The Mockingjay Lives!

Okay, nothing to do with NaNoWriMo today, I'll vlog about that instead at some point in the next couple of days. Instead, let's talk Mockingjay part 2 - the final installment of The Hunger Games series.
I've been a fan of the series ever since the first came out several years ago, and I've been looking forward to the final for quite a while, desperate to see the conclusion to Katniss' revolution. I could have read the books, but I've been so damn busy recently with writing and university, I haven't had the chance to get past chapter 7 of Catching Fire. I knew enough though, thanks to conversations with my best friend/cinema buddy Charlie, and several spoiler filled posts on the internet. So I knew that this was going to be a painful film, I packed tissues especially, just in case.
And trust me, Mockingjay part 2 does not disappoint. The film follows straight on from the end of Mockingjay part 1, after Katniss discovers that Peeta has been hijacked and had all of his memories twisted until he wants to kill Katniss. I especially liked that Katniss' first words in the film were 'I am Katniss Everdeen, I'm from District 12' reflecting the first one beautifully. From there the film follows the revolution against the Capital, specifically on Katniss and her troop going off to kill Snow.
Admittedly, I was a little worried when Katniss and co head off through the city to get to Snow, thinking that it could have been boring or repetitive. It was anything but, the troop are constantly in danger, fighting against the traps the game makers have set up around the city. I was on the edge of my seat for several of these, knowing that people were going to start dying at any moment. The danger is palpable through the screen, between the troops fighting for their lives against the traps, and the fear that Peeta would be triggered into trying to kill Katniss again.
Peeta's struggle with figuring out what was real and what wasn't was painful to watch, and seeing how it hurt Katniss too was heartbreaking. Before this film I was still on the fence on the Peeta/Gale argument, but I think I've now been fully converted to team Peeta, if not because of him, but because of how much Katniss needs him, and how much she cares for him through all this. Peeta and Finnick's interactions were also a joy and made me fall for their friendship, it was a subtle, almost background thing, but still a lovely thing to watch. It didn't need to be shoved in our faces, but it was still a clear connection between the two being established.
I won't give too much away about who dies and how, but let's just say it's very close to the book. There are a great many rumours about a certain character living instead of dying, and I'm sad to report that they aren't true. The character still dies. Now I'll be honest again, I was certain that their death was going to be gut wrenching Battle-Of-The-Five-Armies-Oakenshield-death levels of agony, hence the packing of tissues, but it wasn't. I was incredibly sad to see them go, but it wasn't too painful. Maybe it's just me who's gotten scarred thanks to Tolkien and Shonda Rhimes over the years, but I was expecting more of an agonising end to this characters life.
Overall though, Mockingjay part 2 is a very, very good film. It's emotional and filled the peril, leaving you on the edge of your seat. The plot twists make you hate characters you didn't think you'd hate and realise that war makes people do truly terrible things. Watching Katniss grieve was so real it nearly brought a tear to my eye, and to think that the character is supposed to still be a teenager is devastating.
Everything is tied up beautifully by the end, we find out where all of our characters have ended up, and finally see Katniss and Peeta living the life they deserved together. My only suggestion for the ending would have been to have one last look at the fallen Victors and characters from the last four films, or one last listen to Mockingjay call, or even possibly the Mockingjay pin evolution, like the previous films have done.
But overall, the film is beautifully shot, edited and acted, I loved every minute of it. Mockingjay part 2 is a very, very good ending to a truly epic series, and I for one am very sad to see it go.

Long Time, No See!

Sorry for neglecting this blog, I just haven't had much time between writing books/reviews for TubeChum and school to get anything written for here! But now that I've finished school (woooo) apart from two exams, and have been to the cinema, I think it's time I wrote a new blog post! This time, I'm going to talk about X-Men Days Of Future Past. I could talk about Godzilla, which I have also had the (dis)pleasure of seeing recently, but I have a vlog coming up soon about that, so X-Men it is!
Now, first off, I am a big X-Men fan, really, I love it so much! The films, alongside The Matrix, were my childhood. So I'm admittedly a bit bias here. But this film surpasses so many expectations! At first, I wasn't sure what to make of the idea of time travel and the young X-Men meeting the older X-Men, but it was done perfectly! From the trailer, I'd thought that the old and young versions of the characters were going to be interacting together throughout the film in the same timeline, but I was completely wrong. Wolverine goes back 50 years, sent by Patrick Stewart's Xavier and Ian McKellin's Magneto, to find James McAvoy's Xavier and Michael Fassbender's Magneto. To me this made much more sense than having all four of them interacting at the same time, as that might have gotten confusing.
Now I won't give away much about the plot (which is genius) but I will say this, McAvoy and Fassbender are brilliant young counterparts to Stewart and McKellin. They are totally believable (despite they look nothing like their older counterparts, and Michael is actually taller than Ian, small details, small details) as the troubled youths of the 70s. James McAvoy stole the film for me, maybe because I'm slightly bias as I fancy him quite a bit, but he was amazing as a young, troubled Xavier, fighting his guilt and pain. From the minute he turned up, I was entranced by him. Also, for when anybody see's the film, who else was reminded of Benedict Cumberbatch's Sherlock when Wolverine tries to recruit Xavier? I think its the couldn't-care-less attitude mixed with the dressing gown that sent me down that route, but I did see some resemblance there... I shall keep an eye on this for a while longer, see if I'm just imagining it....
Michael Fassbender plays Magneto effortlessly too. He was a great version of a troubled, young and falsely accused Erik, who has lost faith in humanity due to their actions towards him. I almost wanted him to succeed in his plans of revenge. His interactions with Jenifer Lawrence (Mystique) are perfect, him serving almost like a father figure who's done wrong in the raising of his child. I loved it.
So, without giving too much away (the ending makes me want to cry it's so good, I adore the ending, though now my brain has exploded with how things have now changed... You'll soon find out when you see it) X-Men Days Of Future Past is a masterpiece, one of the best in the series, totally makes up for Wolverine, which was the worst film I'd seen before Godzilla. I can not wait for the next one!