The Hunger Games

Reviews from the Dark Side presents
The Hunger Games
Released 3/23/12, now in theaters

Let the summer movie season begin!  Well, maybe about five weeks early.  This week saw the release of one of the most anticipated movies of the year, The Hunger Games.  This is the first movie adaptation of Suzanne Collins' book trilogy (2nd book adaptation, Catching Fire, is due in 2013).  Jennifer Lawrence stars as Katniss Everdeen, the protagonist of the story.  You might remember her as Mystique from last year's X-Men:  First Class. 

Katniss lives in the dystopian society of Panem which encompasses all of the countries that once formed North America.  Panem is divided into 12 districts (once 13).  There was an uprising by the districts over 70 years ago that was defeated by government.  The reigning government has made sure the 12 districts do not forget their failure.  For the past 74 years, they have made each district supply one boy and one girl between the ages of 12-18 annually for the Hunger Games.  The Hunger Games is a brutal, televised fight to the death between the 24 children (called tributes) chosen to participate.  Katniss is a 16 year old teenager who lives in the coal mining 12th District.  She's an expert tracker and hunter (good with a bow, too).  She volunteers for the Hunger Games to take the place of her younger sister, Primrose, who is unfortunately chosen to participate in the 74th annual games.  Her male counterpart from the district is Peeta Mellark, a baker's son who we find out later has admired Katniss from afar for quite awhile  (sucks he has to kill her now right?). 

Katniss and Peeta are taken to the Capitol where they are mentored by Haymitch Abernathy (Woody Harrelson), the winner of one of the past games.  Haymitch is a burned out middle aged man who is haunted by his participation in the games years ago.  He finds life much easier being drunk.  He does, however, take a liking to his new charges and advises both on how to survive.  In this game of life and death, likability among the masses is just as important to survival as physical skill.  After Peeta admits his crush for Katniss on national television, Haymitch urges  Katniss and Peeta to act as a loving couple in the arena as this will gain them support and sponsors that could prove useful during the games.  He also provides one more bit of sage advice.  Just before the start of the games, he urges Katniss not to take the easy temptation of grabbing weapons when the buzzer sounds, but to head for the high grounds of the dense forest that serves as the battlefield.  He proves to be a prophet as no less than six tributes are killed by their peers within the first few minutes and exactly half the tributes fall within the first eight hours.  Katniss manages to flee to the woods with a small backpack of supplies amidst the initial carnage.  She spends the competition fleeing from a pack of tributes who have banded together to hunt the remaining contestants.  Shockingly, Peeta is among this group.  However, he is only here for survival, and, it appears to help Katniss.  Katniss outmaneuvers the group with the assistance of Peeta and another female tribute named Rue.  She also obtains a bow and quiver of metallic arrows from a dead tribute.  Now armed with weapons, Katniss tries to survive the competition with her wits, deadly bow skills, and a lot of luck.

I really didn't think much of The Hunger Games from the trailers I saw, but decided to give it a shot after the moviegoer reviews I read.  I'm glad I did.  The movie does a very good job of depicting how the tributes are manipulated by the government to fight to the death.  Many of the tributes do not come from affluent backgrounds.  In Katniss's case, the region is dirt poor.  The tributes are enticed with good, plentiful food and luxury apartments.  It's no wonder that they are willing to break each other's necks with the possibility of more luxury if they win.  Of course Districts 1 and 2 don't need much incentive as they seem to be trained for combat from the womb.  The movie ends on a weird note with the President of Panem (Donald Sutherland) not looking at all happy watching the victory celebration.  Maybe that's due to the Panem government being "shown up" as Haymitch says. There's an unresolved love triangle between Katniss, Peeta, and Gale which I assume will be followed in the coming movies.  Gale is Katniss's best friend who, like Peeta, seems to want to be more.  He's her slightly older hunting buddy who she asks to take care of her family while she is away and in case of her death. 

I just read this movie has grossed $155 million this weekend.  I know that's a record of some kind, but let's not get crazy.  It's a good, solid movie.  I will see the next two chapters. It is sentimental without being sappy (hear that Twilight?).  The action is realistic and brutal.  It still hasn't made me forget my longing for The Avengers though.  Maybe nothing will, but this is a decent enough distraction until May 4.  Good but not great in my opinion.  Then again, I felt that way about Harry Potter at first.

The Dark Lord of the Sith says:

 *** 1/4 stars

Ratings Legend
Zero *= Don't waste your time. Pure dreck! Dreck is too good for this! Blind me please!
1 *= Fuggedaboutit!
2 *= Average, Mediocre, Nothing Special
3 *= Good viewing. Much better than a poke in the eye.
4 *= Great. Could possibly foot the price of a non-Matinee.
5 *= Pure eye candy. Hall of Fame material here.