I and my kids LOVED this movie!

Rating: 10/10 (24 March 2012)

I took my 15 year old son and 11 year old daughter to see this movie. My daughter and I had read the book, my son had not. All three of us LOVED it, and plan to see it again. And again. And again. And buy the DVD. It followed the book very closely, was riveting and exciting. To address some of the common complaints:
1. This is a 2 hour/22 minute movie. There is not enough time to put every single thing from the book into the movie. Character and storyline development was as good as it could possibly be without making the pre-Games half 3 hours long. The character development was good enough that several adults in the theater started crying at one point during the Games...
2. "The Hunger Games" is considered a young adult/teen book, and the movie is rated PG-13, which stays in line with the book's intended audience. So don't expect it to be all blood and gore. There was enough blood to make it believable, but not so much as to offend or nauseate anyone. While the book focuses a lot on the violence, there are other important issues: reality TV, totalitarian government, class-separation...
3. A lot of people don't like the "shaky-cam", and I can understand that. It doesn't bother me. It gives the feeling of disorientation and anxiety - what the Tributes were feeling - and also helps convey the bloody scenes - you only get snippets of the violent attacks and blood. Honestly, as I read the book, I was wondering how in the world they were going to show violent deaths of children to an audience of tweens, teens and parents. I think they did a good job.
As I said, my kids and I loved the movie. It's a good idea to read all the reviews and consider the things you do or don't like in a movie. Does a "shaky-cam" bother you? Do you prefer to see lots of blood and gore? Do you need a lot of in-depth background and character development to feel an attachment to the characters? If yes, then you may not enjoy this movie. Regardless - if you are at all curious about the movie - GO SEE IT!!! You might regret having missed it on the big screen!