Yes. It is time. It has been 4 long, grueling years since it’s release in book form, but the time has finally come for the first installment of Mockingjay, the last book in Suzan Collins’s Hunger Games trilogy, to make it’s way to the big screen. Since we first saw J-Law and the gang, I have been painstakingly waiting for this culmination of culminations. This was one of the most action-packed, emotional rollercoasters in the whole book; it just SCREAMS “where my lights and cameras at?” So, in preparation for tomorrow’s release, here are some reasons to get totally pumped for Mockingjay:
1. Jennifer Lawrence
I don’t even need to preface this with anything. Jennifer Lawrence is just plain awesome. She’s smart, super funny, gorgeous and has some great acting chops. She is the second youngest Academy Award winner for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her superb performance in Silver Linings Playbook. She is like everyone’s best girlfriend who constantly wants pizza and can’t seem to find her filter when she talks. We love her for her honesty, for her humility, and for her hilarity.
2. The Soundtrack
Lorde oh Lorde. That is the first thing I thought when the songs to this anticipated album started surfacing. With Tove Lo, The Chemical Brothers, Ariana Grande and CHVRCHES, there was absolutely no doubt this would be a CD to end all CDs. Plus, Lorde curated the songs and artists. This was blessed from the heavens from the start.
3. Peeta
So, I’m not gonna hide it. I like Peeta Mellark way more than Gale. But it’s not even that. At the end of Catching Fire, Peeta is taken by the Capitol, which was a woozy of a cliffhanger for even the most avid Hunger Games reader. So now that we know he is alive (thanks to this clip: http://www.mtv.com/news/1987723/hunger-games-mockingjay-clip/?fb_ref=fbshare_web), what does this mean for Katniss and Peeta’s relationship? The one that was really getting somewhere in the last movie. {INSERT BEACH GIF).
4. The Thickening Plot
No more is this a “YA” novel coming to the silver screen, at least that’s not how it feels. Even from its inception, the death game involving kids killing other kids for Capitol laughs made The Hunger Games more sinister than your average “teen novel.” And it’s about to get darker. The third novel is all about the war waging between the Capitol and the Districts. There will be no more games, no more staged fireballs in the forest or timed flashfloods. Katniss has to be a beacon of hope for the Districts and their rebellion, and what’s seen in the trailers shows raw footage similar to those we see on the news today. Director Francis Lawrence said himself, to the Daily Beast, “My goal with Mockingjay is to make people think about war—the sides of war, the consequences of it, the propaganda, and the images we’re being shown.”
5. These Three
After 2 years, 3 (soon to be 4) movies and countless feels later, the three main characters have made us laugh, cry and wonder why we don’t have a clique as cool as theirs. It’s like the gods of film destined Josh, Liam and Jennifer to be put on this movie together, their connection is that good. They take adorable
(and not so adorable)
pictures on the red carpets. They are so candid and uproarious in interviews. And they have super serious conversations about Hogwarts on their private planes.
6. This
If these reasons don’t get you to the theater to see Mockingjay, well, I don’t know what to say; you probably weren’t going to go see it anyway. Mockingjay comes to theaters November 21, 2014, with early screenings starting tonight (you know I’ll be there). Cue excited Minions