The Hunger Games Review
02/04/2012
Director: Gary Ross
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth, Stanley Tucci
I want to start off this review with a quick disclaimer regarding films that are like The Hunger Games. If you go into The Hunger Games having seen Battle Royale, you will be extremely disappointed. If you go into The Hunger Games expecting to see something better than Lord of the Flies, you will be disappointed. So keep in mind that The Hunger Games is based on a series of Young Adult novels by author Suzanne Collins and that these books were aimed at teens.
The film revolves around a dystopian world where food has become scarce due to independent ruling and the company that feeds a series of districts. Within those 12 districts, food is scarce and people are unhappy and wear terrible clothes, so the company has decided to run a yearly competition where twenty four youth's are pitted against one another to fight for their district and ultimately be declared a winner of The Hunger Games. We meet Katniss, played by Jennifer Lawrence, who is apart of District 12 and volunteer's herself after her sister is chosen for the competition. So let the games begin.
Gary Ross is a fantastic director and if you've seen Pleasantville, you know the guy has some serious talent when it comes to directing. He gets great performances and can get some amazing shots, however, with the script by the original author, Billy Ray and director, Ross, it is stunning to see a good adaptation go to waste. I have on good authority that the books are actually pretty interesting and well-written but the script is terrible, even at the best of times.
I have to commend the sound design and music team who strayed away from the usual pop or indie soundtrack usually plaguing teen adaptations (See: Twilight, Red Riding Hood) and focus on a beautiful ambient soundtrack that sounds like a mix between Brian Eno and the Dixie Chicks. I have to berate whoever did the CG in the film because of how mixed it looks in some places. For example, in the war room, it looks stunning and bright, but when you see the District contenders enter the city for the first time, it looks like an old ep of Star Trek: Next Gen.
The acting in the film is a mixed bag. Whilst almost all the teenagers annoy me, including Lawrence, who starts off with being way more insecure than she needs to be for a world like this. That being said, there are some stand out performances such as Amanda Stenberg and almost all the adult cast members. Donald Sutherland seems to be phoning in his performance, Stanley Tucci plays an overly enthusiastic host like a champ, Woody Harrelson plays an ex-contestant who has some serious scars from his teen years, the gorgeous Elizabeth Banks is a Tim Burton reject, who...is something and Lenny Kravitz has an interesting if odd role as a sponsor, I think. It's not really clear what his role in the film is and that's where some of the film falls down.
The film is subtle and ambiguous in a lot of places, including the ending and some key relationships, which is done incredibly well. But the film did leave me asking a lot of questions about the world that could have been easily answered with the characters present. There is a whole world built around politics and the 1% and it all seems wasted on a story like this. Same with the cinematography. It's like if the Bourne Identity was strung up by its hind legs and swung on a flying fox. The film's camera work is tight when it needs to be, including a beautiful and emotional sequence during the death of one of the characters, but a good 60% of the flick has a shaky cam effect. I understand that it's meant to be all disorientating and hides some of the more brutal violence, but even when it's during the announcing sequences and even with showing the districts, it's unnecessary and at the worst of times, lazy.
The film is not terrible and when it's strong it's incredibly powerful, but terrible writing and mixed cinematography leaves me both wanting a sequel and wanting more, which is a good thing. I want to see more of the characters and what happens when they head back to the districts, but if you're looking for a good story, good characters and some real teenagers killing each other, go find Battle Royale and watch it. It's a much better film and more adult...maybe don't show your fifteen year-old sister it.
Highlight: The silence when the games begin.
Score: 7/10