I was expecting more. “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2” was a conclusion I was excited to see, but the so-called previews grew to be more of a summary of the first three quarters of the film than an actual preview. While I do give a three-fingered salute to the bittersweet ending of the series, what was more of a tragedy was how it ended.

“The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2,” the final chapter of the Hunger Games blockbuster series directed by Francis Lawrence, starts off where Katniss, played by Jennifer Lawrence, and Peeta, played by Josh Hutcherson, left off in Part 1 with Peeta trying to differentiate between his real and implemented memories after being rescued from the Capital by District 13. The movie follows Katniss, Gale, played by Liam Hemsworth, Finnick, played by Sam Claflin and the rest of squad 451 through the Capital trying to reach President Snow, played by Donald Sutherland, while avoiding deadly “pods” and peacemakers.

Probably the most frustrating element was Katniss’ character differentiation. Although she seemed herself for the first hour or so, it developed to where it seemed like her artificial character had risen again from The Hunger Games. The yellow-flowered sundress Katniss wore was past questionable; no “girl on fire” would reside to wearing that.

Although I appreciated the musical themes that tied back to each film, they weren’t used to their full effect. Only one scene was particularly devastating. I don’t even recall the use of the famous whistle throughout the entirety of the film. Deaths were glossed over and glamorized, and the devastation of war that was shown in the first part of Mockingjay was practically nonexistent in the second.

Of course, makeup and costumes were as notable as the rest of the series; Effie returned to her glamorous self, featuring some black and white glimmering eye wings that made her look like an ice queen, and Katniss’ sleek black uniform gave Batman a run for his money. Set design was still impressive, from the President’s house as white as snow to the devastation throughout the rest of the districts.

The worst part of the film was constantly dealing with Peeta’s nonsense. When reading the books, I pitied the guy, but in the film, he was just annoying. “You love me,” he asked Katniss, “real or not real?” At that point, the film turned into a cheesy romance that I didn’t sign up for.

Although I appreciated the detail of both parts of Mockingjay, they weren’t evenly, or even logically, distributed. “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1” was moving, exciting, and had every aspect I would expect in a movie, but Part 2 made me question whether the split was necessary. Part 2 seemed like it encompassed the last 2 chapters and a resolution, something that could’ve been joined with Part 1. Many scenes could’ve been trimmed to make Katniss’ final journey to the Capitol as climatic as it should’ve been.

The moments of reminiscence Katniss had while walking through District 12 were a beautiful tribute, but, overall, the film was just grey. It breaks my heart to see the films starring “the girl on fire” burn out.

Rating: C