It's OK

Rating: 7/10 (30 November 2013)

This movie is science fiction set in a distant future in which part of North America is divided into 12 zones, with some zones wealthier and more advanced than others. Television still plays a huge role in this future society. Television producers are able to create elaborate fantasy worlds.
For historical reasons, each zone is required to select a young man and young woman to participate in a reality show that is essentially a mutual hunt to the death combined with an escape from deadly special effects. The story focuses on the experiences of one engaging and attractive young couple from a particularly poor district.
In the last movie, they won the contest. We see that they were given money and nice homes, but Katniss is struggling with her fame and the horror of the games. In this movie, they and other former victors are -- much to their dismay -- called back to do the whole thing over again. It seems that the Capitol district (which runs the rest of the zones in a totalitarian dictatorship) is getting concerned about revolutionary feelings in the poorer worker districts.
The current score is too high. The amount of money this movie is bringing in is a phenomenon I don't really understand. I suppose I'm in the wrong demographic. It's an OK movie, but it's annoying at times. It felt artificial, too black and white, and too cloying. Yes, I was occasionally moved, but this involvement came at a price, i.e. the slimy feeling of being manipulated. This movie is not that different really than an extended "Survivor" episode.
I don't buy into the Hunger Games universe. I don't see it as realistic in any way. The demonization of President Snow bothered me. OK, we get it. He's evil. I enjoyed the off-the-wall characters played (excellently) by Stanley Tucci and Elizabeth Banks.