Great if you've read the books

Rating: 9/10 (31 March 2012)

I must say I've read the books and I loved this movie. It is two and a half hours that goes by in the blink of an eye. If you've read the books and know the context surrounding everything that happens here, the movie flows smoothly, adheres to the books in MOST cases, and leaves little to be desired. If, however, you haven't read it, you won't like it as much. There are many things (won't get into specifics) that go unexplained or under-explained; stuff that is explained through the first person point of view in the book just can't be explained as thoroughly in the movie. If you've read the book, you know everything and you're a bystander watching the events unfold without the extra Katniss commentary. If you haven't read it, you will probably have a lot of questions. I think it's a movie that is obviously aimed at Hunger Games readers and it does an excellent job with that audience. It's still a good film for everyone else, it just isn't a ten, probably more of a 7.