THE HUNGER GAMES is Surprisingly Good for Teen-Oriented Series

Rating: 8/10 (20 November 2012)

I never intended on giving THE HUNGER GAMES any attention. All I knew from the marketing campaign was that it was based on a series of young adult novels all I could think was TWILIGHT. When the reviews started coming out and the word was overwhelmingly positive, I figured I might have to rethink my position on the movie. Not enough to see it in theaters, but I did check it out when it was released on home video and I was pleasantly surprised. For the most part, it lived up to a lot of the hype as a great film for both teens and adults. The movie is based on the first novel in a series from Suzanne Collins set in a dystopian future when America has suffered through a great internal struggle. The nation, now known as Panem, is now separated into the high class of the Capitol and twelve poverty-stricken districts that each specialize in a particular resource. The Hunger Games is an even held each year where two tributes are chosen from each of the twelve districts, one male and one female between the ages of twelve and eighteen, and placed in a battle to the death until one victor remains. The Games are meant to remind the people of Panem of the Capitol's dominance and discourage any future revolutionary behavior. When her sister's name is called as tribute for the 74th annual games, Katniss Everdeen volunteers in her place and must now fight for her life against 23 other tributes if she hopes to survive the Hunger Games.
Honestly, I'm surprised this is as popular as it is with the teen/preteen crowd. This is a well- thought science fiction tale set in a future where the wealthy have tightened their oppression over the lower class to the point where they force them to murder each other for their own amusement. It's reality television taken to a whole new level, and we know how much America loves its reality TV. After everything I'd heard about the laughable love story in the TWILIGHT movies, I really expected this movie to be the same. I just assumed that's what it took to grab the attention of the teen girls that made this movie such a phenomenon. Again, I was wrong. There is a blossoming relationship in the movie between Katniss and a fellow tribute, but it's not the central focus. If anything, it's a subplot. Katniss's motivation in the movie isn't to find true love, it's to survive the Games and see her family again. Despite how good this movie turned out to be, I won't be running out to buy the novels anytime soon so I couldn't tell you if it's something that develops later in the series. I sure hope not. THE HUNGER GAMES has a good thing going here and I'd hate for it to break off into some melodramatic love triangle. I may not be interested in the novels, but this movie has guaranteed my interest in the inevitable sequel.
The production design was probably the best part of this movie. The world of Panem is a bizarre one. The twelve districts are almost primitive in their designrural and low tech. The Capitol, on the other hand, is massive and colorful. People dress in abstract fashions with freakish hairstyles and flashy wardrobes. Think Victorian England on LSD. The action in the movie is as good as one can expect in a PG-13 film aimed at teenagers. Despite the bloody premise behind the movie, the action is mostly cut fast and bloodless. A lot of chaotic camera shaking and implied violence before cutting away. As a result, the violence doesn't hit as hard as it could but, again, this movie was based on a book series aimed at kids that can't cough up ticket money for an R-rated bloodbath. And then there are the characters, each of them memorable in their own right. Jennifer Lawrence is amazing as Katniss. Beautiful and stoic, she's a strong character and Lawrence is guaranteed to go on to a great career. Woody Harrelson stands out in the movie as a past Hunger Games victor who acts as mentor to Katniss and her fellow District 12 tribute. He's tortured from his time in the Games and persistently drunk, but he soon finds faith in Katniss as a potential winner. There's a lot of talent gathered here in both the cast and crew, and director Gary Ross has done an awesome job. As someone who can't stand the usual teen-oriented entertainment, I can say that I'll be following this series when the sequels arrive.