The Hunger Games: The Movie

HUNGER GAMES:  THE MOVIE

DISCLAIMER

If you haven’t read the books or seen the movie, please don’t read this unless you want to be spoiled.  If you continue...don’t get mad at me for ruining your experience.  So, without further ado:

With a possible 100% delivery rating, I give it a 90%.  There are some that would give it a lower rating, but I have lower expectations of any movie being able to deliver the awesome of any book.  Having been on somewhat of a roll of reading books being made into movies, there’s reason my bar is low.  

The cast was good for me.  There were a few surprises, but happy ones.  Lenny Kravitz wasn’t quite who I pictured playing Cinna, but he did a great job.  The only one who I wasn’t happy with at all was Donald Sutherland as President Snow.  I had a completely different idea in my mind.  Whenever someone tells me they didn’t like a particular person being in a role, I want them to come up with an alternative.  So, I won’t be what annoys me.  I saw Albert Finney as Snow.  Look him up, he’s fabulous for starters.  I pictured a portly man with a strong ambiance that commanded respect and instilled fear.  In my head, Albert Finney would have been able to portray that flawlessly.  Alas, I’m not the casting director.

The cast isn’t what brought the rating down.  It was the screenwriting and direction.  Which is sad, because Suzanne Collins is credited as a writer.  

Every single person who watched the movie, left anticipating the next movie.  We all know The Hunger Games is the FIRST of a TRILOGY.  Revealing too much too soon is so irritating!  They went a LOT overboard with this movie.

President Snow was such a subtle character in the book.  The way the movie explained the back story of the districts was great.  But all the scenes with the head gamemaker and Snow were too much.  The real threat Katniss was to the Capitol wasn’t revealed until Rue died.  It was enhanced when she and Peeta beat the games with the nightlock.  At no point during the games did Snow let his nervousness show.  As readers, we didn’t know the severity of Katniss’ actions until the second book when Snow shows up at her house unannounced.  What irritates me about how they did that in this movie is because when he shows up at her house, I literally shuddered.  It was an intense moment for Katniss.  It wasn’t until that moment that Katniss is truly aware of the affect she’s having. 

The riots that ensued when Rue died and Katniss was seen giving the District 12 salute was also too much too soon.  In fact, the riots don’t actually happen until Peeta and Katniss make their rounds to the other districts as victors of the games.  IN THE SECOND BOOK!

When Katniss finds Peeta in the mud (beautifully done in the movie) he is severely injured.  It wasn’t just a flesh wound.  His leg was hanging by a thread.  His leg had been hacked by a sword.  Hacked.  It was so bad, he ultimately lost his leg and had it replaced with Capitol science.  I really don’t understand why they omitted that.  Not really a revealing aspect, but it just was weird.

Cinna was not a clear ally until the second book.  They revealed his position too early.  It was hinted at in the book that Katniss could trust Cinna, but it wasn’t confirmed until the second book.  What Cinna did in the book was such excellent foreshadowing and the movie murdered it.  Cinna was a character I really loved.  He was so careful about what he said and how he said it.  His styling was so meticulous.  So specific, it sparked Katniss’ nickname - The Girl On Fire.  He knew exactly what he was doing and was able to pull it off by coming just under the radar of President Snow.  Again, they spoiled that storyline unfolding in the movie.

The ending of the movie was the ultimate disappointment.  The series does not reveal the head gamemaker’s death until the second book.  They left that to be concluded in the movie.  The journey back to District 12 was very awkward for Katniss and Peeta.  She had no idea how far to go with the ruse of their star-crossed lovers routine.  She was teetering on the the validity of her feelings towards him.  They failed to show that.  The final interviews with the two of them indicated Katniss following along with the image they wanted to portray, but that was pretty much it.  Her feelings about Gale were really in the balance.  

Do I recommend watching the movie?  Yes!  Had I not read the book, I don’t think the movie would have been as fun to watch.  There was a lot the readers were able to take away from the movie experience the non-readers weren’t.  My husband said, “It wasn’t worth losing sleep over.”  We went to the 12:04 a.m. showing.   

The overall adaptation was pretty good.  If I had been the one in charge (producer...only because directing is something that requires more than I’m willing to deliver) I would have demanded certain aspects of the book be included.  But that’s just the way things go when a beloved book is taken to the big screen.  The Harry Potter series had its own shortcomings, but overall delivered.

Feel free to open up discussion.  In fact, I’ve spent more time comparing thoughts on this book to movie than I’ve ever spent on any other.  So, please!!!  Let’s chat about it!