a passable prologue and a most disappointing ending ...

Rating: 2/10 (8 December 2013)

Really, this movie has a quite nice prologue ... but as it turns out its all prologue. We see the home front, then a tour of the provinces, followed by the splendour of the capital. A spectacular triumph for the survivors of the gladiatorial games of the past. All the competitors are given a nice blade-runner like intro sequence. They each have a 'special skill' (ie. sort of a super-power). Just in case you missed this, they get another intro via an all-live all-province glammed up TV interview. Very flash! But it is all building up to the 'games' and when we finally get to those games they are over before they really get started.
And it turns out this time its a team sport rather than a first person shooter type of game as in the first movie. Our heroine of course is pretty good with a bow (her 'super power'). But when it comes to choosing team-mates that's when the plot starts to fall down. In a fight to the death with no chance of a reprieve do you (a) choose the carnivorous teeth sharpened jugular biting woman from the district where they have to go head to head with large vicious baboons ('think beauty and the beast -- she's both') or (b) do you choose the nice little old lady who dabbles with healing herbs? Do you go for the guy who can throw a spear with enough force to mow down 5 holograms in a row or do you choose the weirdos in the corner puttering about with the arts & crafts who the others nickname "nuts and volts". Maybe 'Volts' is a misunderstood genius but the herb lady is so old and arthritic she has to be carried everywhere she goes, and her herbs are pretty much useless.
So OK, our heroine is pretty good with a bow but is not very smart and is useless at picking team-mates. But she has an adviser who should know what he is doing; who tells her 'stay away from nuts & volts ... and don't even think about that nice little old lady'. But who does she end up with as team-mates? How does this happen? Its not exactly clear. Supposedly they are planning the great 'revolution', but its not a revolution that our heroine wants any part of. She seems to have no political ideas, and no ideas on how to win the games. I'm quite partial to revolution and political ideas (like Terry Gilliam's Brazil) but actually there is nothing revolutionary or political in this movie. It makes Luke Skywalker look like he has a PhD in political science, so devoid is it of any real social commentary or political insight. OK, she comes from a remote mining district and so is not very well educated, and has little to no social skills or political savvy. And the older wiser authority figure is no Obi-Wan Kenobi who can tell her what is happening or given any useful advice (his special skill seems to be drinking straight from the bottle). And so she gets it into her small unthinking mind that she should sacrifice herself for her 'great love Peeta' (or as we would call him ... Peter). Never mind that she does not really care for him and that their 'love' is a ploy by the state to keep the masses contented. He is a bit like her gay best friend ... useless, no special skills of any kind, always falling over, running into force fields and that kind of thing ... but looks good on TV and and gives good motivational speeches. So of course he is on her team ... and when we finally get to the games she is constantly mumbling 'we have to save Peeta'. That gets old really fast! For 2 hours we wait for these great games to get started (which are supposed to entertain and thrill the entire world's population) and then all we get is a bit of wandering around in the jungle and mumbling about how 'Peeta' must survive. Even though the old lady with the herbs and who need a wheelchair is more likely to live longer than this toyboy! There is no fighting, no devious plots, no 'thumbs up or thumbs down' moments. What is the first thing that happens? 'Peeta' runs into a force field (despite having been given a tutorial about detecting force fields). He should have been blown to bits but seemingly by magic he is brought back to life (no, not by the herb lady -- that would have made too much sense).
Once they've wandered around the jungle a bit they need a plan. The 'game makers' have left a spool of cable lying about and 'Volts' immediately comes up with a 'plan' that is just a rehash of the one he used to win (by some miracle it seems) a previous game. Past games are of course televised and studied by all the gladiators, so anyone could tell you will end in disaster ... and of course it does turn out to be a complete disaster. But then just before being blasted to oblivion our heroine comes up with the idea of plugging an extension cord from the bedroom socket into the kitchen socket. Will this form the great infinite electrical loop that will destroy the world's electrical grid? All that will happen is that if you are not careful you will get a nasty shock and die. And we would say good riddance to them. But our heroine (as if by magic) survives the nasty shock, being only stunned ... but is mistaken for dead by the 'game makers' who helicopter her seemingly dead body out. Depriving us of the GAME! The title being "Hunger Games" ... and the so called 'games' end seemingly before they have begun. Games which we have waited more than 2 hours to get started. Now that is a disappointment!