Faithful to the book, and that's good!

Rating: 7/10 (27 March 2012)

With Harry Potter over (sadly), and The Twilight Saga coming to a close (thank goodness), America needed a brand new franchise to go crazy over. And here it is, The Hunger Games! A brilliant adaptation of Suzanne Collins' best-selling series (and far better-written than Stephanie Meyer's Twilight books). This movie delivers in almost every aspect. Despite its one flaw, The Hunger Games was definitely worth the wait.
The one flaw I was talking about is the over-use of shaky-cam in a few scenes of the movie. It gets less abundant later in the movie, but it can be mildly distracting at times.
But don't let the camera work ruin the movie for you! This movie is full of good things: superb acting, thrilling action, great story, and genuine heart. The movie was very well casted, with Katniss, Primrose, Gale, Peeta, Cinna, Effie, and Haymitch's characters all flawlessly portrayed by the actors. I also enjoyed the girl who played Rue: she was perfect! The action was very well choreographed (despite the iffy camera-work) and I felt as though I was experiencing the same thrill I did when I first read the book. I was on the edge of my seat, even though I knew exactly what was going to happen. I cared about all the characters.
There were a couple of alterations in the movie's script that left out some details from the book, but it didn't ruin the story for me at all. There is no need to be worried about the movie screwing up the book; the changes are rather small and inconsequential.
This movie is also very emotionally charged, just like the book. You can feel the characters' devastation, their happiness, their sadness, their defeats and triumphs. Again, thanks to the acting and the well-written script.
Overall, this movie did a fantastic job of bringing the book to the big screen. It was enjoyable, exciting, and satisfying. Even if you haven't read the book, if you like action movies and movies about triumph and standing strong, then this is the movie for you.