The Hunger Games Review: Brilliant Transition from Book to Movie

Suzanne Collins is officially a god of both film and literature.

It’s a somewhat well-known fact that Collins got her start screenwriting for Nickelodeon shows like Clarissa Explains it All and The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo, but her foray into literature with The Hunger Games was a bit of a surprise—not to mention a major success. It is absolutely no shock, then, that Collins can translate her creation to screen fairly easily, albeit with a few slight yet forgivable changes.

For those of you who read the books, you will instantly notice a few things that aren’t quite the same—but very quickly into the film, you’ll be captivated and grow to accept how the story plays out. Yes, there will be some spoilers, so be forewarned if you do not know exactly how the entire Hunger Games series plays out (because we do and are pretty much obsessed).

We’ll start with the good. First off, Jennifer Lawrence is an amazing Katniss Everdeen. She completely looks the part and quickly proves her acting ability, especially in emotional scenes. Her love for her sister Prim (Willow Shields) is portrayed beautifully, just as her connection to Rue (Amandla Stenberg) plays out amazingly well. Obviously Katniss is at heart the mothering type, even if she comes off as cold and distant towards many of those surrounding her during the games (who wouldn’t, though, after volunteering to fight to the death?).

On the subject of Katniss, it is also refreshing that there was no inner monologue. Unlike the movie, the books involved a lot of Katniss thinking to herself, giving a ton of exposition through her thoughts. Lawrence, instead, portrays Katniss’s thoughts and emotions with her expressions and body language. The cinematography also helps to give the audience a good idea at what is going through her head. Her uncertainty of Peeta’s (Josh Hutcherson) intentions and her confusion between her feelings for him and for her best friend, Gale (Liam Hemsworth), can be seen, especially in the final few shots of the movie—while she does hold Peeta’s hand, she also is seen at first smiling at Gale before the smile fades at the realization that she has to keep up appearances.

The scenery is also spot-on. District 12 is set in Appalachia (we say West Virginia, even though it seems it was filmed in Asheville, N.C.), and the mountainous landscape is perfect. It was also probably a fairly easy transition from District 12 to the arena, as the landscape was practically unchanged. It should be said, however, that we could have seen more of the animals, at least in the background. The Capitol was also grand, even if it was mostly CGI.

Finally, costuming was brilliant. While we are no experts, it’s safe to say that the Capitol look was executed perfectly—all the vibrant colors and strange fashions were probably hell to accomplish, but major credit needs to go to whoever designed it all, as it is clearly award worthy. The flaming outfits during the chariot procession were also beautiful—it’s hard to remember that it was not Lenny Kravitz’s Cinna who designed them (in other words, his character was believable, even if we could have used more of him). Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket also looked stunning and ridiculous—perfect for the Capitol (and her acting also provided a great bit of comic relief from time to time).

And that brings us to the not-so-good parts. Cinna needed a bit more screen time, as did Rue. Rue’s death was definitely an emotional scene—thanks greatly to Lawrence’s acting driving it—but the audience really needed more of that connection. Even likening her to Prim just slightly would have done the trick, plus maybe five more minutes of screen time. Obviously a lot of the time with Rue and Katniss was mostly them waiting and formulating plans, but perhaps even more of Rue’s back-story in her district would have helped. Finally, Katniss’s beauty team seemed way too in the background—they have much larger roles coming up, so hopefully in the next movie, they’ll be featured a bit more.

Whether it was the casting or the acting, President Snow (Donald Sutherland) also did not come off as evil enough—he needed to be more snakelike. On the contrary, Haymitch (Woody Harrelson) seemed an odd fit at first, but he eventually fit into the role perfectly once the action really got moving. It’s just too bad we didn’t see more of his drunken antics. Also, Peeta was a bit boring—although to be fair, he really doesn’t get much of a personality until the later books. Gale was good looking but not quite rugged enough—we expected more of a mountain man type—at least with longer hair. He also seemed a bit too emotional as opposed to the somewhat deadened character of the book.

Overall, however, the entire movie was still brilliant. Mockingjay pin background aside (in the books Katniss did not get it at the Hob but from the mayor’s daughter), for the most part the plot stayed the same. Using the Tracker Jacker hallucinations to show a bit of her father’s story (he died in the coal mines) was brilliant, as was the minimal exposition throughout—the action told the story.

Also, though it strayed completely from the Katniss-centric text, seeing the inner-workings of the Games as well as the interaction between Snow and Gamemaker Seneca Crane (Wes Bentley) helped keep the story fresh and exciting while shedding light on things that the books did or could not. Now we know exactly what goes on behind the scenes, making the movies enticing even for those who are somewhat afraid of book-to-movie transitions—you get more for your money. The golden touch was also the scene of an uprising in District 11 after Katniss covered Rue’s body in flowers—this helps set up the future movies and gives us something to look forward to.

The Hunger Games is now playing nationwide to undoubtedly sold-out screenings. Even at a 10:30 a.m. matinee, expect the theatre to be packed—probably with junior high and high school kids skipping class (and you know what that means—they will talk, laugh at inappropriate times, throw popcorn and pretty much be assholes the entire time). If you’d like a more peaceful experience here in New York City, we recommend Nitehawk Cinema in Williamsburg. This institution offers dinner, drinks and a movie, with a themed menu for each film screened—for The Hunger Games, the dish is Prim’s “Getting By” Goat Cheese Sandwich, and the drink is, fittingly, The Girl on Fire. Hopefully when surrounded by a more mature audience, the film will be much more enjoyable. Regardless of the setting, however, just know that you’re in for a treat—and don’t be scared of the transition from text to film.

Happy Hunger Games, everyone, and may the odds be ever in your favor.

This article was originally published on AllMediaNY.com

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