Movie: Hunger Games
Rating: 4-Stars
"The Hunger Games" takes place in a postapocalyptic America. All that remains of the United States is Panem, a 12-district federation headed by cautious President Snow (Donald Sutherland). Its capitol, Panem, is home to a wealthy, decadent elite, whose comforts and high-tech toys are supported by the labor of an impoverished majority.
Having crushed a rebellion 74 years ago, the government reasserts its authority over the population by staging an annual fight to the death competition called the Hunger Games. Every year on Reaping Day, a boy and a girl (ages 12 to 18) from each district are chosen by lottery to fight to the death in a televised gladiator event devised by head Games-maker Seneca Crane (Wes Bentley).
The chances of being selected are increased by the amount of government assistance you accept. In this 74th annual Hunger Games a 12 yo girl from District 12, the poorest region of all and a coal-mining area that looks like 1930’s Appalachia, named Prim Everdeen (Willow Shields) is selected. Her sister the ever tough and resourceful Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) volunteers to keep her sister safe. Her male friend and romantic interest Gale Hawthorne (Liam Hemsworth) is also fearful of being selected with his 42 entries in the lottery. However the odds were forever in his favor and Her fellow District 12 male entrant is Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) from whom she immediately recognized as someone who once gave her bread.
After a short and tearful good bye to her family she boards the luxurious train to Panem with Peeta along with and their PR Guru and entrant selector Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks) and Haymitch Abernathy (Woody Harrelson) their mentor and former victor in the games. Effie whose bewigged and powdered face and maliciously sincere personality and Abernathy’s in his perpetual drunkard state are tasked with preparing and molding both Katniss and Peeta into players who have a chance. The train is filled with food and wine and it gives the impression of it being their last meal.
Upon arrival they are prepared by their coach Abernathy, Effie their PR guru and the broadcast stylist Cinna (Lenny Kravitz) and paraded in front of the people of Panem and introduced as tributes by Caesar Flickerman (Stanley Tucci) whose brilliant blend of mirth and malice makes him a flamboyant caricature you can’t help but find entertaining.
It is during these introductions that things get complicated for Katniss. She learns that Peeta has pined for her since the day they first met. They get the moniker the star-crossed lovers as a result of the misfortune that they may have to kill each other to survive or die at the hands of another.
With the introduction of all the entrants it is clear that most don’t have a fighting chance against District 1 and 2 entrants who have been trained since childhood to win and who volunteered. The main villain in the games isn’t those running the game but District 2 male tribute Cato. He is seen as the most dangerous threat to all the tributes not just Katniss and Peeta. It is more likely that aside from dehydration or starvation it is Cato that might send them to meet their maker. He is obscene, vulgar, and relentless, and uses his brute strength for almost everything and fights hard to win. He is a Career Tribute and for all of his life, has trained for the Hunger Games and has come to win.
Just before the start of the games Cinna who has built trust with Katniss gives her two things. First the nightingale pin she gave to her sister for protection and the advice to avoid the cornucopia at the beginning of the competition by calling it a bloodbath.
As the tributes ascend to the playing field they discover the cornucopia center stage filled with food and weapons for the game. As expected it is a brutal event where almost ½ of the players are killed. Heeding Cinna’s advice at first she doesn’t approach the cornucopia but then decides to make a go for it. She nearly escapes and begins hiding in the woods. She witnesses some of the less experienced players foolishly lighting fires at night and drawing the attention of the others who kill to win. Determined not to participate or meet the same fate she spends time hiding in the trees while the some of the others are now grouped together hunting for her. Included in that group is Peeta. She begins to reach the end of the playing field and the games-maker Seneca attempts to drive her back into play by fire balling her.
This act results in her being chased and eventually trapped in a tree while the others below wait for her to descend so they can finish her. Injured by the fire she receives a gift from a sponsor. This medicine helps heal her wound. While in the tree she discovers that Rue from District 11 is there to help and suggests she drop a nearby nest of deadly bees on those sleeping below. As she cuts the nest from the tree she is stung several times by the bees whose venom causes hallucinations and in extreme cases death. According to plan the bees cause the attackers to scatter and the one with the bow is stung to death. Delirious from her stings she collapses after escaping only to wake and find that Rue had helped protect and hide her from the others.
The two devise a plan to destroy the stock pile of food the group has amassed near the cornucopia and level the playing field. Rue will light fires to lure the others away while she destroys their stash. To signal each other they are ok they use the Mocking gales who repeat what they hear. Successful in her plan Katniss returns and doesn’t find Rue at the rendezvous point but instead hears her screams for help. Rue who was caught in a net is dangling in an open area. While Katniss works to free her they are attacked and Rue is killed. Heartbroken at her death she signals the viewers that she lost a friend while preparing a bed of flowers for her fallen fellow tribute.
While walking along the river she finds Peeta hidden in the rock hiding after having been stabbed in the leg by Cato. In terrible shape Katniss and Peeta find shelter in a hidden cave where their budding romance flourishes. With his situation worsening she is forced to leave him to retrieve much needed medicine at the cornucopia. Here she is attached and wounded by Cato’s District 2 companion where she is saved by the Angry District 11 partner of Rue. She returns to the cave and after sharing the medicine the Game-Maker modifies the rules to allow 2 winners if they are from the same District. The two leave the safety of their cave to gather berries and make weapons. Peeta unknowingly collects poisonous berries and when the tell tale bang of a tributes death is heard Katniss races to see if Peeta is alive. It is then she discovers another sneaky player was following Peeta and had eaten the berries he collected.
Wanting to move the game along the Game-maker unleashes a pack of generated animals to hunt the tributes. The other District 11 tribute is mauled to death and they next come for Katniss and Peeta. They race to the safety of the cornucopia only to discover that they are not alone and a battle to the death with Cato ensues. Katniss eventually gains the upper hand and has Cato and Peeta pinned. Cato tells her to shoot him and then both he and Peeta will die and she will win. Unwilling to let her fellow District 12 Tribute die she instead shoots Cato in the hand and in a moment of distraction Peeta pushes him off the Cornucopia where he is mauled by the animals. It is then that you see again how human Katniss is when she puts Cato out of his misery.
Instead of the game ending the games-maker again modifies the game to a single winner and Peeta offers himself to Katniss so she can win. Instead she tells Peeta that they should together eat the berries and die as true star crossed lovers like Romeo and Juliet. He wit and intelligence and the need for a winner allows her plan to fakeout the game-maker prevail and they are crowned co-winners.
Angered by the game-maker’s failure President Snow leaves a bowl of the berries for the game-maker to kill himself. In the end Katniss and Peeta return to District 12 hero’s. In a final twist I’m sure leads to a sequel President Snow witnesses the obvious love Katniss has for Gale and that he was right that the game-maker was deceived with her false love of Peeta designed to allow them both to return.
"The Hunger Games" takes place in a postapocalyptic America. All that remains of the United States is Panem, a 12-district federation headed by cautious President Snow (Donald Sutherland). Its capitol, Panem, is home to a wealthy, decadent elite, whose comforts and high-tech toys are supported by the labor of an impoverished majority.
Having crushed a rebellion 74 years ago, the government reasserts its authority over the population by staging an annual fight to the death competition called the Hunger Games. Every year on Reaping Day, a boy and a girl (ages 12 to 18) from each district are chosen by lottery to fight to the death in a televised gladiator event devised by head Games-maker Seneca Crane (Wes Bentley).
The chances of being selected are increased by the amount of government assistance you accept. In this 74th annual Hunger Games a 12 yo girl from District 12, the poorest region of all and a coal-mining area that looks like 1930’s Appalachia, named Prim Everdeen (Willow Shields) is selected. Her sister the ever tough and resourceful Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) volunteers to keep her sister safe. Her male friend and romantic interest Gale Hawthorne (Liam Hemsworth) is also fearful of being selected with his 42 entries in the lottery. However the odds were forever in his favor and Her fellow District 12 male entrant is Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) from whom she immediately recognized as someone who once gave her bread.
After a short and tearful good bye to her family she boards the luxurious train to Panem with Peeta along with and their PR Guru and entrant selector Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks) and Haymitch Abernathy (Woody Harrelson) their mentor and former victor in the games. Effie whose bewigged and powdered face and maliciously sincere personality and Abernathy’s in his perpetual drunkard state are tasked with preparing and molding both Katniss and Peeta into players who have a chance. The train is filled with food and wine and it gives the impression of it being their last meal.
Upon arrival they are prepared by their coach Abernathy, Effie their PR guru and the broadcast stylist Cinna (Lenny Kravitz) and paraded in front of the people of Panem and introduced as tributes by Caesar Flickerman (Stanley Tucci) whose brilliant blend of mirth and malice makes him a flamboyant caricature you can’t help but find entertaining.
It is during these introductions that things get complicated for Katniss. She learns that Peeta has pined for her since the day they first met. They get the moniker the star-crossed lovers as a result of the misfortune that they may have to kill each other to survive or die at the hands of another.
With the introduction of all the entrants it is clear that most don’t have a fighting chance against District 1 and 2 entrants who have been trained since childhood to win and who volunteered. The main villain in the games isn’t those running the game but District 2 male tribute Cato. He is seen as the most dangerous threat to all the tributes not just Katniss and Peeta. It is more likely that aside from dehydration or starvation it is Cato that might send them to meet their maker. He is obscene, vulgar, and relentless, and uses his brute strength for almost everything and fights hard to win. He is a Career Tribute and for all of his life, has trained for the Hunger Games and has come to win.
Just before the start of the games Cinna who has built trust with Katniss gives her two things. First the nightingale pin she gave to her sister for protection and the advice to avoid the cornucopia at the beginning of the competition by calling it a bloodbath.
As the tributes ascend to the playing field they discover the cornucopia center stage filled with food and weapons for the game. As expected it is a brutal event where almost ½ of the players are killed. Heeding Cinna’s advice at first she doesn’t approach the cornucopia but then decides to make a go for it. She nearly escapes and begins hiding in the woods. She witnesses some of the less experienced players foolishly lighting fires at night and drawing the attention of the others who kill to win. Determined not to participate or meet the same fate she spends time hiding in the trees while the some of the others are now grouped together hunting for her. Included in that group is Peeta. She begins to reach the end of the playing field and the games-maker Seneca attempts to drive her back into play by fire balling her.
This act results in her being chased and eventually trapped in a tree while the others below wait for her to descend so they can finish her. Injured by the fire she receives a gift from a sponsor. This medicine helps heal her wound. While in the tree she discovers that Rue from District 11 is there to help and suggests she drop a nearby nest of deadly bees on those sleeping below. As she cuts the nest from the tree she is stung several times by the bees whose venom causes hallucinations and in extreme cases death. According to plan the bees cause the attackers to scatter and the one with the bow is stung to death. Delirious from her stings she collapses after escaping only to wake and find that Rue had helped protect and hide her from the others.
The two devise a plan to destroy the stock pile of food the group has amassed near the cornucopia and level the playing field. Rue will light fires to lure the others away while she destroys their stash. To signal each other they are ok they use the Mocking gales who repeat what they hear. Successful in her plan Katniss returns and doesn’t find Rue at the rendezvous point but instead hears her screams for help. Rue who was caught in a net is dangling in an open area. While Katniss works to free her they are attacked and Rue is killed. Heartbroken at her death she signals the viewers that she lost a friend while preparing a bed of flowers for her fallen fellow tribute.
While walking along the river she finds Peeta hidden in the rock hiding after having been stabbed in the leg by Cato. In terrible shape Katniss and Peeta find shelter in a hidden cave where their budding romance flourishes. With his situation worsening she is forced to leave him to retrieve much needed medicine at the cornucopia. Here she is attached and wounded by Cato’s District 2 companion where she is saved by the Angry District 11 partner of Rue. She returns to the cave and after sharing the medicine the Game-Maker modifies the rules to allow 2 winners if they are from the same District. The two leave the safety of their cave to gather berries and make weapons. Peeta unknowingly collects poisonous berries and when the tell tale bang of a tributes death is heard Katniss races to see if Peeta is alive. It is then she discovers another sneaky player was following Peeta and had eaten the berries he collected.
Wanting to move the game along the Game-maker unleashes a pack of generated animals to hunt the tributes. The other District 11 tribute is mauled to death and they next come for Katniss and Peeta. They race to the safety of the cornucopia only to discover that they are not alone and a battle to the death with Cato ensues. Katniss eventually gains the upper hand and has Cato and Peeta pinned. Cato tells her to shoot him and then both he and Peeta will die and she will win. Unwilling to let her fellow District 12 Tribute die she instead shoots Cato in the hand and in a moment of distraction Peeta pushes him off the Cornucopia where he is mauled by the animals. It is then that you see again how human Katniss is when she puts Cato out of his misery.
Instead of the game ending the games-maker again modifies the game to a single winner and Peeta offers himself to Katniss so she can win. Instead she tells Peeta that they should together eat the berries and die as true star crossed lovers like Romeo and Juliet. He wit and intelligence and the need for a winner allows her plan to fakeout the game-maker prevail and they are crowned co-winners.
Angered by the game-maker’s failure President Snow leaves a bowl of the berries for the game-maker to kill himself. In the end Katniss and Peeta return to District 12 hero’s. In a final twist I’m sure leads to a sequel President Snow witnesses the obvious love Katniss has for Gale and that he was right that the game-maker was deceived with her false love of Peeta designed to allow them both to return.
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