If you didn't read the books forget it

Rating: 4/10 (27 December 2013)

I did not read the books but I did see and like the first movie. My wife did read the books. With that said, read on.
After the movie my wife was saying how great it was. When she asked me I said "it was terrible." She was shocked by my answer.
We began discussing and what I learned was most of my problems with the "holes" in the movie were explained in the books in great detail.
Examples: when does Katniss realize she is a symbol for the rebellion? In the book the cabin scene explains all of that. Who isthe woman her beau is trying to save from the guards? Oh thats explained in the book. Why does "the clock" changing not have a bigger impact? Explained in the book. When did her sister become so independent? Explained in the book. Why does Katniss have such a strong bond witgthe dress designer guy? Explained in the boom.
Do you see a pattern here?
Without reading the books you simply don't have a strong enough connection to the characters to care if they live or die. That is the worst possible scenario for a story like this.
in the end I found myself wanting them all to die so the movie would end. I suspect this movie should have been 2 separate movies in order to develop the back story such that we do care.
this movie missed the mark but if you read the books you are able to fill in the gaps.