The Future of American Cinema?

Rating: 1/10 (27 March 2012)

I'm a big science fiction fan of both movies and literature and usually give the science fiction genre a fairly wide berth. But in the case of 'The Hunger Games' I feel the need to thoroughly pummel the film because of its lack of originality, weak character development, and abundance of predictability. What do I think of 'The Hunger Games'? In a nutshell, think 'Twilight' with a science fiction spin. I'll elaborate on that point a little later.
First let's talk about the total lack of originality. A strikingly similar premise was penned by Japanese author Koushun Takami in novel called 'Battle Royale' which was published in 1999. For those of you who don't read much – probably all the same folks who just love this movie - look for the same title on IMDb as it was adapted to film in 2000.
At first glance I was thinking 'Battle Royale' rip-off all the way, but the more I thought about it, the more another author kept creeping into my gray matterthat author is Stephen King. He wrote a couple of short stories along the same lines. 'The Running Man' in 1982, and 'The Long Walk' in 1979. Heck, you can even throw in pieces of 'Cujo', published by King in 1981. I won't spoil the film for you, but you'll get the 'Cujo' reference if you feel the need to waste your money on a viewing of 'The Hunger Games'. If you're going to write science fiction or make a science fiction film, you need to weave a story that is somehow original. 'The Hunger Games' seems to have pulled elements from various King novellas. So, in my mind 'The Hunger Games' gets a big fat 'F' for originality. Enough said! I'm not even going to mention the fact that the filmmakers must have run short of money because it appears as if they borrowed the wardrobe from 'The Fifth Element' for the ritzy city dwellers. WhoopsI just mentioned it.
Let's move on to the 'Twilight' referenceOK, you know how in 'Twilight' the only Werewolf and Vamp in town both happen to be in love with Bella? Well, here we go reduxthe only two stud muffins - in the supposedly poor hamlet of Katniss (the heroine), both are in love with said female. So what about hunger? Those boys were both built and corn fed. And that's another problem with the moviewhere are the hungry people? Lol Not only that, but the character development was so weak I felt nothing when folks started to die off.
I could go on and on about the holes in this film but I'll stop here. It's enough that's it's not original, lacks in character development, and is as predictable as the lingering smog in L.A. I'm giving this film 1 star – which may be a tad harsh – but I feel the need to counter all the salivating teen girls that evidently love this film as much as little chipmunks love packing goodies in their cheeks. If this is the future of American cinema we're in big trouble folks! Let the chipmunk's rule?I hope not.