Highly entertaining

Rating: 8/10 (24 November 2012)

Surrounding the capital city of a nation in ruins, are twelve separate districts that are all over-populated by desperate residents. How do you pacify such angry citizens? Simple: Reality television. No, not Jersey Shore, something much worse. Or better, depending on how you look at it.
Katniss Everdeen (played by Jennifer Lawrence of Winter's Bone and X - Men: First Class) is a skilled tracker, hunter, and survivalist who lives in the impoverished District 12 where most earn their living in the mines. Her mother (played by Paula Malcolmson) has been struggling since her husband died, leaving her to raise Katniss and her sister Prim by herself. Katniss (Lawrence) is sixteen and a close friend of Gale Hawthorne (played by Liam Hemsworth) who dreams of running away. Every year, each of the twelve districts randomly selects two children (one boy and one girl) or "tributes" no younger than 12 and no older than 18 and Gale (Hemsworth) believes he's dodged the bullet as long as he can. Still, when the tributes are selected, Gale is spared and so is Katniss. But when Prim (Katniss's sister) is chosen. Katniss volunteers to take her place. Making her and Peeta Melark, (a baker's son portrayed by Jess Hutcherson of Bridge to Terabithia and Journey to the Center of the Earth) the candidates for the 74th annual, winner-take-all, death match known as The Hunger Games. Held in the Capital, The Hunger Games are broadcast live to the entire nation. Each participant is trained, sponsored, and ranked and then locked in a massive, futuristic Coliseum with remote control hazards, predators, and cameras hidden throughout.
Now, this was a much-anticipated film. I was greatly intrigued by the trailers, but Twilight was also much-anticipated and no matter how much love it gets from the audience, I haven't even been able to sit through the first installment. Then, I saw the generally positive response from critics and took it upon myself to see this highly entertaining, dramatic effort and I urge those out there who haven't seen it to do so at there earliest possible convenience. This is a great film.