A Loyal, But Shallow, Interpretation

Rating: 6/10 (6 August 2012)

Surprisingly grim, gray and bleak considering the target audience, this is as close to dystopian as PG-13 gets. An inordinate amount of time is invested in world building and scene setting here, which makes for some great, functional locales, but also relegates the plot to secondary status. Jennifer Lawrence is well-cast as the brooding, bow-wielding introvert Katniss, but the rest of the cast underperforms - especially Woody Harrelson, in a role he was seemingly perfect for, as her pathetic, booze-drenched adviser Haymitch. Readers with a fresh memory of the novels will get the most out of this interpretation, which assumes its audience knows most of the finer points of what's going on and summarily neglects any form of deeper investigation. It's gorgeous, though occasionally a bit too eccentric (some scenes in the capital look like they were ripped right out of a Final Fantasy cutscene) and non-fanatics will probably find it too narrow and fluffy.