Smart and Suspenseful

Rating: 8/10 (22 March 2012)

"And it was decreed that each year, the 12 districts of Panem should offer up a tribute of one young man and woman between the ages of 12 and 18 to be trained in the art of survival and to be prepared to fight to the death." President Snow (Donald Sutherland)
The Hunger Games trilogy, like the Twilight series, is a runaway favorite among teens about a future where the government mandates selected boys and girls fight to the death on reality TV.
But forget Twilight as film; The Hunger Games as film is a solid sci-fi thriller with suspense, action, social commentary, and a love interest that's actually interesting. Although overly long by about twenty minutes, from Romeo and Juliet through Deliverance and Hanna, the story embraces the humanity of its characters without forgetting about plain old action.
Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) has volunteered to take her sister's place in the Hunger Games, where a girl and boy are selected from each of twelve districts to compete in survival games from which only one combatant will remain. Taking her cue from her Oscar-nominated role as a teen saving her family in Winter's Bone, Lawrence as Katniss has the grit to shoot squirrels between the eyes and the tenderness to be an advocate for her loved ones at the same time. Katniss's no nonsense common sense is refreshing as it was for Hanna in last year's teen survivor tale.
The weight of the games (teens murder each other, after all) is almost overshadowed by the allegorical implications such as contemporary repressive governments and nations lusting for their reality shows.
Not for nothing are the contestants brought into the arena on chariots and at one point fight animals ferocious as the lions to which Christians were fed. The presence of two young lovers called "star-crossed" pays the appropriate homage to the Bard while the forest stalking nods to The Most Dangerous Game. It's all brainy, nail-biting entertainment.
"Welcome! We salute your courage and your sacrifice and we wish you Happy Hunger Games!" Snow