'The Hunger Games' fans attend early screening of 'Mockingjay - Part 2' in Westbury

Within the first 30 minutes of "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2," there had already been a gunshot wound to the heroine, a wedding and a pledge by Katniss Everdeen to kill the land of Panem's evil President Snow.

And Emma Vansantvoord, 9, of Huntington, was enthralled.

"My favorite part is when Finnick kissed Annie on their wedding day . . . ," Emma said.

While "Mockingjay - Part 2" doesn't officially open until Friday, several area theaters are having early showings. Emma attended a double-feature -- a showing of "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1" followed immediately by the finale of the series, "Mockingjay - Part 2" -- on Wednesday at the United Artists Westbury Stadium 12 Theater.

Emma came with her mom, Christina Vansantvoord, 41. "She loves Peeta," Christina said as an explanation of why her daughter couldn't wait to see the fourth movie in the series, which portrays the second half of the third book in the popular young-adult trilogy of the same name.

"Everything I could ask for," Christina said of the movie.

The trilogy tells the tale of a dystopian land called Panem, consisting of the wealthy Capitol and twelve outlying districts. Each year the powers-that-be in the Capitol stage a reality TV competition called The Hunger Games, during which teenagers drafted from the districts of Panem are forced to battle to the death until only one victor is left, all for the entertainment of the Capitol's wealthy residents.

The heroine, Katniss Everdeen (played by Jennifer Lawrence), becomes a symbol of the rebellion against the status quo and also the love interest of Peeta Mellark (played by Josh Hutcherson) and Gale Hawthorne (Liam Hemsworth).

Also in the theater Wednesday were Mary Haugh, 62, of Westbury, her sister, Catherine Zubrovich, 61, of Freeport, and Catherine's daughter Rebecca, 25. The trio had spent Sunday watching the first two movies back-to-back at Haugh's house and were eager to see the last two together as well. "I'm just really fascinated by the whole world of this series," said Rebecca Zubrovich. "The fact that it uses the YA structure to depict a class struggle I find fascinating."

Zubrovich said she was pleased with the adaptation. "It's a great adaptation, faithful to the book while being very cinematic."

By Beth Whitehouse

Special to NewsdayBethWhitehouse1

Beth Whitehouse writes about families, parenting and great things to do with the kids on Long Island. She’s been a Newsday editor and shared a 1997 Newsday staff Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the crash of TWA Flight 800.