Movie Review
(Photo courtesy of novelnovice.com)
By Shellie Adams, Asst. Design Editor -- adams15@up.edu
May the odds be ever in your favor.
Well, the odds were definitely in "The Hunger Games,'" favor. Overall, it grossed $155 million in its opening weekend, which is the third highest grossing movie, following "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2" and "The Dark Knight."
Until I saw "The Hunger Games," I don't think I had ever seen a movie in which I was completely disgusted with humanity, and yet I couldn't tear my eyes away. The plot: two children, a boy and a girl between the ages 12 and 18, from each of the 12 districts in the futuristic country of Panem, and are put in an arena to battle to the death. The Hunger Games happen annually as a punishment for a rebellion that happened decades before and as a reminder of what happens when you act out against the government.
This is perhaps one of my favorite book to movie adaptations. The movie maintained every important aspect of the book. Anything changed was a very smart move as it helped the plot make sense and gave a taste of what the next movie will entail.
My favorite part of the movie was by far the acting. I was amazed at how well the actors were able to portray the characters. The main role of Katniss isn't an easy role to play. She is a very heroic character and in the book she isn't very easy to connect with, but in the movie she had the hearts of audience members within minutes.
I was afraid the movie wasn't going to be very gory because of its PG-13 rating, but they hit the nail on the head with the violence. The main fight scene was muted with just music playing in the background, which was a great choice on the part of production because people were affected by the images plenty without having the screams set it over the top. It isn't easy to watch children dying, but they made it more manageable through the brilliant cinematography.
I am so happy with how successful this movie has been in the first weekend because I thought it was a great adaptation. I can honestly say that whether you have read the book or not, you will enjoy the movie.
