These days,
teenagers are all the talk-- according to teenagers-- so what better
film to do than The Hunger Games? For obvious reasons, the
Twilight series gave the teenage genre a bad name, but it was
followed up by a more mature series for the post-Harry Potter age.
And I should begin by saying that I read the entire trilogy, and I
will probably make a couple references throughout; however, there is
a completely different discussion over critiquing films to their
source novels. Basically, I find that comparisons should always be
drawn, but the media and presentation are so vastly different that it
is impossible to translate what is in a book onto the screen
word-for-word; so, I do not enjoy the whole arguments of “But the
book was sooooo much better!!!!” but I will address both for what
it matters.
Let's start with a
positive: This cast is star-studded. Now, that doesn't necessarily
mean the stars do a good job, but it's a start-- and luckily for us,
they do a tremendous job. Jennifer Lawrence enters the celebrity life
coming out of her role as Mystique from X-Men, and perhaps for
another time to discuss, I hate that character. With that said, she
was also coming from an Oscar nomination for Winter's Bone-- a
lifeless film that nobody need bother to see unless you're just
compelled enough for the one bright spot of the film which is her
performance. And Jenny from the block is handed the role of Katniss
Everdeen, a persistent heroine sure to have inspired girls
everywhere. Needless to say, she had big shoes to fill, for everybody
would be judging whether she fit the mold of the character envisioned
from the book. And emphatically I will tell you that she succeeds.
You root for the gender role breaking Katniss at every step. Perhaps
even more impressive than Lawrence are the people she is surrounded
by. The unrestrained costume designs for the Capitol work so well
with Stanley Tucci and Elizabeth Bank's characters. But easily my
favorites are the hilarious Woody Harrelson and Wes Bentley's beard.
Undoubtedly, you
guys know the basis for The Hunger Games. Even so, it is
important to at least talk about the structure. There are two
distinct halves in the film: the ceremonies before the Games, and the
Games themselves. And in the off chance that you have no idea what
The Hunger Games is, I shall briefly clarify. A future
dystopia consists of 12 districts. In order to keep the threats of
revolt at ease, fear is struck by an event known as the Hunger Games
that takes place annually. Everybody ages 12-18 have their names put
in to be drawn at random with two tributes from the 12 districts, a
male and female. And for those of you counting at home, that's 24
tributes every year.
Katniss lives in
District 12 with her sister and mother. This district is mineral
based, and thus, also hard-working and poor. To the credit of the
film, lots of this can be inferred through visual context instead of
pointless exposition. The film is 140 minutes, and even though I
think that could have been reduced through some cuts, it reminds me
of what happened with Jurassic Park. Just like author Suzanne
Collins, Jurassic Park author Michael Crichton also had a hand in
writing the screenplay for the film adaptation. And he explained what he did by
saying that about 10% of the book made it to big screen, and this is
simply because that's all that could be fit into it. Similarly,
there's details I wished to have seen made it to the movie, but
there's only so much that can be done. With all that they had,
there's nothing huge that got excluded to cause any outrage.
Something becoming
familiar ground is a love triangle in these dystopian teenage novels.
And there's certainly glimpses of this in this film, but I'm glad we
aren't swarmed by it (can't speak for the sequels). One of my
negatives follows from this. I have been a fan of Josh Hutcherson,
but to be a little hypocritical, he is not what one imagines as
Peeta. The best way to describe his performance is just “good,”
nothing more, and really nothing less. And completing the triangle is
Katniss's childhood friend, Gale. And I'm not sure how much there is
to think about for Katniss, for when I have the chance to pick either
Josh Hutcherson or Liam Hemsworth, you know I'd take Liam any day...
What, I'm getting off track? I do apologize.
As I said before,
there are two halves to this film. And separately, they both work.
And they are necessary together, but it is pacing that simply is
designed better for a book. The ceremonies are fresh and
entertaining, but it's a lot of build up for what will end up turning
into another half of the film. And this again plays into my belief
that ten minutes or so of run time could have been cut to flow
everything better. In regards to the Games themselves, I think what
was accomplished is pretty astounding. I was so curious how you
transfer weeks of survival in the forest into an hour of
action-packed fatal adventure. There's never a dull in the action,
yet no scene is forced. And the brilliantly harrowing setup for
Collins's plot is transferred to the screen by shaky cams that bring
the audience to the arena while giving glimmers of wonderful nature
in, ultimately, all that the Capitol and its citizens see, a reality
show-like game. Gruesome? Absolutely. Stunning? Well, not on the same
level of some beautiful films, but for the sake of compliments, yes,
stunning.
For the sake of one
of the best actors to ever grace the screen, Philip Seymour Hoffman,
I would not be surprised if a review for the rest of the trilogy will
happen (not happy at all about 2 parts for Mockingjay though).
With The Hunger Games, there is surprising depth and maturity
to the whole situation of the movie. I believe it set a precedent for
later series that tried and failed to replicate, so that speaks to
its enjoyability and lasting effect. And folks, I have to admit, I am
really excited about next week. I will begin my long list of
excellent Clint Eastwood films, and I expect some controversy over
one film that is loved and adored by many, including a huge cult
following, but one that I regard as overrated. Hopefully, my reasons
won't be without merit. And if you will happen to disagree, feel free
to express why. As this week comes to a close, I just want to
announce that I volunteer as tribute. Goodnight.
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