Watered-down "Battle Royale"

Rating: 5/10 (14 November 2014)

While the film is competently acted, almost everything else about it is atrocious. Since I haven't read the novels, I can't speak to the faithfulness in comparison with the source material, but for a book that supposed to be rather violent, the movie was very tame. My biggest complaint would be the shaky-camera work, which, while useful in creating a sense of intensity or confusion, is quite headache-inducing and more importantly, obscures the action. Among the positives were Elizabeth Banks and Woody Harrelson, who I felt gave rather entertaining performances, and the lighter, more humorous bits of the film were more enjoyable to watch. In regards to the preparation for the Games, I take issue with the backdrop of the whole affair, as it reeks of so-called "reality" TV, which I despise. But overall, I felt like this movie was like a watered-down rip-off of Battle Royale, without half of the emotional depth and pretty much none of the visceral content.