Movie Review: The Hunger Games

Katniss in the arena

Few movies manage to capture to true essence of a book. Fortunately, for fans, The Hunger Games succeeded where films like Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 and Eragon failed. There were changes, as expected, but not ones that were detrimental to the feeling of the story. 

Immediately fans see how terrified Primrose Everdeen, the main character Katniss’s sister, is of the reaping that day. It’s clear from the beginning how much Katniss cares for her sister—and how emotionally distant she is from her mother. This scene sets the feel for the rest of the film beautifully.

The casting choices for The Hunger Games fit perfectly. Willow Shields broke hearts as young Prim. Woody Harrelson captured Haymitch perfectly—and hilariously. Josh Hutcherson portrayed Peeta’s feelings towards Katniss and his own life in a moving, meaningful way. The spirit and soul of Katniss comes out brilliantly through Jennifer Lawrence.  Each cast member brought his character to life in a believable, fitting fashion.

  

The addition of scenes not from the books didn’t detract from the story; they enhanced it and set up for Catching Fire and Mockingjay. The scenes with President Snow brought chills to the skin while the moments in the Gamemakers room contained a mixture of horror and fascination. The ones orchestrating the obstacles in the area seemed proud of sending children to their deaths. The technology, though, is quite interesting to see. Think Iron Man’s computer system. 

Katniss and Gale

As with any adaptation, some scenes don’t make the cut while others face alterations. The only real complaint in this department is that if a person hasn’t read the book, she may find herself confused on a few points. Fortunately, through the role of Caesar Flickerman, there’s some explanation throughout the Games. It’s almost like sports commentary. It’s easy to miss details like who Foxface is, that Peeta and Katniss trained together at first and that Haymitch was a former tribute. 

As expected, the movie contains dozens of incidents of violence. Through shaky camera work and angled shots, viewers see what happens without it being gratuitous. The shaking shots can make viewers a bit dizzy or disorientated, so this is definitely not a movie to watch up close. The amount of blood is enough to make the point without taking it too far. There’s a certain feeling of wrongness accompanied with watching children fight to the death; a feeling present in the books and that fans should never lose. Director Gary Ross captured the horror in an effective method.

Katniss and Effie

Because of the extreme violence and emotionally gripping scenes, The Hunger Games is somewhat hard to watch. From the moment when Katniss volunteers to take Prim’s place to the trials in the area, it’s impossible to remain completely calm. Be prepared for tears, laughter and anxiety. It’s difficult to watch characters die, especially ones that worm their way into the hearts of fans without us realizing it. It’s worth it, though. 

The Hunger Games is a must-see not only for fans of the book, but the general public. Katniss Everdeen is a true heroine, one that we can all admire. If the box office numbers tells us anything, it’s that the a movie lead by such a fantastic character with an amazing story can and will take the world by storm.

Katniss Everdeen, the Girl on Fire

Katniss Everdeen

The female Tribute from District 12. A star-crossed lover. Girl on Fire. Mockingjay. All these describe Katniss Everdeen, the main character in The Hunger Games. Readers see the story through her point of view. She is strong, determine and cynical and marked to die.

Who is she, exactly? How did she come to be the way she is?

Katniss is the eldest of the two Everdeen sisters. Her father died when she was 12 in a mining accident. After his death, her mother falls into a stupor, forcing Katniss to take on the role as provider for the family. She develops her hunting skills and eventually meets up with Gale Hawthorne, another boy trying to help his family survive. Gale’s father died in the same explosion as Katniss’s did. Gale is a few years older than she is. The two work together to catch enough food to feed both their families. Due to her resentment of her mother’s mental abandonment and her hard lifestyle, Katniss is rather cynical and rough. Her little sister Primrose is the only person that she loves deeply. 

After Effie Trinket selects Prim at the reaping for the 74^th Hunger Games, Katniss volunteers. This move wasn’t a surprise, but making her volunteer rather than being picked gave her character much more depth. Katniss promises Prim she’ll try to win, even though she has no real hopes that she will return to her home in District 12. 

Throughout preparations and the Games themselves, Katniss proves repeatedly that she is a survivor. She knows that she will receive no mercy from Capitol and can play her own games to survive another day. 

Katniss and Effie at Reaping

What makes Katniss such a great character isn’t only that she volunteered to die in a horrific fashion for Prim; it’s her behaviors, attitudes and decisions. Katniss isn’t innocent. She isn’t naïve or clueless. She also has reasonable and understandable emotions. She cries, she hurts, she acts out in anger. How many times are the heroes or main characters in books, movies and comics considered a weakling if they show too much emotion? 

Forcing us to read about Katniss grieving makes her seem more human. We’re already put into a horrific setting that seems unbelievable on the surface, but with a little thought can feel as if it could actually happen. Katniss changes right before our eyes in a masterful way. Suzanne Collins showed us how the arena changes people without being too obvious about the changes or telling us. 

Coupled in with most discussions about strong female characters is, of course, the love interest. In a way, there are two in this story, though I never considered Gale a true contender. In a world without the Hunger Games, possibly, but he has a dangerous streak in him that would cause considerable problems between the two in the future. In Catching Fire, yes, it could be called a “love triangle” in the loosest definition of the phrase. The man is Peeta Mellark.

Peeta fell for Katniss long before the story begins, as he explains during the Games. We’ll save an in-depth look at Peeta for another post. Katniss has a bumpy relationship with Peeta. She doesn’t depend on him to keep her safe, nor does she need him to define her. The two can work together with either seeming pathetic or weak.

Katniss, the Girl on Fire

Various reviews and discussions criticize the way Katniss breaks down during Mockingjay. Her response was realistic. There’s only so much tragedy a person’s brain can handle. Mentally shutting down was her way of dealing with the situations, or at least attempting to recover from them. This reaction doesn’t classify her as weak or useless. It makes her human and different from other female characters. Very few can explain what it is like to be hunted, so there’s nothing for most people to base her reactions on. 

Katniss is one of the best examples of the types of good female characters that readers want to see. Writers can learn more about the types of characters the masses want to see by following Suzanne Collins example.

How to make a strong female character: Breaking past the stereotypes

The career-driven lawyer, the teacher with commitment issues, the rogue bounty hunter who’s trying to avenge a loss without getting close to anyone. All of these roles and more show up in movies and books featuring strong female characters. More often than not, during the bulk of the movie or book, the strong female character won’t give into love or won’t become allies with another person (insert any scenario) because of a career (No Strings Attached) or some other single-minded goal (A Woman Called Sage).

In the typically movie set up, the strong female character in question falls in love with the man, saves the day, escapes capture, ect. and at the end is suddenly a “female.” Now it’s okay for her to want kids. She can’t have any desire to be a mom before the end because that’s just not part of the stereotypical strong female definition. She’s allowed to marry, wear a nice dress and heels and have a massage. The stereotypes demands that the woman acts hard, cold and even the ever insulting, ignorant phrase “PMS-y.”

Because it’s okay for men to have mood swings, but not women. If a man freaks out on someone, he’s stressed or dark. If a woman does it, PMS. No questions asked.

One book that managed to not only keep the lead female actually believable and made it so her resolution wasn't a complete 180 of her former self is A Women Called Sage by DiAnn Mills. Sage is a bounty hunger in the post-Civil War west whose husband and unborn son were murdered. She returns to her Native American roots on a quest to find her family’s killers. She lives off the land, refuses help from anyone and won’t entertain the thought of the future. Revenge is all that matters to her. At the end, she finds life again, but still maintains what made her the capable woman she was in the beginning of the book. She’s learned lessons, grown, but her core is intact.

When reading books or watching movies that boost a “strong female character,” I compare that person to the supporting cast. What makes the rest of the cast “weak?” (If that is what they are considered or how it's portrayed.) In the Stephanie Plum novels by Janet Evanovich, Stephanie’s mother, Ellen, is a homemaker and spends her days cooking. Does this make her a weak female character? What about Ellen’s desire to see her daughter in a safer job with a husband who loves her? Ellen appears as a weaker character on the surface due to stereotypes, but if readers look beneath the surface, they will find a woman who holds down her home no matter what is going on.

Often it feels as if romance, parenting or a trip to a spa is seen as a negative character factor for woman. When a woman says, “I love you,” she’s suddenly cast aside. What is it about love, family and female habits that make someone weak?

Absolutely nothing.

In the quest to make more female appealing characters, some authors and filmmakers are taking the wrong exit. When creating a female character, make her a woman. Don’t ask, “What would a man do?” in a situation. “What would that character do?” is the better question. If she has a fear of drowning, odds are that she would try to find another way around river than swimming across.

It’s far too easy to make a male character, give him a women’s name and call it a day. That doesn’t work. It’s the old sheep in wolf’s clothing bit. Something doesn’t look or feel right. Whether writing for a book, movie, video game or TV show, it’s easy to trap yourself into a set of rules regarding what the female characters can and cannot do. Becoming trapped often hinders character development. A character grows during the writing process. Stories evolve. That’s something good writers know and embrace. Setting hard rules as to what can and cannot be done only limits the story and characters, female or male.

There’s no formula or character sheet that gives the exact recipe for a strong female character. Rather than mold them all from the same mold, let them grow and adapt into something real, not mass produced.