Suzanne Collins‘ young adult novel The Hunger Games isn’t particularly well-written, but it’s undeniably cinematic. Collins’ paints a strange, brutal world with a hint of social commentary wrapped in a melodramatic love story and intense action. For the film adaptation, director Gary Ross has created an effective and memorable experience that’s deadly serious and seriously entertaining. Rather than playing into the blockbuster elements of the novel, he takes a subdued approach where less is more and “more” is darkly and comically grotesque. The movie remains tied to the weaker aspects of the book, especially the anti-climactic finish and lightweight social commentary, but terrific performances from the cast and Ross’ superb direction paint a potent and compelling picture.
At an unspecified point in the future, America was broken into 12 districts ruled by the Capital. When the districts attempted to rebel, they were crushed, and as punishment they are annually forced to submit two “tributes”, a boy and a girl each under the age of 18, to fight in The Hunger Games. The fight among the 24 tributes is to the death with only one tribute left standing. The Games are televised for the entertainment of the capital and as a cruel reminder of the districts’ subjugation. When 11-year-old Primrose Everdeen (Willow Shields) is selected as District 12′s female tribute, her loving and fiercely-protective sister Katniss (Jennifer Lawarence) volunteers to take her place. Katniss heads to the Capital with non-volunteer tribute Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson), their chaperone Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks), and their drunken, surly mentor and former Hunger Games champion Haymitch Aberdeen (Woody Harrelson). Once there, she encounters two disturbing worlds: the colorful and twisted society of the Capital followed by the violent, bloody arena of the Games.
Ross quickly establishes the tone by using title cards to explain the world and the games, and then leading with Katniss taking care of Primrose. There’s hardly any dialogue or music in the first scenes of the film. It’s a quiet, melancholy tension that runs throughout the movie, particularly when Katniss is in nature. Rather than resort to the Capra-esque uplift of his previously films Pleasantville and Seabiscuit, The Hunger Games lives in the small moments like Katniss tucking in the back of Primrose’s shirt or Peeta trying to win over the Capital’s citizens before he even gets off the train. There are heightened emotions in The Hunger Games, but the movie rarely raises its voice when the main characters are on screen, and this stern solemnity makes the shrill sounds of the Capital even more effective.
Once the story arrives at the Capital, it’s clear that the costume and makeup departments had an absolute field day. The movie isn’t trying to depict a possible future as much as it’s symbolically demonstrating how the Capital’s citizens have almost become non-human from feeling excitement rather than disgust when they see kids kill each other. At first, the citizens’ appearances, like gamemaker Seneca Crane’s (Wes Bentley) crazy beard or host Caesar Flickerman’s (Stanley Tucci) bright blue hairdo illicit giggles from the audience, and while Ross doesn’t shut down the humor, he doesn’t want the style to be a release valve either.
The Hunger Games is an entertaining movie, but it constantly has to fight against the sensational to avoid undermining the story’s central theme. We’re never meant to admire the fashion and extravagance of the Capital’s citizens. They’re fools who have lost touch with humanity, and they look almost deformed as a result. Ross carries this disdain for the sensational into the games when he manages to take his PG-13 rating and turn it to his advantage. Collins’ book almost revels in the violence, but the movie wants to look away. This approach makes the onslaught more brutal when we see a quick blood smear or hear the sound of a body falling. In this way, Ross imbues the movie with a sense of danger, so even if you’ve read the book, the stakes feel real, and you’re stuck in a nightmare where an opponent could be lurking behind every bush or tree.
The atmosphere is intensified by the tremendous performances of the entire cast, and readers of the book should be pleased with every casting decision. Lawrence knows how to play the aloof, combative side of Katniss, but she also knows how to switch to the character’s compassion and vulnerability. The actress has slightly softened the edges of her terrific performance in Winter’s Bone and made the character fit within the world of The Hunger Games. But the standouts are Tucci and Hutcherson. Tucci provides some of the brief but welcome moments of comic relief, and his gigantic, toothy smile brings the film’s satirical edge to the forefront. His charisma is complimented by Hutcherson, who gets to provide an emotional connection whenever Katniss is busy being detached and guarded.
Hutcherson and Lawrence have strong chemistry, but one of the film’s breaking points is keeping their characters apart for too long. Ross manages to turn some of the novel’s weaker elements to his advantage, but the slavish devotion to all the major plot beats makes the movie share the book’s shortcomings. These weaknesses particularly begin to overwhelm the film near the end when it tries to force a delayed relationship, and then reaches an anti-climatic finish that serves the upcoming sequel rather than providing a strong conclusion to the current installment.
Hunger Games also never pushes its themes beyond an observation. Although the book has found a wide audience, it was intended for young adults, so its social commentary will probably feel fresh to those who never considered the use of entertainment as a protective distraction from the hardships of the non-privileged. It’s the airplane-read version of the self-centered dystopian futures seen in Brave New World and Fahrenheit 451. The movie will likely cause a shrug from the adult members of the audience, but it’s an effective vehicle for getting adolescents to consider ideas they’ve never thought about before.
The highly-anticipated adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ best-selling novel can be a bit slavish and shallow at times, but it’s a remarkable adaptation by delivering passion and drama without the bombast of a traditional blockbuster. Gary Ross’ The Hunger Games spurns the gaudy and perverse desires of those who mindlessly crave entertainment, and instead offers something quietly captivating and thoughtfully crafted.
Rating: B
Creator Ryan Murphy Reveals Details on AMERICAN HORROR STORY Season 3; Jessica Lange, Sarah Paulson, and Evan Peters to Return
First Trailer and Poster for RED 2 Starring Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren and John Malkovich
16 New Images from A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD Featuring Bruce Willis, Jai Courtney and Yuliya Snigir
Watch: How THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY Should Have Ended
First Trailer for SPRING BREAKERS Starring Vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez, and James Franco
As an adult reader of the Hunger Games, I understand your perspective on the shallow treading of the heavier themes present in the book. However, I have to disagree. I think the book appeals surfacely to the young adult demographic, but I found as I delved deeper into the book(s) that Collins’s writing allows the reader to think about the heavier themes in the book on his or her own terms. This in my opinion made for a more effective read because I did not feel I was getting spoon fed the material.
Anyways, that is just my opinion. Perhaps the movie will invoke the same terrific response that the book did.
The book revels in the violence? No it doesn’t. It features violence yes, but makes sure that its cringingly real and not glamourous. you didnt read the book did you.
Your review makes me want to see this movie even more than I did before.
The split between American society is already happening today between those hoarding wealth at the cost of those born to poor families. (poor families being anyone from middle class down these days)
Collin’s writing is a warning to a future we are traveling towards right now but no one can put their “new ipads” down long enough to see it happening around them with the rise of radicals and fanatics in our culture.
Three words: Battle Royale rip-off
You sir, are a moron, since you got no idea what your talking about…
he certainly does’nt because he said 4 words not 3 lol
I see one parallel and that is teenage kids are pitted against one another. Everything else is entirely different from what i’ve seen of the Hunger Games. in Battle Royale the Government, or Military, take the kids at random and dump them on the island, while one person ( Beat Takeshi) effectively tells them to kill each other. It’s punishment, like in Hunger Games, but for a different reason. In HG its the districts as a whole that rebel, in BR its the youth that rebel. There is no lavishly decadent society tuning in, in Battle Royale. There is no twisted upper class in Battle Royale. Battle Royale focuses on the emotional strain of being isolated with immature kids your age, with weapons, that want to kill you because they want to live, or are freaking out because they can’t handle the situation they’re put it. Battle Royale is twisted because, well, Japanese come up with twisted ideas, but it’s valid.
You are as offensive as you are ignorant. You should refrain from making not clever, bad founded comments.
Wow Matt. You even included a review of the book. Bravo, buddy.
Sounds like a mashup of The running man and A boy and his dog. With a little Deathrace and Rollerball thrown in because we don’t remember those movies, do we?
two words: battle Royale rip-off
I am surprised that no one is mentioning the camera work in their reviews. I found the extensive use of closeups to be quite hard to watch and it seemed as if the closeups were used for budgetary reasons than anything else. Not a lot of money was spent on sets and the closeups hid that from the audience for most of the film. The beautiful and talented Jennifer Lawrence made it all bearable though – she will be a huge star.
This movie is going to effing bomb like a mother*****!
And Stanley Tucci looks as stupid as Alec Baldwin in that Rock Of Ages crap!
So… Sold out midnight showings across the country and tracking to break $100 million this weekend is a bombing “like a mother******”?
You’re an idiot, Terry. Perhaps you’re confusing “The Hunger Games” with “John Carter”?
Five words: Royale rip-Battle off?
If anyone can change it please its the CapitOl not the Capital
According to Dictionary.com, my spelling is correct.r
According to Suzanne Collins, you’re wrong. Womp womp.
The spelling of ‘Capitol’ only appears about 500 times in the first book, lol.
“Suzanne Collins‘ young adult novel The Hunger Games isn’t particularly well-written”
What a douchey intro. Why did this guy feel the need to glibly knock the source material?
maybe because it isn’t. its an overtly shallow terribly written book.
You’re as stupid as your name derpy. This book is entertaining and keeps you locked inside of it. I personally found it difficult to put down. If thats not the definition of a good book, then what in your opinion is?
There is so much that is referenced in all of these Hunger Games reviews that frankly just is not in the movie. I haven’t read the books. I knew very little about the story. All of this struggle and strife of the poor and the “deformity” of the rich and their costumes…it just isn’t on the screen. You’re all projecting what you’ve read in the books onto the movie. Everything is far too clean. For being a rotten, dirty, coal miner’s daughter, Katniss sure has a great dental plan. The Games look more like camping, sponsored by REI. The Capitol city’s CG looks just about as bad as it did in Caprica on TV. The love “triangle” is laughable. Jennifer Lawrence does a good job with the material, but all of the press concerning the other supporting actors is just copy-and-paste from some studio press release. The only two supporting actors that bring anything to the table are Woody Harrelson and Lenny Kravitz. Moreover, it’s boring and tedious. Nothing has any weight to it. It’s lowest-common-denominator cinema.
Thank you. I have no idea what the fuss over The Hunger Games is. I saw it, and thought it was honestly pretty awful.
There is an error in the review. It’s “Haymitch Abernathy,” not “Aberdeen.” Maybe you accidentally combined Abernathy and Everdeen.
First of all, like mrd101 said, it “The CapitOl”, not the CapitAl… That’s enough proof to show you never read the book… Not even the review…
Second, they pic by lottery a boy and a girl between the ages of 12 and 18, not just “under 18″ as you said…
Third, Prim is 12, not 11…
Fourth, the districs after the rebellion are 12, but in the beginning, they were 13…
Fifht, as Dsimolke said, Haymitch’s last name is “Abernathy”, not “Aberdeen”
Did you even bother to watch the movie and really pay attention? Or you just read some of the worst reviews of the movie and the book and then came up with this useless review of yours?
it’s HAYMICH ABERNATHY -_- !!!
I thought the movie was okay. It needed more action. Matt, you criticized War Horse for NOT showing violence but you like that the violence is implied in Hunger Games. What gives?
I will immediately take hold of your rss feed as I can not in finding your e-mail subscription hyperlink or e-newsletter service. Do you have any? Please permit me recognize in order that I may just subscribe. Thanks.