Hunger Games: The Movie

Chels: Let's get his out of the way now, I have been obsessed with this book series for months now. And much to Justin's annoyance I have relentlessly been trying to get Justin to read it. But blah blah blah, he hasn't, and will pay dearly for it - but that's another story. So obviously I was one of those people that advance ordered tickets to opening night and for weeks have anxiously been crossing days off my calendar. The Hunger Games depicts a semi-post-apocalyptic dis-utopian society wherein the rich and privileged relish their most sacred yearly televised event of the same name. But in this game you don't win by being the biggest skank, or eating the most cockroaches, or even having the best (worst) voice in all the land. No, in this game you compete for you life, and only your wits or brute strength will save you. All of the 12 Districts of Panem must offer up 1 boy and 1 girl between the ages of 12 and 18 in Tribute to fight to the death inside The Hunger Games. If you have been living under a rock the past few months there is a chance you might not have already absorbed this information, but for the rest of you, I'm going to spare you my in-depth description of the structure and plot line of Hunger Games the novel (that's a whole other review, right Squid?). So, you're either a girl, in which case you more than likely have read Hunger Games (didn't you just love it?), or you're a dude and think it's a chick book and can't get past the first few pages were Katniss describes her cat, Buttered Stuff, uh, Butternuts, wait, wait, I mean BUTTER CUP!! Either way, you should be happy to know that the movie does in fact do a good job of staying true to the book - well, as much as any multi million dollar blockbuster book-to-screen-adaptation can. Jennifer Lawrence does a wonderful job portraying Katniss Everdeen. I've loved her since Winter's Bone and playing young Mystique in the latest X-Men movie didn't hurt either. She is amazing and I can really see her successfully stepping into this characters shoes and carrying her story through all 3 books of the series. Josh Hutcherson gets the job done as Peeta Mellark, but he wouldn't have been my first choice casting wise. I think he has the chops to carry this character where he eventually needs to go, but he's a little too baby-faced and , cough, short , to really make me believe he was born to be Peeta. Gale, ohhh Gale on the other hand, yeeooowzaaa. I could look at Liam Hemsworth alllll daaay, but then I start to hear "IT'S MILEY" and I have to instantly cringe when I realize I'm oogling Miley Cyrus's man candy. Uuugh. Like I said, I love these books. So it was really annoying/obvious when an element completely diverted from what was described in the original. Example: if something is described as GOLD, it obviously should NOT be gun metal grey. If someone is described as being unique with BLUE EYES, don't make them brown - it makes you look stupid. All in all I definitely left satisfied. My hunger had be abated (see what I did there), at least until the next movie. AND MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN YOUR FAVOR!!

Justin: Who’s hungry! I read the first 11% of this book on my phone. I read about three pages and then got dismayed about the interaction with the cat. This scene actually made it into the movie. The scene where Catnip refuses to eat with utensils at the fancy banquet, did not. That’s where I stopped. By then, I knew that this headstrong young huntress was the biggest Mary Sue in the history of early 21st literature. Sorry KStew. Chels booked tickets far, far in advance of the release. I knew I was to witness the spectacle that is The Hunger Games: The Movie the Prequel to the Next Two Movies. Apparently this trilogy is so addictive that people usually get through the first three books by the time they finish sitting down. Our movie going experience, at the wonderful Kabuki Theater, was excellent. Assigned seats in the drinking section, although we didn’t drink for some reason. All the girls had read the books. None of the dudes, straight or gay, had read any of them. We were all in the same boat. My friend Pat and I walked through Japantown and sipped a tall can so all the kids who already knew how this movie ended could speak freely without ruining anything. Gosh, maybe I should talk about this movie. I had a feeling all through this movie that our neo-Appalachian heroine was never in any real danger. “She’s gonna live,” I whispered. “No! You can’t know that, you never read it.” said Chels. Mary Sues don’t die, Chels. Unless it’s The Lovely Bones, and even then they get to dance around with their grandpas in Lisa Frank heaven and peep on their little sisters. Right: Hunger Games. This is a good movie! 2012 has mostly sucked for movies, and this is a bright spot. I thought it was pretty well made, and well paced. It’s a great story, really. Solid B. Love that girl from Winter’s Bone. I thought it was funny how her hunky hunter dudefriend was hiding an Australian accent while she tried to hide her Southern accent. The baker kid is decent. This movie sucks so hard at first. It takes place in a futuristic world where Tim Gunn and Ronald McDonald conquered the fashion industry. Woody is so drunk. SPOILER ALERT: No, Woody does not vomit off of the stage like he does in the book. Of the 11% I read, that was my favorite part and I was looking forward to it. How could they take that part out? Actually, I surmise they took all the good stuff out, as many school marms mumbled, shoving past each other towards the exit when the credits rolled. Chels assures me it makes some smart compromises and represents the book well enough. This film. Like Ben Hur in its multi-colored grandure. Tucci, a masterful highlight for me. Oh my, the blushing embarrassment! Creepy Donald Sutherland President, who has weird smiling eyes when he talks about teens killing each other. I want to get away, I want to get away. Yeah, Lenny Kravitz. That firey dress. And then, she meets a handsome prince and lives in a castle with her million pet pony’s and eats ice cream without getting fat. No, actually she hides in the woods and acts like a little sneak for the whole movie when the rich kids get all Lord of the Flies. Gentlemen, Ladies, there is a lot of really excellent science fiction out there. This film, this trilogy, I hope, will entice a young generation of women away from the tawdry world of vampire fiction and instead into the geeky yet welcoming arms of Heinlein, Asimov and Niven. The universe would be a better place. Anyway, I, for one, would really like to see how Prim faired out there. With a name like Primrose Everdeen she’s got to be a stone cold murderer. Thanks a lot Catnip, now we’ll never know.