the new little features. I always appreciate that every year, with the new iOS updates, I feel more value coming into my pocket at no cost to me. Apple definitely does well by me with their continuous improvements. I can't wait to get OS X Yosemite on my laptop and desktop!

• @midnight

I've been enjoying this late night comedy show hosted by my role model, Chris Hardwick, since it premiered earlier this year. They've been very consistent with the quality and the guests and I find myself watching it every day along with current episodes of The Daily Show. They crush it with their signature Hashtag Wars on Twitter (even when they're off the air for breaks!). I also can't complain with seeing Chris Hardwick more often on my television. He's so great, the show is great, check it out now!

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