So now we have the absolute, ultimate, this-time-we-mean-it finale of the “The Hunger Games” series, the clunkily titled “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2.” But really, if we’re talking about things like art and narrative drive—which actually can and do exist in this franchise—a single film would have worked just fine. Last year’s “Mockingjay – Part 1” felt like one long placeholder. It featured a lot of wheel spinning and repetitive imagery, and it served as a glaring reminder of what a cynical cash grab this finale-splitting business truly is.
With the exception of a couple of truly dazzling action set pieces, “Mockingjay – Part 2” provides more of the same. The stakes are higher because this is the end—It really is this time!—but the first hour or so of returning director Francis Lawrence’s film is legitimately nap-inducing. From the very first moments, when Jennifer Lawrence’s Katniss Everdeen struggles to speak her name as the late, great Philip Seymour Hoffman looks on sadly as gamesmaker-turned-ally Plutarch Heavensbee, it’s just unrelentingly dour, even for a film set in a dystopian future. Mercifully, the script from Peter Craig and Danny Strong offers a few glimmers of sardonic humor, including quips from Jena Malone as Katniss’ fellow victor, the quick-witted Johanna.