A three-fingered salute to Katniss Everdeen

The Hunger Games (2012): Militant Edition teaser

THE HUNGER GAMES (2012)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

When I speak so highly of the "Twilight" series, I get double-takes from people. So I was a little wary of a new built-in franchise like "The Hunger Games" but my wife became a big fan after reading all three books. I read only a portion of the book thus far (I am a slow reader) but I found it riveting and chilling. Gary Ross' adaptation of Suzanne Collins' first book in the series is exactly how I envisioned it - chilling, riveting, and a thrust of emotional chaos and doom that pervades and stays with you. They call the book a young adult novel but this is something that even the "Twilight" haters can definitely get a handle on, and adults can enjoy it as well.

Jennifer Lawrence is Katniss Everdeen, the rough, no-holds-barred heroine who lives in District 12 with her mother and younger sister. What is District 12? Well, we are in the future where North America is known as Panem, and 12 districts separate the poor and downtrodden from the rich and powerful Capitol. The Capitol is ruled by President Snow (Donald Sutherland) who has a disdain for the poor and, especially, the underdog. Every year, 2 young people ranging in age from 12 to 17 from each district (Tributes) are chosen at random to participate in a vicious reality game show where they fight and kill to survive, and only one victor can be left standing (it doesn't sound like a fair game but that is our bleak future). These games are known as the Hunger Games and the event of picking the unfortunate tributes is known as the Reaping. Katniss's sister, Prim (Willow Sheels), is picked so Katniss volunteers for this most dangerous game in her place. The other pick is the reluctant Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), a baker's son who can throw heavy bags of dough like no one's business. There are the expected training sequences that involve bow and arrows, climbing, throwing knives, etc. Katniss scores the highest in her training capabilities and in her demeanor, as in shooting an apple in a roasted pig's mouth rather than her target practice.

When the games begin, the movie becomes a sweat-inducing, heavy throttle thrill-ride involving some minor slicing and dicing, a burning forest, fireballs, a deadly nest of insects worse than hornets, hallucinations, rocky creeks, booby-trapped mines and much more. Most of the other teen tributes are shown as cold-blooded murderers yet Katniss and Peeta give one the impression they would rather not be in such a deadly reality show. And the mentoring by the soused Haymitch (Woody Harrelson) is reduced to simplicities about how to gain sponsors, not how to survive in the thick of the forest.

Jennifer Lawrence is an incredible actress, showcasing Katniss with vulnerability, toughness, sincerity and a sweet smile. We feel she might lose and that is what makes the character click (and no doubt with the voracious reader fans of the novels). Kudos to Josh Hutcherson for his sympathetic portrayal of Peeta, who is simply very smitten with Katniss. Woody Harrelson can knock any character out of the park and he is definitely in his element here, bringing a nice dose of humor to the dire proceedings. Wes Bentley is positively devilish as the game designer, Seneca, and we can't leave out the candy-colored Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks) who wears garish costumes that would make even Helena Bonham Carter vomit.

I do object to the early hand-held, extreme close-up scenes where we witness the Reaping - sometimes, it can get a little headache-inducing to see shots wobbling all over the place when we are trying to focus on the most important and emotional scene - the random pickings from a fish bowl by Effie that results in Katniss sacrificing herself to the game. But that is such a minor picking because everything else is extraordinary to watch. "The Hunger Games" is an intense, relentless film showing us a future that is not exactly unlike our own. The novelist was inspired by the War in Iraq and reality shows but, nowadays, the movie could be speaking about our unemployment and the poor who represent the 98% in the U.S. We have the Occupiers but, in a sense, the movie is implying that people like Katniss show more courage and determination to change our world than President Snow. And the fact that a deadly reality show only means getting good sponsors and good ratings for the sake of violence and death, well, nothing new in the cinematic future worlds but I have a sinking feeling we are not far from that in the real world. This first film in the series may be the first step in Katniss's evolution as someone other than a young woman who is adept at hunting, thus provoking a political detriment, but I am getting ahead of myself. 

"The Hunger Games" has turned into such a supersonic phenomenon that it will be tempting for people to review the phenomenon, not the film. This has happened with everything from "The Dark Knight" to "Twilight" to "Titanic" and many other megablockbusters. "The Hunger Games" is far more intimate than most other recent blockbusters and, for that reason, I give it a three-fingered salute.

Review of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)