Today Mom and I went to go see "The Hunger Games." My first thought was that it was good. I agree with the general concensus that it is a good adaptation of the novel, and it's not a literal retelling. The editing, script, and camera shots work together to make it almost on the verge of a documentary.
This "documentary" style helps improve the film, giving structure and eliminating the need for a bunch of voice-overs by Katniss, the main character. (other reviews have said this.) Yes, there are shots that are shaky, but they mostly occur during the Games' killings, obscuring some of the violence. The shakiness adds to the documentary feel. There are added elements not included in the book, such as Gamemaker conversations and their control room, and a conversation with the President.
One problem that I had with the book was its' pacing in two parts in particular: the time in the forest after the start of the Games, and the scenes in the cave with Katniss and Peeta. Thankfully, these parts in the movie are shortened.
Set design... I'd need to see the film again to focus more on the Capitol. Regarding District 12, you would almost forget that it is set in the future; it seems like it took place a few generations ago. I didn't really care for the Conucopia; I thought it looked kind of weird- too angular. I was kind of glad that the special effects team didn't go for making the "muttations" (wild dogs) as freaky as they were in the book. "They" also handled the tracker-jacker hallucinations for Katniss in an interesting manner, revisiting her father's death rather than having her "see" orange bubbles and giant butterflies. (Really. Read that section.)
Characters.... Jennifer Lawrence was great as Katniss, especially. Someone did a great job when they cast Prim, Katniss' sister. I really liked Lenny Kravitz as Cinna, the stylist. I had pictured Haymitch differently while reading the novel, but Woody Harrelson is great. Amandla, as Rue, is lovable. Effie was great, the actress getting the eccentricity just right.
You may need tissues... I started to cry during the reaping, when Katniss volunteers to take Prim's place, and Prim's screaming. Mom cried when Rue died.
The ending definitely lends itself to a sequel, and one more scene (not in the book) hints at what leads to the next movie. It was actually kind of fascinating, how they did it.
I would like to see it again.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Sunday, March 4, 2012
When They Mean Unauthorized...
(Or, "How to really write a guide.")
I guess they really mean it.
About a week or so ago, I picked up a book called "The Hunger Games Companion" by Lois H. Gresh. Subtitled "The unauthorized guide to the series." "Unauthorized" meaning it isn't sanctioned by The-Publisher-Powers-That-Be. It can also mean that it doesn't really hit the mark when you're in the mood to read something about your favorite series. "Unauthorized" was the key word. And I knew it. I thought I'd give it the old college try. (ha-ha) You can't say I wasn't warned.
It could have been worse. I mean, I know there's only so much you can do when you don't have the permission from the author or original publishing company. But it could have been way better.
The book provides a lot of possible historical inspirations for the books. At the end of each chapter, descriptions of doomsday predictions are provided. It is my opinion that they are entirely unnecessary; THG [The Hunger Games] doesn't even talk about apocalyptic events.
However, it discusses many historical events thoroughly. The Roman Empire is given a lot of air time; it's very in-depth, to the point of surpassing the violence level of THG. That part is good, considering what you sometimes get in history class might not be all that great. She gives descriptions of technological advances in the book and speculates how close we could be to developing them now. The weapons descriptions are interesting.
The author gets kind of preachy at times: if we don't do this, that will happen. There's nothing really that new. She doesn't really connect history to the events in the books very well, leaving you with a detached feeling. You understand that these events have happened in the world, but how did they inspire the book?
The book may get very boring very quickly for its' intended audience. Basically, one of the few things I got from it was why Katniss does away with a main character near the end of "Mockingjay."
For a good guide, take a page (har-har) from the Twilight Guide. Pictures would have been good, and a timeline, for example. You would just have to go back and forth between each book in the series to make it. Or, I'll just say it: Ms. Collins, please write one fast. There's supposed to be some sort of book coming out the same week as the movie.
I might as well just write one.
I guess they really mean it.
About a week or so ago, I picked up a book called "The Hunger Games Companion" by Lois H. Gresh. Subtitled "The unauthorized guide to the series." "Unauthorized" meaning it isn't sanctioned by The-Publisher-Powers-That-Be. It can also mean that it doesn't really hit the mark when you're in the mood to read something about your favorite series. "Unauthorized" was the key word. And I knew it. I thought I'd give it the old college try. (ha-ha) You can't say I wasn't warned.
It could have been worse. I mean, I know there's only so much you can do when you don't have the permission from the author or original publishing company. But it could have been way better.
The book provides a lot of possible historical inspirations for the books. At the end of each chapter, descriptions of doomsday predictions are provided. It is my opinion that they are entirely unnecessary; THG [The Hunger Games] doesn't even talk about apocalyptic events.
However, it discusses many historical events thoroughly. The Roman Empire is given a lot of air time; it's very in-depth, to the point of surpassing the violence level of THG. That part is good, considering what you sometimes get in history class might not be all that great. She gives descriptions of technological advances in the book and speculates how close we could be to developing them now. The weapons descriptions are interesting.
The author gets kind of preachy at times: if we don't do this, that will happen. There's nothing really that new. She doesn't really connect history to the events in the books very well, leaving you with a detached feeling. You understand that these events have happened in the world, but how did they inspire the book?
The book may get very boring very quickly for its' intended audience. Basically, one of the few things I got from it was why Katniss does away with a main character near the end of "Mockingjay."
For a good guide, take a page (har-har) from the Twilight Guide. Pictures would have been good, and a timeline, for example. You would just have to go back and forth between each book in the series to make it. Or, I'll just say it: Ms. Collins, please write one fast. There's supposed to be some sort of book coming out the same week as the movie.
I might as well just write one.
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