The Hunger Games

Let's get a few things out of the way right off the bat.

One: There will be spoilers in this post.

Two: I have never read the book (s).

Three: Wes Bentley is looking quite hot. Josh Hutcherson (is he of age?) is extremely adorable and do-able.

Four: I didn't necessarily want to see this, but the other half did. That being said, I had literally 0 expectations for this flick.

Okay. In the end, other than the over-the-top performances of Tucci and Banks, I wasn't that impressed w/ the acting. Lawrence had some good moments, and Lenny Kravitz was an interesting choice (hot), but the acting didn't do it for me. I never truly got the "holy shit" attitude I would have expected from Lawrence when she first arrived in the capitol. Even someone as low-key and "real" as her character was, would certainly have had a bit more reaction to this whole change of scenery. Josh Hutcherson (while a complete cutie) never sold me completely. And don't get me started on the remainder of the kids in the arena. The blonde, hottie bad-ass was simply dreadful.

Visually, the film was stunning. Oscar noms for art direction should be a shoe-in. Music was good. Makeup will garner some attention as well.

Let me say that I was very engaged @ the outset. I was interested, scared, intrigued...all of those good things. In fact, when the tubes brought up the contestants and they awaited the countdown, I was completely on edge. It was good stuff! I was also quite disturbed by the initial "bloodbath" @ the starting line (as described by Woody Harrelson). Made me wonder what the hell the woman below us was thinking when she brought her 7 year old (wtf?).

Now forgive me, I'm not a movie reviewer (duh, you're saying), so I haven't yet figured out why the picture lost me. But, oh heavens, did it! Right after the young girl (the clear little sister stand-in for the Lawrence character) died, I was done. I was moved by this cliche relationship, but after that, I lost all interest. Why? I discussed a few theories w/ the other half once we left the theatre.

One: It wasn't violent enough. Not that I needed more gore. I think the problem is that I never really felt like the lead was in grave danger (perhaps that was the point---was she meant to win? Seems possible, considering what the badass blonde hottie suggested in his final moments). The promise of such utter chaos when they were allowed to leave their tube top (ha!) was never re-captured. Again, I haven't read the book, but I think an "R" rating would have been more appropriate, with the horror and unrest laid on thick.

Two: The fact that the "cannon" announcing the death of a fellow player, was not sounded when Lawrence killed the killer of the little girl, or when the girl finally fell under. I think that really drew me out. I was waiting for it and it never came. It was at this point that I started to realize I had a lot to do when I got home. The picture never re-captured me.

Other problems. The introduction of the GHOSTBUSTERS dog creatures seemed like a cop-out. It SCREAMED to me, "we need some strange other-worldly critters like in the Harry Potter stories or the Lord of the Rings tales." It seemed false in the world they had created and a fast way to wrap it all up. Even Lawrence's character said something to that effect. "It's for the finale."

I've previously been called a movie snob by friends and today, and "elitist" by the other half. I don't think that's the case. If so, I wouldn't have let myself fall under the film's spell so quickly. And I did. But somewhere along the way, they failed in something, cuz I was cut loose.

Finally, it could have been shorter.

I see where the story is going, and I appreciate that. I appreciate the MAD MAX "Thunderdome" world they borrowed from, but I won't be returning for seconds. On the books, or the films.