A great adaptation of a first-person narrative

Rating: 10/10 (2 September 2012)

The Hunger Games is a sci-fi/adventure/fantasy film, an adaptation of the first book in a popular trilogy of adult dystopian novels written by author Suzanne Collins.
In the post-apocalyptic future, in the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is governed by an authoritarian regime that keeps the districts in line by forcing each of them to send one buy and girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in a gladiator-style survival game known as the Annual Hunger Games, brought upon Panem as punishment for the rebellion that happened 74 years ago, a period known as the Dark Days. Everything is broadcast live on television as entertainment for the residents of the Capitol and a reminder to the Districts of the government's ultimate power.
Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, a girl who lives in District Twelve together with her mother and twelve-year-old sister, is the protagonist of the story. The film follows her physical and emotional struggles as she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. After the death of her father in an explosion in the mines, Katniss is steps up and becomes her family's main supporter. She takes care of her family by hunting animals in the forest outside the district, together with her friend and partner, Gale Hawthorne, which gives her an edge due to her bow-and-arrow shooting skills.
She says her goodbyes and proceeds towards the Capitol, together with her co-tribute, Peeta Mellark. They are paraded to the audience, given a few days to learn some survival skills, their skills are evaluated and then they are interviewed for the purpose of entertainment. Their mentor, winner of a previous edition of the Games, Haymitch Abernathy, instructs them to maintain a facade for the audience in order to give them an advantage in the Games. After all the pre-battle entertainment, they are thrown into the arena. Katniss is just trying to survive initially, but after a turn of events, without meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love. Some of her actions are rebellious in nature and by the end she becomes an enemy to the Capitol. At the end of the 74th Hunger Games, Katniss realizes that it's not over. On the contrary, the struggle has just begun.
There are many things the movie did right, such as the scenes of Katniss running through the woods (both in the beginning and in the arena) or the scenes in the Capitol. There are other scenes which seemed rushed, such as Rue's last scene or Katniss' meeting with Thresh. All in all, it was a great adaptation of the book it is based on, with only a few flaws, considering the difficulty of adapting a first-person narrative to a film.
Jennifer Lawrence was an astonishingly good Katniss and it's hard to imagine anyone else playing her. Her performance was flawless, perfect casting right here. Woody Harrelson and Stanley Tucci are two other very stunning performances. They managed to embody the characters in a way I never thought possible. These three are the ones who stood out for me. Josh Hutcherson did a good job, albeit not as impressive as the three I mentioned above.
My vote is a 9. I liked the movie very much, but as a book reader, I am disappointed that some scenes from the book did not make it while others who are not as important did. Aside from that, there is not much I can find wrong with the movie.
There is the issue of the shaky camera that some haters brought up, but to be honest I never even noticed it. I don't think someone who watches this movie with an open mind will find this to be a bad movie. The people who think it's a bad movie are haters who watch the movie with the sole purpose of finding flaws and plot holes which would not be there, had they paid attention to the actual movie. Or the people who expected a teen slasher movie, which this obviously is not. Saying a movie is bad just because it did not meet their expectations, is dishonesty at its finest.
If you like this movie, I wholeheartedly recommend reading the books.