Catching Fire

Title: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/Sci-Fi

Director: Francis Lawrence

Studio: Lionsgate

Run Time: 146 minutes

Cert: 12A (UK)

Release Date: November 21/22

(Depending on where you were)

My Rating: 5/5

After winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen returns home to District 12 along with fellow victor Peeta Mellark. Shortly after returning home, they must embark on a "Victory Tour" of the districts to celebrate their win, leaving behind their close friends and family again. But little do they know they will have to go back into the arena with the past winners. On the day of the Victory Tour, President Snow threatens Katniss' best friend and pretend cousin, Gale Hawthorne, outraged after she and Peeta broke the rules of the 74th Hunger Games that allowed them both to win. During the tour, Katniss senses that a rebellion is brewing in the districts, but the Capitol is still firmly in control as Snow prepares the 75th Annual Hunger Games, known as a Quarter Quell, an event taking place every 25 years – a competition that could change Panem forever.

In this Hunger Games, the tributes will be reaped from the existing pool of victors, making all the other Games look like child's play. As Peeta and Katniss end up in the arena again (as the only victors of District 12 with the exception of Haymitch), this time surrounded by experienced and vicious victors, President Snow is determined to eliminate them and destroy the rays of hope and the sparks of rebellions brewing up in the Districts. Now Katniss and Peeta must do whatever it takes to defeat their foes and come out on top once again and ignite the flames of rebellion in Panem.

I can't even begin to put in words how excited I was to see this movie. Sure you could probably see that from all the previous hunger games-related posts that led up to the eventual premiere! Anyway, I just want to start, straight out, by saying that I had unbelievably high hopes for this movie, and it met almost if not all of them!

Before going to the midnight screening, I read a summary, very detailed summary, of the book and surprisingly, the beginning was one of the most memorable parts for me, and seeing that played out on the big screen was near perfection! I'm not talking about when Gale and Katniss harass the poor turkeys, no, but when Katniss goes back to the Victors' village and Haymitch is just flat out of it at his kitchen table. It stuck in my head because, for some strange reason, it's one of the few scenes I felt I could imagine with ease, and the scene in the actual film was identical to the one in my head! It was just a great way to start a film, but it's probably also a reason some fans, who hadn't read the trilogy, didn't pay much attention to the beginning.

Personally, the events of the movie flew by and I had to go see the film a second time before I could form any comprehensible thoughts haha!

Anyway, following was the series of political happenings, like Snow's unexpected visit, the Victor tour, which I was surprised at how well it came out, the clips of uprisings in the Districts and then finally, the Quarter Quell announcement that left even the mighty Haymitch speechless!

I loved how you really got to see

 into the characters of Plutarch

and Snow with their little deep

meaningful chats! Haha

It really added depth to the characters, well more so Plutarch I think, and it would have made for an even bigger surprise, for those who haven't read the book, at the end of the movie.

Ah the grand celebratory party at the Capitol, for Effie's two angels..

Elizabeth Banks is absolutely brilliant with her role, in this scene especially. She stays so true to the character, that when Effie says something funny and the whole cinema starts to chuckle, you really believe it's her speaking and not just an actress saying her lines. Know what I mean?

I thought she absolutely captivated the audiences be it with her snappy demands, her mini panic attacks, or her genuine teary moments when she realises she has to say goodbye to Katniss and Peeta.

Truly plausible!

Speaking of great character performances, can we just realise and appreciate, for a moment, both Cinna and Lenny Kravitz! They're so alike it's uncanny! It's like Cinna is Lenny's honest reflection.

 They're both so unbelievably creative and intriguing, that you can't help but like them! 

I mean, come on, look at Katniss' wedding dress-turned-mockingjay getup, for pete's sake! I know it obviously not real and she's not really on fire and blah blah blah, but the ideas Cinna has are so unique, every new creation a work of art. I won't go into too much depth as to why I love his character, but I will say that, even though I saw it coming from the beginning of the movie, Cinna's being beaten up was pretty sad.

Everything from the tribute parade, the training, and actual games that is, is still a haze of pure euphoria for me, because it was just my absolute favourite part of, not just Catching Fire, but the whole trilogy! The directing from the tribute parade, and cinematography, were no less than strokes of genius. Everything was so much more vivid, much clearer and brighter. Definitely an improvement from the last movie!

Now here's where I rave about Jennifer Lawrence. Josh, Sam and Jenna also of course! But mainly Jennifer! The fact that the happenings in these games are obviously not real, makes the actor or actress' job even more difficult, because they have less to work with. But Jennifer Lawrence made it all look far too easy, she was that good.

Take the poisonous fog for example. I heard in a Francis Lawrence interview that he actually described to Jen and the others, as they acted out the scenes, where certain things were and the reaction needed from them, so on and so forth. But when I heard that, I was kinda surprised, because when you're watching the movie, and Katniss goes to touch the fog, it's so convincing that you don't really think to question how Jennifer acted that out behind the scenes you know?

The same for when the jabberjays were attacking Katniss and Finnick. The way they made it look, it was almost as if they used real birds and actually had to run and duck away from them like they did in the movie! Also noteworthy, might I quickly add, was Jena Malone as Johanna. She was badass to the core and freaking amazing to watch!

Across the board this movie scored full marks with me. It stayed true to the book, was well acted out and visually, was absolutely stunning! The way Francis handled the quick-paced ending, yet still made sure to keep the audience in the know, was excellent, and I'd say everyone could enjoy this movie. Young, old, fans and non-fans of the books, everyone.

I proudly award this brilliant film with a 5 out of a possible 5. Though there were one or two moments in the film that I thought were a bit unnecessary, like the one too many of these..

But I didn't think it was reason enough to dock any points off the film. Personally the film of the year. It'll definitely reel in some big bucks in the box office, that's for sure! Haha

The Hunger Games

Title: The Hunger Games 

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/Sci-fi

Director: Gary Ross

Studio: Lionsgate

Running time: 142 minutes

Release date: March 23, 2012

My rating: 7.6

Every year in the ruins of what was once North America, the evil Capitol of the nation Panem forces each of its twelve districts to send a teenage boy and girl to compete in the Hunger Games. A twisted punishment for a past uprising and ongoing government intimidation tactic. The Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in which "Tributes" must fight with one another until one survivor remains.

Pitted against highly-trained Tributes who have prepared for these Games their entire lives, Katniss is forced to rely upon her sharp instincts as well as the mentorship of drunken former victor Haymitch Abernathy. If she's ever to return home to District 12, Katniss must make impossible choices in the arena that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

                                               - Filmjabber

So, my very first movie review.. let's just see how it goes shall we? Hahaha
Oh and by the way, I chose to do 'The Hunger Games' because one, it's one of my favourite book series and is already one of my favourite film series too, and also because I'm going to see the midnight premiere of 'Catching Fire' and I wanted to do a review of the first before I did a review of the second!

'The Hunger Games', arguably one of the most highly anticipated movies of 2012, or was that just me? I had previously read the trilogy by Suzanne Collins, so I was well caught up with the stories, which made me want to see it on the big screen even more! Ross, the director, though he messed up a few things, in my opinion, did do a good job for such a huge adaptation. The lead actors, Jen Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Elizabeth Banks and Woody Harrelson, did an even better job with their portrayals. While the directing could have been improved, I thought the acting was spot on!

I'm sure everyone knows of the story by now, unless you've been living under a freaking rock! Haha! It's sort of similar to some others out there, namely Battle Royale, but it's so unique at the same time! First of all, the setting is sometime into the future, in what we know to be North America, but instead, in called Panem. The Capitol is the capital, completely not obvious I know,surrounded by twelve districts. Each district is responsible for providing a particular something for the Capitol, and as a result of a past rebellion, 'The Hunger Games' was introduced, as explained in the filmjabber synopsis.
The film is basically about Katniss, a girl from District 12 who is chosen to play in the Games in the 74th annual Hunger Games, and what she encounters while in the arena.

Just so you can visualise what Panem actually looks like.

Going back to what I said about the directing of the movie, I do think Gary Ross did a good job, but honestly there were parts that disappointed me. It couldn't have been an easy task, you know, taking on something as big as The Hunger Games film, what with all the pressure from the excited fans, and the demands of the plot itself. What I really enjoyed in THG film, the direction and all, was the training scenes. Especially Katniss' private session with the gamemakers, I thought it was great across the board. That along with the Tribute parade..

Or even the very start, when Katniss

volunteers in place of Prim, her little

sister, all those were brilliant!




What I didn't fancy, what let me down the most, though, was the world building. I completely understand that the budget wasn't exactly ideal for a world like Panem, but throughout the movie, I just couldn't shake the bogged down vibe I got from the little we got to see of the districts, the Capitol and the actual arena. I can't explain exactly what it is I feel whenever I watch the movie, but basically I just think they could have put a little more into it. I mean, there was one part I liked, when the train was arriving at the Capitol, and you could see all the futuristic high rise buildings and stuff. Yeah that was cool!

The editing, writing and costumes and stuff were pretty good. I don't know too much on editing, but I thought the film ran smoothly, the lighting and all that, suited the particular scenes really well! One thing I was surprised by, but still found enjoyable, was Katniss' tracker jacker hallucinations. It was so interesting how we got to see through Katniss' dizzy eyes, as if we were the ones bitten by those damn bugs! Hahaha
Yeah anyway, the writing was great, even though I thought the cave scenes were a tad sappy. That might just be because I'm a guy though! Haha

I absolutely LOVED the costumes in the film! From the outfits of the Capitol residents..

To the suits they had to wear during their training..

And the costumes for the Tribute Parade!

They were all so creative and looked awesome!

The last part of the film, which isn't really part of the film, was the soundtrack for THG film. The soundtrack came out, what, a few days before the film? I actually liked all the songs on the list, but after a few months of listening to them, I got bored of all except one. Can you guess which that is? It's probably really obvious... Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift! I remember exactly how I felt listening to it the first time around. I don't know, something just clicked and I instantly fell in love with the song, and it's still one of my favourite songs to this day. I don't think a day has passed without me listening to that song.. Is that bad?

Haha well anyway, all in all I thought the film was really good, in need of improvement in some areas, but still really good. I would say it's suitable for all ages, because the violence is even more limited than the books, and I really think it's just a movie that could interest all age groups!

Anyway, thanks for reading, I think this has been my best review yet, and there's more where that came from!