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I can't believe there's no Hunger Games thread. You, EoFF, disappoint me!
So, did you guys see it? What did you think?
While it was an alright movie on its own, I can't help compare it to the books. I know the change of medium, time and rating constraints are factors, but there were a few things that were disappointing but some changes that I liked (like Seneca's fleshing out). Also, for some reason now I ship Peeta and Cato in my mind...
I have yet to see it but I've had two people rave to me about it. One had read the books and said the movie kept very close to the source material (minus a few necessary changes due to the medium change) and the other liked it despite never having read the books.
They also liked Avatar though so I'm a bitch sketchy with their movie enjoyments.
I thought it was pretty good. It was entertaining all the way through, and held true to the book for the most part. Jennifer Lawrence pretty much carried the movie (as was necessary for this to work), but Haymitch, Effie, and Caesar Flickerman were perfectly done. The buildup to the games was great. The games themselves were good but it played out better while reading it.
My main two gripes would be that 1) Gail and Peeta were awful castings in that they were neither attractive (for Gail) or charasmatic (for Peeta), and 2) Katniss looked like royalty compared to the rest of her district as Lawrence is way to pretty and put together to belong with a bunch of coal miners who are on the brink of starvation. She completely stuck out.
Yeah, in the opening scene you can tell that Lawrence was wearing make-up while she soothed Prim's nightmare. They can't afford food but makeup, sure? Unless, as my friends suggested, she's using coal for eyeliner. :p
(SPOILER)"This will be the final anouncement"
then there were 5 more anouncements.
I wasnt especially a fan of the movie (I have not read the book but if they stay faithful to the movie I do not think I would enjoy them). I think if I were a person in that universe, I would not enjoy watching the games. Fun as it would be to see a bunch of teenagers killing each other, things like watching a girl being chased by a forest fire and constant rule changes or anything that bends to the whim and bias of the host do not make for good entertainment. It's pretty hard to mess up a movie about teenagers killing each other but hunger games comes close. It pretty much felt like Battle Royale meets Twilight.
I thought it was very true to the books. The only differences were details. I loved how Effie and Caesar were (I cracked up both times before the interview where he does that silly smile. I was the only one in the whole theatre. You could hear me.) and I really loved the way they showed clips of Haymitch during the games, suffering as these two tributes are stuck out there, and he has to watch as they do and is more or less helpless.
Blackmage: The people in the districts don't like watching the Hunger Games. Only the people who are in the Capitol. It explains in the books they're all very insane and self absorbed, and if you were raised in a culture where that was entertainment, you probably WOULD enjoy it. It's no different in some regards to the Roman Coliseum.
All in all, I really enjoyed it a lot. I didn't think I would, as I almost always hate books to film. I thought this was really well done.
AND DONALD SUTHERLAND MIRITE?
I haven't read the book but I watched the movie. It was decent enough as a stand alone movie. I've heard both sides from the book readers though. Some say it was close enough with necessary changes and others were mad about it.
I watched the movie last night, and it was good, but in a strange way.
Having 12-18-year-old kids fight to the death in an arena where the adults at the controls hurl deadly obstacles at them is downright demonic, even Satanic, in my opinion. I'm not familiar with the series as a whole right now, since I haven't read the books, but I hope that those demons at the controls one day get what they deserve in one of the later installments. It's certainly an interesting concept, I must say, but it's morally very wrong. I would deduce that in the final book, which is being split into two films (like Harry Potter and The Twilight Saga), the Hunger Games that are held in that book would be the final Hunger games, and I'm sure that Katniss would agree with me that such an event should never be held again, ever.
Also, for some odd reason, when I watched the movie, I couldn't help but think of Mortal Kombat, as I could imagine Shao Kahn being the announcer of the games, and saying the word "Fatality" whenever one of the kombatants is killed. Mortal Kombat, indeed.
Im just saying if I were to watch a competition about people competing against each other, I would want to watch a competition about people competing against each other. Not some omnipotent man behind the scenes deciding who lives and who dies and killing off characters based on what he thinks will get better ratings.Quote:
Originally Posted by fierytempest
And not everyone in a demographic a show is targeted towards enjoys that show. Not everyone loves big brother, not everyone loves survivor, and most of those who did lost interest after the first three seasons.
I saw it Friday night and LOVED it. I was thoroughly engrossed from beginning to end. I probably enjoyed more than any other film I've seen at the theater since the last Harry Potter movie.
I was actually rather shocked at how unabashedly violent some parts were, being a film based on a Scholastic book series in a theater full of kids. :p
i loved the book and i don't care who knows it but
im not really looking forward to seeing this movie
even thoguh it's been getting great reviews
maybe i'll just go tonight
also there is a hunger games thread already
it's the battle royale thread i commandeered it
Hunger Games isn't a kids book by Scholastic the way Harry Potter isn't a kid's book by Scholastic.
And...(SPOILER)Katniss actually votes for another game at the end of the third book. There's a resistance, and they beat the Capitol. She votes to force the children and grandchildren of the Capitol's politicians to fight the way she did.
Suzanne Collins (the book's author), Newsweek, Barnes and Noble, and The Children's Literature Book Club all disagree with you. On both counts, I might add.Quote:
Originally Posted by fierytempest
Hell, I could concede to you saying, oh, Twilight isn't a kids book, but Harry Potter? It's children's literature at it's finest. :p
Considering that they talk about rape and human trafficking in the third book, I have a hard time seeing it as a kid's series.
Also, after the third book, Harry Potter stops being kid friendly. It's just happens to be about teenagers. I wouldn't let my 10 year old read book 5, 6, or 7.
I haven't read the books and I was going to wait till it came out on DVD but Olafur Arnalds is on the soundtrack so I have to see it now.
Wow, that's really disgusting, krissy.
Especially since it's pretty obvious that Rue is black.
Hunger Games isn't a children's book, it's young adult. You can determine for yourself how you define young adult. I'd define it as 13-18.
I loved the first two books in the Hunger Games trilogy. Kinda hated the third.
I went into the movie with mild expectations. I could see it going wrong a million different ways. But I ended up being SO entertained. Were there things to nitpick? Sure.
Gale and Peeta were terrible. Especially opposite Jennifer Lawrence who killed it as Katniss. Their deficiency was so much more pronounced opposite her.
I also thought the pacing was really weird. Too much time spent pre-game, and the game itself felt so rushed. I also wish they had kept certain aspects of Katniss' personality in place. Particularly her calculating, survivalist nature, and her trust issues. At the end of the book, (SPOILER)when they realize that there can only be one victor, Katniss points her arrow directly at Peeta's heart, thinking he's going to take her out. This was such a crucial moment to show just how surviving is the number one priority for her. That above everything, her primary motivation is to survive for her sister, and that's where her real allegiance lies, not with one boy or another. They didn't really make it clear in the movie that Katniss made calculating moves (ie: kissing Peeta) in order to survive. They just sorta hinted at it. Something as simple as letting go of Peeta's hand when the public wasn't watching would have shown a little bit of that. The movie made it seem like she really was falling for Peeta Bread.
Things I loved:
How freakin' awesome was the supporting cast?? I thought Effie and Haymitch were perfect. And Caesar Flickerman was a highlight of the movie for me. He was so freakin' hysterical and spot on. I also though Rue was so adorable. She really was like a little angel.
And Jennifer Lawrence was extraordinary. The movie wouldn't have been half as good if it weren't for her. She carried the entire thing on her shoulders. She may not LOOK like how Katniss is supposed to look (her body is seriously SMOKING hot), but I can't imagine any other actress being as great a Katniss as she was. She was really really good.
I found it awkward when the white girl won over the black girl's affections by giving her chicken. Or atleast what looked like chicken
I hadnt read the book and it didnt seem that way to me. There were enough subtle hints like the way she sort of looked at a camera before she did anything intimate with PeetaQuote:
The movie made it seem like she really was falling for Peeta Bread.
Squirrel if I'm not mistaken.Quote:
Originally Posted by blackmage_nuke
Also, thank you Krissy for giving me my daily dose of disgust with the human race. The zombie apocalypse can't come fast enough.
A friend of mine said it best on FB in response to that story: "I'm not sure what makes me sadder, this is happening or that this does not surprise me anymore."Quote:
Originally Posted by krissy
The movie was filmed near me. Yay.
I am going to read the book and then see the movie when it goes to the cheap theater if someone will go with me.
I'll go with you, Megan. :3
Also, it's a game bird.
yeah katniss carried that movie
and yeah WTF was with the camera in the intro scenes
i get it
it's a stressed out place
stop trying to make me puke
8/10
book was better but i'll always imagine katniss as jennifer now
I just saw it. Very violent for a YA novel. o.o It was pretty good. Yeah I got the whole, she did it for the camera/to win. 'Specially when she got the whole "You call that a Kiss" note with the soup. My mom didn't like it cause it was kids killing each other.
Freya: The books are a lot more graphic. They toned down the blood and gore to get a PG-13 rating.
Yeah so if htey had to do that in a movie, how are they Young Adult novels? O_O
Because if a book is about teenagers, then it MUST be FOR teenagers.
I think you are seriously underestimating the content most young teenagers are exposed to (has it really been so long?). A book being considered YA does not necessarily mean family-friendly, no-blood-and-guts G-rated. It has to do with the main characters being relatable to a younger audience as well as an easy-to-read writing style (as in, not a tome about quantum physics like Neal Stephenson's Anathem, which has nothing in the way of gore or sex but not something I would consider YA-appropriate). It is not the same as "childish" or any other derogatory label, and the mere presence of gore does not exclude a book from being appropriate for kids. I have not read the books, but my then-12-year-old sister read and enjoyed them, and she doesn't read anything (a horribly depressing fact to both me and our mother), which is proof enough to me that the books are YA-friendly.
Pretentious Wesley is being pretentious again.
Books don't have a rating system like Movies, Music, and Games do but the fact that they had to omit a lot of the original content to fit a pg-13 rating for the movie should say something about what content was in the book. As far as I know, aren't YA books targeted at 13-18 yr olds? If it wouldn't have fit into a PG-13 rating and been bumped up to an M rating, what does that say about the content of the book? Sure a kid can read it and enjoy it but should they? I was reading far worse novels at 13 than adults read now. Gore, Sex, etc, I was always shifty eyed when reading it in school. But just because you can do something doesn't mean it's appropriate.
Maybe the writing is written in a more simple form for young readers or something. I don't know, I haven't read the books. Just curious how they fall into the YA category if they are filled with so much more mature content.
absolutely, if they want to. especially with books.Quote:
Originally Posted by Freya
the writing style is very easy to read, i think the writing is a grade 5 level or something on that arbitrary scale.
YA is a pretty wide range. the books are a lot more political and character driven than the action scenes.
edit: ok i want to expand here i guess. i don't think children above a certain age should have ANY literature cut out or censored. that age is dependent on the child obviously, but once they are able to really read they should be reading whatever they want and not have a silly rating stopping them from it.
everything a kid reads is going to make them think and that is important, whether they're thinking about what a romance should be, or what politics is, or what orcs look like, as long as they keep thinking and reading, they will eventually begin to read CRITICALLY, which is one of the most important things for a growing human. although, censoring info or disallowing access encourages actually getting your hands on it...
Yes, the one defending what 12-year-olds can read (as well as not making unnecessary, immature personal comments in an otherwise happy discussion) is obviously being pretentious.
The movie rating system is stupid and arbitrary, and really based on sex and violence (one could also draw a distinction between reading and watching, and while that also seems arbitrary, the rating system seems to bear out that society accepts it). None of that rebuts my central point that, as far as I know, the characters and plot are relatable to kids; the writing style is fairly easy to read; and the books are widely enjoyed by the YA age group. Really, my comments were regarding what -- to me, and not just in this thread -- seems to be a condescending view of what YA-appropriate content is (or a general attitude that "it can't be YA because I like it and I don't read kids' books!"). As I said, I don't think YA equates to being childish or immature.
EDIT: I agree with everything krissy said.
I don't get why people are so caught up on who the series is "for." If you pick up a book and you like it, you're who it's for. End of story. I don't need some system or list of genres to tell me what to like.
The movie was a great adaptation of the book. A few things were disappointing, but, hey, that's the way it goes when you have to trim a big ol' book into two hours of film. The casting was great, including Gail and Peeta. Jennifer Lawrence isn't at all how I pictured Katniss (I pictured her more like this), and I didn't like her in X-Men First Class, but she nailed it in this movie so I can adjust.
The whole thing with people being shocked that Rue is black is disgusting. If I caught any of my friends holding an opinion like that, I would sneak into their closet and pee on their coats.
I went to the midnight showing with a group of friends my age, half of them male. Being that we've gone to most of the midnight releases for the Twilights and the Harry Potters, we ladies were used to the screaming teenage girls, but our male companions weren't, so their reactions were highly entertaining. All the childrens screamed at ridiculous times and clapped and cheered along with the Capitol's audience, and the guys sitting next to me kept glancing over at me with alarm, as if to say "What is happening??"
This makes me glad that I got to see it a day early through my universities alumni association there wasn't a teenage girl in sight.Quote:
Originally Posted by Shlup
oh man this was one of the scariest parts of the experience for me tooQuote:
Originally Posted by Shlup
took immersion to a fun new level of 'omg no what am i surrounded by'
I'm sorry, but this song is so awesome.
1. Abraham's Daughter By Arcade Fire With Lyrics - YouTube
yeah that's great i love arcade fire
was there anything after the credits? i had to leave without watching to the end of the credits.
There weren't.
I disagree that the book was all that much more violent than the movie. I thought they were pretty on par. And I was thrilled that they didn't hold back TOO much of the violence. I was afraid they were going to get cold feet about it.
The books get more violent as the series goes on, but that's true for a lot of series. Including Harry Potter. Like in the movie, a lot of the deaths happened "off screen" and Katniss never actually killed anyone when it wasn't in self defense.
I think it's a huge underestimation to think that teenagers and pre-teens can't handle certain content. I mean, look at The Giver. One of the BEST young adult books ever. That has themes of euthanasia, free will, dystopia, repressed sexual urges, etc. The Book Thief deals with the holocaust and numerous deaths. Hell, it's narrated by death. His Dark Materials trilogy has kids going off trying to kill god. It's fine. Young people can handle it.
It was ok, but I feel it could have been epic. The games didn't come across as particularly brutal and it didn't evoke the promised 'fight to the death' feeling. Wouldn't recommend it.
I enjoyed the movie. It was, pretty good.
From what I've heard though, I don't want to read the books at all. They way they were written sounds boring. Bleh.
nah the pacing and tension is actually better in the book
The movie was a pretty decent adaptation. Certainly not flawless, but it's hard to take page upon page of internal dialogue about food and grass and trout into something enjoyable. There were a few minor plot threads that were cut out which kind of annoyed me but again it had to be condensed and I think they kept enough of what was good and needed.
I didn't like them showing the rebellion starting straight away, but then again the movie is not "through the eyes of Katniss" like the books were.
^What bothered me about the rebellion scene is that the rebellion in District 11 and the three-fingered kiss doesn't happen until book 2.
When Katniss is there.
And sees it.
Well there's nothing saying it doesn't happen then as well. But I feel it completely changed the pacing. I liked being Katniss and not knowing what in the blue smurf was happening until suddenly
(SPOILER)http://nick.mtvnimages.com/nicktoons...tteColor=white
Mahogany
So final opinions, is it worth the price of the movie ticket?
Yes. What do you pay for a ticket, anyway? Only cost me $6 which is dirt cheap compared to home.
Went on a Saturday night, so the ticket was 10.50 after tax. On a weekday/night, it's only $5.
10.50 is norm here unless you go on tuesdays which is then 6
Katniss Everdeen Barbie | Hunger Games Barbie | The Mary Sue
day one purchase
Now your kids can pretend to kill people too! ;D
I'm excited for a Finnick Odair Ken-doll who's wearing a golden net around his loins.
Wow, your tickets are cheap. They are 13 bucks in the $an Franci$co area.
I thought it good. They kept it close to the books and I can imagine the author would be proud of them. The acting was terrific by all involved.
I have to disagree. I thought they were perfectly cast, as was the rest of the characters. I thought thy guy who played Peeta was perfect for the role. He portrayed his humbleness brilliantly, and I thought he looked how Peeta should look. As for Katniss, same applies. I would have a gripe if she had make-up on in the district but she was all natural. Still very attractive but still.Quote:
Originally Posted by Del Murder
You're in the minority there. Those guys were more of a Disney Channel quality. Peeta had his moments but Gail was pretty awful and I'm not looking forward to his expanded role in the next films.
I just finished the book over the weekend and liked it quite a bit. My chick friends were all like "Team Peeta go" but I'm like meh. Don't get me wrong, I love Peeta. Just not the idea of their relationship.
Maybe I'll go see the movie soon.
Also, mark your spoilers, especially for items in future books. :)
FOA, did you only read the first one?
For now. I'm trying to finish The Mists of Avalon.
Finally saw it today. I'm probably going to read the novels sooner or later. Anyway, I liked it. Wish they got more gutsy with the violence. Could have used less shaky camera and X-TREME closeups too.
Read books when they became such a phenomenon. The movie was a great adaptation.
Would have jeopardized the PG rating and took out a large chunk of their target audience.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sephex
No way that movie was PG. PG-13 probably.
A couple of my friends scored jobs at the local theater, so I got to watch this yesterday! I loved it. I had heard nice things about the series and I've been interested in reading it. I can't tell anyone this IRL though because then they tell me everything about how the book and movie are different and I'm just like stfu lemme read it on my own time okay :(
Oh, yeah. Forgot to add the 13.Quote:
Originally Posted by Del Murder
They could have pushed it a little further and still kept the PG-13, I think.Quote:
Originally Posted by JiroWould have jeopardized the PG rating and took out a large chunk of their target audience.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sephex
I finally watched this because I was bored. I have to say, I do not appreciate shaky ass camerawork. :colbert:
I saw the movie twice this weekend. I loved Woody Harrelson as Haymitch. Even with the blonde wig.
I loved that they got the flowers right. I also loved the hallucination scene.
Also I just finished the series about 20o minutes ago and my heart hurts.
You mean the flowers with Rue?
LOLOLOLOL
So, what did you think of Mockingjay? ;D
The scene with the gauntlet made me laugh like a school girl.
The gauntlet?
Are you talking about in the movie, or in Mockingjay?
Mockingjay... it was a little too convenient!
I don't think that Katniss's character was bad in Mockingjay. It made sense.
I just thought the plot itself was week.
You know, even though I strongly dislike the concept of having these monstrous adults forcing these poor kids to kill each other, I think it would be interesting to see it in a crossover video game with Mortal Kombat, since the combat in those game is pretty mortal, indeed. Mortal Kombat vs Hunger Games, anyone?
Also, while the soundtrack was pretty nice, especially the Taylor Swift songs "Safe and Sound" and "Keep Your Eyes Open," I think that it should have had a much louder, darker, and edgier heavy metal soundtrack, since that kind of music would suit the film better, in my opinion, including bands such as Linkin Park and Evanescence. They should shift the soundtrack style to one similar to the soundtracks of the Transformers trilogy.
disagree on both counts
mortal kombat is so over the top it doesn't even fit
and i don't think the story really needed someone like linkin park or evanescence anywhere near it. i'm glad they went with arcade fire and the like.
edit: but Battle Royale VS Mortal Kombat would be pretty cool
I agree with krissy. Linkin Park and Evanescence wouldn't have really fit at all. If you mean it in the dark, brooding sense--well, maybe. But they would've been trying too hard, I think.
As it stands now, the soundtrack is amazing, and I think it really fits well.
I think it's cute how Super thinks Linkin Park and Evanescence are heavy metal.
The Transformers trilogy should not be a role model for any other movies.Quote:
Originally Posted by SuperMillionaire
I really like the soundtrack, but it is the music of my people so of course I do.
(That is sarcasm. The soundtrack is good, and it's a little folksy, but hipster folksy.)
I liked Mockingjay. I didn't like (SPOILER)How Gale pretty much just runs off to do some kind of crap somewhere else. I think that was a big cop out on character work just so Katniss could justifiably end up with Peeta. It's a bunch of crap to make it about she couldn't choose so they chose for her. Ugh. I was also pretty much heartbroken (SPOILER)when Collin's Whedon'd us all by killing Prim anyway. Maybe it got to me more because I really identified with the "NOT MY SISTER, NOT MY SISTER" mentality Katniss had, but when Prim died I was pretty much crushed. I would've felt like everything I'd done had been for nothing, too.
That being said, I thought the plot was pretty good (SPOILER)most rebellions do have a face, a person that people can rally behind. I think it was spot on that these people in her lives used her, just like she'd been used in one way or another for so long, to get what they wanted. I don't think Snow would've had to spell it out for her, Coin had already threatened her enough. I would've known Prim's presence in the Capitol was meant to rattle me, I would've known she was a sealed sacrifice to make sure I carried out my duty AND to deliver the message that you don't smurf with Coin. Ugh. UGH. So angry.
Oh, and I really loved (SPOILER)that we went from Peeta "loving" Katniss without knowing anything about her in the first book, to those emotions being forcibly taken away and him learning to love her for who she actually was. You can't love someone from afar, without knowing what they're all about. He was infatuated with her, but he grew to love her. I was happy with the realism there, too.
EDIT: I was also really excited that Josh Hutcherson spent a lot of time ziplining near where I live while the movie was filming. Because I will rob the tit out of that cradle. That kid is adorable.