The Hunger Games: Movie Review and Book vs. Movie

 

THE HUNGER GAMES:  MOVIE REVIEW AND BOOK VS. MOVIE

      You have probably all seen my recent post reviewing The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. After reading an idea from Ilona (thank you, Ilona!), I have decided to write a review and comparison regarding the book-to-film adaption.

      First of all, let me say that The Hunger Games is one of my all-time favorite books. I was scared to see the movie, and at one point decided that I would skip seeing the Hunger Games on the big screen. Why? Because I hadn't wanted the movie version to ruin my love for the book, by twisting the plot line or having not-so-talented actors playing some of my favorite roles. After braving the dark movie theater on opening day, I found that my love for the book had not died, but had instead been rekindled.

      Jennifer Lawrence, playing Katniss Everdeen, was phenomenal. She stays true to the character I know from the novel, even though the transition from first person tense in the book must have been difficult. Liam Hemsworth (playing Gale), Amandla Stenburg (playing Rue), Woody Harrelson (playing Haymitch), Elizabeth Banks (Effie), Willow Shields (Prim), and Lenny Kravitz (Cinna), were all played to perfection. The one problem I had with the casting/acting was Peeta Mellark, played by Josh Hutcherson. My first thought after hearing that he had been cast as Peeta was that he didn't look like how I had imagined Peeta whatsoever. That fact was confirmed after seeing the movie trailer. Of course, wonderful acting would make up for that slight disappointment, wouldn't it? The problem was that, although it was fabulous acting, it was never quite as flawless as Lawrence's, and Hutcherson never really spoke to me as Peeta. It was an okay.

      I thought that the movie was paced wonderfully. There was never too much of a wait between the action, and the flow throughout the movie was incredible. 

      The problem I will always have with movies based off books that I have read is that they don't follow the exact plot from the book. The Hunger Games was no exception. Although the decisions regarding these scenes were probably made for a good reason, I wasn't a big fan of the changes made from the book, including the major change made with the Mockingjay pin. I found that the new version of it didn't make any sense; why would someone give away something so so valuable, and after Katniss gave the pin to Prim "for good luck," after obviously not working for luck (Prim got chosen for the Games), why Prim would give it back to Katniss. I also didn't like how they chose to sneak the pin into the arena instead of having the rule of one token per tribute.

      I also hated the shaky camera. Although setting the feeling for the scene, it was used way too much (Katniss standing in her bedroom - really?) and was way too much for me to handle. I did happen to see it in IMAX, so I might find that it is a great improvement when watching it in my basement, but on the big screen it was way to hard to follow the fight scenes.

      Overall, I think this movie was amazing. I will gladly re-watch it over and over. The acting, pacing, and dialogue really stood out to me, and made up for the disappointments from the shaky camera and the plot differences from the book. I would recommend this book and/or movie to anyone 11+ (fyi movie is rated PG-13, for violence) who enjoys dystopian/science fiction, or looking for a good action movie. When comparing The Hunger Games book versus the movie, I would have to say I think the book is better, and my favorite out of the two (but that will almost always be my thoughts for movies based off of books - I love the original!) Let's all hope that The Hunger Games's sequel, "Catching Fire," (coming out November 2013) will be as fantastic as the first!