Best book adaptation I've seen. Gripping, riveting stuff.

Rating: 10/10 (27 November 2013)

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is exquisite and is made so by a strong storyline, great pace, tension and great actors.
What impressed me most in the books were the perfectly timed plot twists and how each turn of events consistently tops the previous ones. The book also manages to plant subtle suspicions, fears and ideas in the reader's mind that is just as often helped by what the characters DO NOT SAY than what they DO say. Combine that with the honesty and immediacy with which Katniss Everdeen narrates her own tale in the book and you have your job cut out if you want to bring her story to the big screen. But that is exactly what director Francis Lawrence has done with panache.
The movie is superbly paced. Each plot twist and storyline is given enough focus to give the user time to process and appreciate. I dare say it evokes some of the same thrills and shocks as the chapter-endings had when reading the book.
Jennifer Lawrence brings perfect life to Katniss as she struggles to adapt to her new status as a symbol of hope. This time around Peeta gets given much more opportunity to play his very central role and reveal his character. The complexity of the relationship between Katniss and Peeta is also explored in more depth and with more conviction than in the first film.
Donald Sutherland is menacing as President Snow. The introduction of Philip Seymour Hoffman as Plutarch Heavensbee as well as the introduction of some victors from previous Hunger Games adds a great deal of tension to the film.
Visually the film is stunning. From the gray military-style districts through to the technicolor over-indulgence in the capital and through forests, each setting contributes strongly to the mood and enjoyment of the film.
The film balances a dark mood and action with moments of light humor. It is not devoid of emotional moments that evoke great empathy but manages to do so without becoming sentimental.
I give The Hunger Games: Catching Fire my highest rating - something I don't easily do. It is one of the few films where, at the end, I stayed behind through all the end credits - Elated, stunned, somehow tired but very very satisfied. I'd say that this is probably the best book-adaptation I have seen in a film.