The final chapter in the "Hunger Games" series has come to a close in a major way with "Mockingjay Part 2," but how has it stacked up with the previous films?

The "Hunger Games" conclusion has not only solidified the franchise's success, but skyrocketed Jennifer Lawrence's acting career, making her one of the definitive action stars of this generation. "Mockingjay Part 2" moves from tributes competing in the games to them revolting against the oppressive Capitol, which adds a new twist to the four part movie series.

Here's what the critics have to say about Katniss Everdeen's final effort.

Entertainment Weekly

Entertainment Weekly found that the film somehow lost its way to an extent, as it didn't feel like a "Hunger Games" movie.

"With its political power struggles and prodigious body count, all rendered in a thousand shades of wintry greige, the movie feels less like teen entertainment than a sort of 'Hunger Games of Thrones.' The acting and production values are still well above grade, and Lawrence skillfully holds the center, letting everything the skeletal dialogue doesn't say play across her face. Like the arrow-slinging, empire-saving Joan of Archery she's portraying, she understands the symbolic weight she's been asked to carry here. If only it didn't have to hang so heavy."

Washington Post

Washington Post found the best part of the movie to be Lawrence's performance, yet it doesn't substitute for the for the narrative's poor execution.

"Most of the pleasure of 'Mockingjay - Part 2' comes from watching Lawrence, not the story around her. Her aim is true, even if the narrative arc of the movie traces a long, wobbly path toward its eventual, and not exactly happy, resting place."

Boston Globe

Boston Globe describes the conclusion as brutal, yet oddly satisfying for fans of the long-running franchise.

"The new movie stands as a sizable improvement on last year's truncated 'Mockingjay - Part 1,' but the reasons for bisecting the final novel in Suzanne Collins's best-selling trilogy remain murky, more a matter of greed than narrative coherence. Whatever: If you've followed 'The Hunger Games' this far, the fourth and final installment brings the story to a brutal but satisfying conclusion. If you're a newcomer who has merely wandered into the wrong theater, it'll seem like what it is: the 'Saving Private Ryan' of dystopian teen flicks."

New York Times

New York Times was blown away by Lawrence's performance, as her acting ability brought true depth to the character.

"What makes the material still feel personal -- other than the yearslong investment and love that transform entertainments into fan communities -- is the combination of Katniss and Ms. Lawrence, who have become a perfect fit. Ms. Lawrence now inhabits the role as effortlessly as breathing, partly because, like all great stars, she seems to be playing a version of her 'real' self. It's the kind of realness that can give you and the movie a jolt, as in a scene with Ms. Lawrence and a sensationally raw Jena Malone that thrusts it into that place where heroes and villains give way to something like life."

Variety

Variety felt that while the film ended with a bang, there were many elements that felt rushed in or just unneeded.

"The one death no one could have foreseen, that of actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, adds welcome resonance to his scenes as gamemaster Plutarch Heavensbee, while leaving him sorely missing from a crucial emotional moment in which Woody Harrelson's Haymitch arrives with a letter containing the character's final words. Though the script adheres to Collins' novel, everything that follows feels extraneous, with a succession of endings straining the patience somewhat. While the series remarkably managed to sustain its cast and credibility across four increasingly ambitious features, Francis Lawrence doesn't quite recognize when it's game over."