When setting up my WordPress account I couldn’t figure out what I should blog about first. After thinking about it for a while I finally came to the conclusion of blogging about Books vs. Movies, giving my opinion on the books that I have read and the movies that have been created because of the books. This is my first post so here goes nothing.
I have recently read The Hunger Games trilogy after being told repeatedly to do so by my friends as they said they were fantastic. I have to agree with them because I thoroughly enjoyed them. After reading these books I decided that I would allow myself to watch the movie to see how they managed to bring the book to life. I have to say that the movie was a bitter disappointment to me.
Suzanne Collins is an incredible writer that created a moving, detailed portrayal of a young girl living under a cruel dictatorship in the future. These books show the extreme poverty and the unequal distribution of wealth in Panem’s society. The people that live in the wealthy Capitol have little in common with the people of the 12 Districts that they regard the deaths of the children as entertainment. The Hunger Games is shocking because the violence is brutal and unnecessary, yet embraced and celebrated by the residents of the Capitol. The Districts tributes are not enemies at all yet they kill each other all the same, some more reluctantly and other with more enthusiasm. As the trilogy goes on it becomes a compelling commentary on the madness of the war and the sad truth of violence in the people’s lives. These major themes however, are woven so deeply that you may not even notice that they are being discussed. When reading the books you become immersed in Katniss’ world that involves poverty and violence a sad but an expected part of life.
The movie follows the basic story but it completely lacks the emotional depth. The character development of Katniss is nonexistent and the deaths in the area are bloodless in every sense of the word. The tributes are walking stereotypes so the deaths of them have absolutely no impact on the audience. In the book Rue’s death is heart wrenching however it was a little more than a side note in the movie. In all honesty, if i hadn’t read the books I wouldn’t have understood the dynamic of the tributes at all, including the conflicted and complicated relationship between Katniss and Peeta. The romance between them comes across as cheesy and unconvincing on all levels. There is no hint of a bond that grows between them as the story progresses.
My biggest criticism of the movie is that nobody seems to be going hungry! The book is about the survival of the people in the Districts! The movie makers overlooked this important point. The Capitol’s exploitation of the Districts is supposed to be the backdrop of the entire story. When Katniss arrives in the Capitol she is amazed at the quantity and quality of the food. She observes how their food appears at the touch of a button, she can’t understand how the Capitol residents fill their time. The majority of her days are filled with feeding her family. It is what defines her! Most of the tributes have never had enough to eat and this is a major factor in the Games.
At first the movie seemed quite promising. There was an ominous mood in district 12 which was perfect. It is clear that the people who live there are exhausted and resigned to their fate. When the residents appear for the reaping, they look like cattle being rounded up for slaughter. The Capitol, in contrast, is frightening in it’s artificiality. The juxtaposition was very well done, however they truly lost me when the tributes stepped into the arena.
I felt like there was a lack of tension in the arena and the tributes make all sorts of noise as they move through the woods, seemingly obvious to the fact that they are being hunted. Katniss stands about ten feet away from Cato when he snaps another tributes neck, killing him instantly, and we are supposed to believe that Cato doesn’t see Katniss hiding? I felt that the scenes of the control room were pointless and added nothing to the movie. The time that the movie makers spent on the control room scenes should have been spent on the character development! Unfortunately, the lack of character development causes the emotional scenes to fall completely flat. The overall result lacks the intensity and depth that the books clearly have.
I will give credit to Elizabeth Banks for giving an excellent portrayal of Effie Trinket. She adds a certain humor and a sense of the absurdity of Capitol life. Donald Sutherland also portrays a brilliant President Snow. However, Jennifer Lawrence is an inadequate Katniss and lacks the emotion that the book portrays. Josh Hutcherson also plays a terrible Peeta and is not very likable. We are shown none of his inner strength. Instead, he comes across as weak and whiny. Woody Harrelson plays Haymitch well in some parts. However, he is supposed to be a self destructive drunk. His cunning is all the more unexpected because he seems to be incapable of taking care of himself. It seemed that the movie makers watered his character down in order to market it to young adults.
The movie did have a lot of potential but it fell short in important ways. I feel that I am being harsh by giving the movie a 2/10 but I felt that the movie makers kept all of the plot points, or tried to keep the plot points but kept none of the important meaning. I recommend that people should read the books instead.
Writer's Block 