Engaging, but a sad commentary

Rating: 7/10 (19 August 2012)

Twenty-four teenagers, one male and one female from each district, ages 12-18, enter into a fight to the death as part of the government's payback for earlier uprisings. The event is televised. Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) from District 12 takes her sister's place in the competition. Josh Hutcherson as Peeta is the male from District 12.
This movie proves that people go to auto races to see accidents. If you can get over the idea of kids killing kids, then you may enjoy this movie. How does one do that? Well, some will say it's all tastefully done; and there are instances where the killings come as a result of self-defense.
If I said the name Katniss 10,000 times over and over again, I may get used to it. Every time I heard it I said "catnip" to myself (easy now). Jennifer Lawrence, as Katniss, carries this movie to perfection. We know she doesn't want to kill anyone, yet.there's that self-defense thing that comes along. Yes, yes, we hope she wins.
Observations: the nervous camera was in evidence for about the first 15-minutes, then it went away as well it should. The people who run the television event and other elites have the most garish fashion sense. It's like they all came from the Mad Hatter's tea party. And, don't get me started on the hairdos, beards and a new way to slap-on lipstick. You see, because this takes place waaaaay in the future, we have to be bombarded with extremes. After a while we do get used to these fashion extremes. Sad, but true.
I didn't expect the first half of the movie to drag but, it did with the training and securing of sponsors (who help the participants). The hype that went on for years before the movie was released didn't go into that.
Each team is given a mentor to advise them on how to survive in the woods, the battleground for the Hunger Games. The Mentors were previous winners in the Hunger Games. Woody Harrelson plays a mentor part to perfection. The guy should be given Oscars for just showing up. He is that good. And, aside from Jennifer Lawrence, he steals the show. It wouldn't surprise me if Jennifer Lawrence is nominated for an Oscar as she was in WINTER'S BONE, a great movie. And, Woody Harrelson also.
Other notables: Stanley Tucci, Wes Bentley, and Donald Sutherland who performed well. Donald Sutherland as President Snow says the thing more powerful than fear is hope. The way I see it the contestants and the parents of the participants have hope. The audience sits in fear. If the audience ever gets hope that things can change Snow's government will fall.
There is a certain amount of tension and suspense throughout because we side with Katniss, who is wary of everything, as are we. Now for the kicker - more tension: the ones running the show can inject fire or wild animals into the event if they feel they are losing or losing face. Why they would do that blew my mind. Yes, that is not fair. The contestants have no recourse but to fend for themselves. The audience watching all this doesn't seem to be too upset about it. The audience is every bit of sheep mentality. Is this where we are heading? There are political agendas in here and you may see the implications.
Here is what I was hoping for throughout: that the contestants or the audience would somehow put a stop to these Hunger Games forever. But the ending for this movie is extremely weak. Go see for yourself. But, oh, oh, a sequel is coming: The Hunger Games, Catching Fire in 2013. Sad, but true.
Violence: Yes. Sex: No. Nudity: No. Language: No.