Age of The Nerd
The final film of The Hunger Games franchise is finally here to own on Blu-ray and DVD. In The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) hopes to put a stop to the tyrannical President Snow (Donald Sutherland) as she leads a team of rebels into what she plans to be their final battle.
For me, when I read all three books, (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay) years ago, Mockingjay was the one that I remember the least because I felt that it was lacking in areas. Well ironically enough, I felt that the film adaptation of Mockingjay (specifically part 2) stands out from the rest of the franchise for quite a few reasons.
The main reason that it stands out is because it was so much bigger than the rest of the films in the franchise. In this film, there were bigger action scenes, bigger risks, a bigger cast and bigger sets. Though the whole franchise was very action packed, Mockingjay Part 2 was almost non-stop action. There are a few slow parts in the film but it helped with the pacing as far as breaking up the action, so it doesn’t necessarily become just an action film.
Other than Mockingjay Part 1, Mockingjay Part 2 really explored the world of The Hunger Games outside of the districts. There were lots of different sets and a lot of them seemed massive. It was good to get a feel of how big the world really was and it wasn’t just all set in districts. We also get to see a lot more of the capitol and the people that inhabit the capitol.
The acting in Mockingjay Part 2 was just as good as the rest of the films but in this one, some characters like Cressida (Natalie Dormer), President Snow (Donald Sutherland) and President Coin (Julianne Moore) get more screen time than in previous films of the franchise. So you get to see what all of these experienced actors brought to the franchise.
All in all, it was a great film to end a huge franchise. I only have two complaints for this film. One being that some of the cg wasn’t consistent but when it was good, it was really good. The other was the fact that they split the final book into two separate films, which is a going trend in Hollywood.
Now where you really get your money’s worth is the bonus features of the limited edition Blu-ray Combo Pack. The limited edition version has over 5 hours of bonus features. This is exactly why it took a bit longer for me to post this, I was getting all caught up with the extras.
You get an 8-part documentary, Pawns No More: Making of The Hunger Games, which gives you a really in-depth behind-the-scenes look at Mockingjay Part 2 and it’s only included with the Blu-Ray disc. You get to see all aspects of the production of the film, from how scenes were shot to sound effects to the score and a whole lot more. It’s not only a good documentary for Hunger Games fans but also just if you are a fan of filmmaking in general.
Also included in the bonus features are: The Hunger Games: A Photographic Journey, Cinna’s Sketchbook: Secrets of the Mockingjay armor, Panem on Display: The Hunger Games: The Exhibition, Jet to the Set (also included only with the Blu-ray), which almost serves as a television show that takes you throughout Atlanta where they shot the film, and you also get commentary with director Francis Lawrence and producer Nina Jackson.
These bonus features really cater to the fans of the franchise and to have over 5 hours of extras attached to a film which isn’t a boxset, is almost unheard of. The length of the bonus features is by far the most that I have seen thus far, on any in-home release.
As for the menus for the Blu-Ray and DVD, they are really simple to navigate through. You have the options of playing the movie, set up, scene section and special features. The Blu-Ray and DVD also have different backgrounds for the menus. Both have different scenes of the film playing but the Blu-Ray menus are aesthetically more pleasing to look at. That goes for just about everything visually when you compare a Blu-Ray version to a DVD version.
The packaging of the Blu-Ray combo pack includes a cardboard protective slip which covers the Blu-Ray case that holds the Blu-Ray, DVD, Digital HD Ultraviolet code and a coupon for The Hunger Games: The Exhibition.
I give the limited edition The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 Blu-Ray Combo Pack 8 out of 10.
