- Location: Regal Colony Square Stadium 12
- An amalgam of gladiator games, Lord of the Flies, and reality television, Gary Ross' The Hunger Games is a decent and utterly faithful adaptation of Suzanne Collins' surprisingly compelling source novel for young adults. In an era when the portrayal of bleak dystopian futures seems to be in vogue, this particular vision stands out in that it features equal parts high and low technology. The world of Panem (as it is called in book and film) may have suffered some serious social and political upheaval over the years, but it appears to have escaped large-scale nuclear holocaust and/or disease epidemics, the two usual scourges of civilization. Instead, its afflictions now take the form of severe economic inequality and some truly deplorable fashion and entertainment aesthetics.
- Which brings us to the Hunger Games themselves. For reasons having to do with obscure past wrongs against the empire, the twelve outlying districts of Panem submit each year two young tributes to engage in mortal combat with the other kids. In case you were wondering, participation in these so-called games is mandatory. This year, the female tribute from the poor, rural, mining province of District 12 is a young woman named Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence), who bravely volunteers to take the place of her younger, weaker sister (Willow Shields). The male tribute from same district is a young baker named Peeta (Josh Hutcherson). Because the tributes are teenagers, there is also a weak love triangle involving a strong, silent type named Gale (Liam Hemsworth), but we gather he'll have more of a role to play in the sequels.
- While District 12 looks like any other stereotypically poor town, the film does create impressively memorable versions of the two other primary locations. The first, Panem's capital city, is a weird futuristic Babylon whose denizens (the most notable of whom are played by Stanley Tucci, Wes Bentley, and Elizabeth Banks) sport neon clothing and sculpted hair that all suggest a pervasive cultural superficiality. With some clandestine help from her fashion consultant (Lenny Kravitz) and alcoholic advisor (Woody Harrelson), Katniss makes a rebellious impression there that extends into the battle arena, the second impressive locale. Resembling Katniss' arboreal home district, the arena hides a multitude of artificially introduced dangers, including poisonous wasps, careening fireballs, and mutant dogs. The biggest threat, however, may be the steady gaze of President Snow (Donald Sutherland), whom we quickly gather does not take well to being upstaged, especially when Katniss' kindness to a young tribute (Amandla Stenberg) sparks off riots in the streets. Will the supposedly star-crossed lovers Katniss and Peeta somehow win the Hunger Games, or is the fix already in?
- As this review illustrates, The Hunger Games covers a lot of ground, and it is remarkable that any adaptation managed to do justice to this story without cutting out any essentials. Furthermore, I found the casting to be excellent, especially that of Jennifer Lawrence, whose amazing performance in Winter's Bone made her a perfect choice for the like-minded and equally tough Katniss. If you want a fully-realized young female film action hero, you now have one. That said, the film's direction doesn't quite match the quality of the rest of the production. The first fifteen minutes, for example, involve far more rapid cuts and shaky cameras than a sleepy mining town should ever merit. Maybe the cameraman was excited in anticipation of this film, too, I don't know. At any rate, things calm down enough that the direction eventually becomes inoffensive. Maybe that's not an ideal you aim for, even if it is the one big-budget spectacles sometimes hit. Nonetheless, the story, characters, and acting are enough to allow any audience to survive, and hopefully even enjoy, The Hunger Games.
