Cast member Jennifer Lawrence poses at the premiere of "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1" in Los Angeles, California November 17, 2014. The movie opens in the U.S. on November 21
Cast member Jennifer Lawrence poses at the premiere of "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1" in Los Angeles, California November 17, 2014. The movie opens in the U.S. on November 21 REUTERS

Whoever thought of splitting the final movie in supposed trilogies or movie series should be run out of Hollywood. "Harry Potter" did this with its seventh and final instalment, "Twilight" followed suit and now the "Hunger Games" franchise is trailing the yellow brick road. The usual problem with this strategy is that the first part just looks like a stretched out trailer waiting for the second part to do justice. This is what makes Part 1 of the "Hunger Games: Mockingjay" tedious.

In this semi-finale, we are thrust back to the world of Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) who is now in District 13. The lighting arrow she shot through the heart of the arena in "Catching Fire" has ignited a revolution against the Capitol. District 13 is leading the charge and wants Katniss to be the face of the Mockingjay and rally all the districts in the cause. After witnessing herself in a trip to her war-torn District 12, the heroine relents on the condition that the leader of the rebellion, President Coin (Julianne Moore), commands a extraction to rescue Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) and the other victors.

Peeta himself is being used as propaganda by President Snow (Donald Sutherland) to quell the rebellion and to taunt Katniss. After the arrow-wielding Katniss participates in a series of on-site documentaries, several of the districts rally, culminating in the attack on the hydroelectric dam of the Capitol, which disables the power support of the whole grid.

The guerrilla attack opens a window to extract the victors (with the defence system down), and Peeta and Katniss are reunited. The only problem is Peeta has been brainwashed and drugged up so much that he attempts to choke Katniss. We are left with a final image of the shocked face of Katniss viewing her lover in an aquarium-like room, complete with restraints like a deranged mental patient.

The main problem with the movie is that it was an evident cash-grab. A story that could have been completed in just 40 minutes was stretched out into two hours. To achieve that, you would have to include a dream sequence, a tryst to the forest with the third wheel (Liam Hemsworth) and a rescue of Primrose who went back to save her cat while the shelter was being heavily bombed (of course, they will go back for the cat!). Much of the time was spent in listening to President Coin rally her troops in a monotonous voice, or in watching an obviously drugged Peeta go "Larry King Live" with Caesar (Stanley Tucci). Apart from that there are also some continuity issues. Seriously, how did they get the reel of Katniss shooting down that bomber aircraft when they movie crew was separated from Katniss and Gale?

Nevertheless, Jennifer Lawrence was still the main moving force of this movie even if she was relegated to being a propaganda piece much like Chris Evans was used in the first portion of the "Captain America" movie. Lawrence has this innate ability of displaying emotion like anguish, pain or helplessness when the situation calls for it. At first it was hard to adjust to thinking she was just a young girl (given that she has played mature roles lately), but Lawrence was at her best when she displayed her "did I really bring this?" look during the sequence she visited the rebellion in a makeshift hospital.

The supporting characters did their part as we are given a multitude of character actors who know just to give enough and not steal away from the real Mockingjay. Elizabeth Banks as Effie, and the late Philip Seymour Hoffman and Woody Harrelson, provide some breather with their wit and one-liners. Effie saying turbans were all the hype while she is in her "prison" clothes can elicit a bit of chuckle in an otherwise serious installment.

All in all, the movie will still deliver the hordes of Everdeen fans . The studio could have been more generous if it trimmed the fat around the edges and ended the cliffhanger on a battle scene in some district with the looming last battle at the Capitol as the promise of Part 2. Instead we are left with the lasting image of Peeta strapped up, bringing up memories of Jack Nicholson in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" when we could have had a Mockingjay imitating the resonance of valour.