The Hunger Games Movie Review

 

Released March 23, 2012

Rated PG-13

Directed by Gary Ross

Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson

So this weekend I, and the rest of America, when and saw The Hunger Games.  I went into it like OMG!OMG!OMG!OMG! but I came out with mixed feelings.  I thought the movie was an very good interpretation of the book, but there were some aspects that didn't quite live up to my expectations.

Ok let's go over what I LOVED first, namely the costuming.  Yes the capitol was everything I wanted it to be (like Marie Antoinette had a baby with Lady Gaga), but I specifically wanted to give a shout out to the reaping scene in District 12.  I freaking loved the 1930s depression era style.  It was all just so West Virginia coal mining town a la October Sky.  The muted color palette made Effie really stand out and showed just how different the lives of the people in District 12 were from those in the Capitol.  My only complaint about the costumes is I wish I could have seen more of the other district's chariot costumes!  They were all awesome and the fish ones were hilarious, I just wish I could have seen more.

Another aspect that I loved was the acting in general, but Jennifer Lawrence in particular.  She was just fantastic.  I think she hit all of the right notes and really brought a lot to her character.  In particular I just loved her "dumb bitch be lighting a fire!" face.  That made me lol for real.  Other actors that I thought did a great job were Willow Shields as Prim (when she screams no at the reaping it just broke my heart), Stanley Tucci as Caesar Flickerman, Woody Harrelson as Haymich, Lenny Kravitz as Cinna, and Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket.  I thought the entire cast was more or less well done, but those were the stand out performances for me. 

There were a couple characters I didn't connect to very well.  I was not a big fan of Peeta or Gale.  Even though he didn't have a big part I don't think Liam Hemsworth is right for the role nor is he that great of an actor.  I saw him in The Last Song (he was bad in that too) but I tried to give him another chance, and he still let me down.  Peeta also didn't do much for me, but I think this was more of how the movie editors decided to portray him and not anything on Josh Hutcherson's acting.  I also didn't get a good emotional connection to Rue, but like with Peeta, I blame the choices made in telling her story, not Amandla's acting abilities.  I would have liked more time with Rue so I could have connected to her more and really felt the devastation Katniss feels when she is killed.  (And as a side note I'd just like to say that people who complained about the black actors in the movie need to 1) Learn to effing read and 2) STFU you racist a-holes.  kthanks.)

Now there were some major things that really bothered me about the movie.  The biggest complaint I have was on the shaky camera work.  I HATED it during the non-violence scenes, such as introducing district 12 and during the reaping.  I've heard arguments that the camera work made the action more realistic, but I disagree.  I think the reason this camera work was used in the fighting scenes was to mask the violence to help get a PG-13 rating.  I wish the MPAA didn't exist, because this story is a violent story and I wanted more violence and I wanted to feel that visceral reaction to seeing it and realizing just how terrible the games were.  The MPAA stunts artistic expression by forcing movie makers to fit into their "age appropriate" box.  It should be up to the parents to be aware and know what they're taking their children to and if The Hunger Games is appropriate for their 2nd grader.  Let the movie makers tell the story, and let the parents parent.  *end soapbox*

Ok whew, rant over, on to other aspects I didn't like.  There were some story telling aspects I would have done differently.  One major one is how they showed Peeta giving Katniss the bread.  That flashback didn't work because they never showed how Katniss was literally starving to death, she was just sitting in the rain like some depressed emo kid.  I would have shown the story before, how Katniss is digging through the trash looking for food.  I also would have made it more clear that Peeta burned the bread on purpose so he could give it to Katniss.  I think it wouldn't have taken much extra work and would have reinforced the idea that Katniss feels a debt to Peeta for saving her life.  She's not in love with him in this book, she feels like she owes him. 

That would have also helped show how Katniss is playing the game in the cave scene, which also fell really flat to me.  They almost had it, but I didn't think there was enough manipulation being shown. I would have liked to have seen more manipulation from the control room to make good tv, not just make it more difficult for the tributes.  I think if they had show the capitol citizens reacting to watching the games it would have not only shown how Katniss is manipulating the crowd, but it would have also shown how desensitized the capitol people are to the games and made them more of an antagonist.

Now I just want to address one thing they changed from the book that I feel was a super smart choice.  At the end of the movie when Cato is about to kill Peeta he says that it doesn't matter what happens to him, that he has to bring honor to his district and it's what he's been trained to do and it's all he knows.  I thought this was brilliant.  In my youtube video comparing The Hunger Games and Battle Royale I mentioned how in The Hunger Games we never get to see any of the other tributes as anything other than mindless, evil, killing machines.  I loved how we got to know Cato a little bit more and got to see why he is the way he is.  It made him human and much more sympathetic of a character. 

Overall I think the movie was an good adaptation of the book, but missed some opportunities to create a more compelling story.  The acting, costumes, and sets were fantastic, but with shaky camera work and some poor editing choices the movie didn't impact me as much as I had hoped.  However it was still thoroughly entertaining and I'll probably go see it again this weekend.