Mockingjay part 1

The Book

 And so we come to the end of another trilogy - but not quite, as the film company has decided to drag the end out over two films. Because there is so much in the source novel to get across in just one film or because they will get twice as much box office takings?
As we are only looking at a Part 1, I have only read half way through the book and am guessing where the film will end - with Katniss being shot following the rebel attack on the Nut defences in District 2, I suspect, as its a good cliff hanger but we all know she survives.
What becomes clear through the first half of the novel, is that Katniss is still being used for other people's purposes - she's enlisted as a propaganda emblem (much like Captain America during WWII) to strengthen morale and purpose with the rebelling Districts and to be a niggling itch with the Capitol and President Snow. It feels that President Coin of District 13 and Plutarch have their own agendas in their quest to usurp and gain power, however.


The book has some great action sequences that should work well on film to keep interest going but the story is more concerned with the personal played out against the epic struggle.. Katniss' conflicting feelings for Gale and Peeta; the mental frailty of Finnick and his revelations that ex-Games winners are pimped out; Haymitch's battle over alcohol. This is what makes the book interesting and brings depth to so many of the characters.


Movie website


The Film

One of the TV ads for Mockingjay quotes a certain red top newspaper as saying "the film of our times". Now I'm not sure what context this was used in the review, but watching President Snow's speech about the Capitol being the beating heart, provided for by the other Districts working in poverty and hardship, cannot help but strike a chord in these austere times, where 85 of the richest people are as wealthy as the poorest half of the world (link).
The film stops at an earlier stage than I had anticipated, contrasting the rousing speech by President Coin about success with Katniss gazing at a half-mad Peeta struggling to escape from his restraints after having been brainwashed to strangle his former love interest.
The film doesn't feel stretched to fill the time, but provides some great additional scenes such as the lumberjacks in District 7 rebelling and the District 5 inhabitants blowing a hydroelectric dam that provides power to the Capitol. A piece that was brushed over and given very little detail in the book is Peeta's rescue but here we are rewarded with a pretty tense operation which ramps up the suspense neatly alongside a duel of words between Snow and Katniss.
Another welcome addition that felt missing from the book is the inclusion of Effie Trinket. Here she replaces the rest of the Katniss' make-over team, adding a bit of humour and eccentric colour to the mix as she puts up with no coffee and no wigs. Liam Hemsworth also gains from more screen time than normal, with Gale taking a major part in the rebellion and his relationship with Katniss being given time to develop as they spend uninterrupted time together.