I'm going to preface this by saying that I am a HUGE fan of the Hunger Games books, and my thoughts about the movie are coming from that perspective. I had the opportunity to see the movie at a press screening (and again at the midnight screening and was blown away by the movie. Of course as a fan I was worried about whether the movie would do the books justice (which they hardly ever do) and I was pleasantly surprised.
First let me address the cast. When I first heard about Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson being cast as Katniss and Peeta, like other HG fans, I wasn't feeling it. Boy were we wrong! Jennifer is perfection as Katniss. I was so impressed with how she totally nailed her toughness, her determination, her drive and her compassion. And Josh. Oh Josh, how I love you. You ARE Peeta. I remember hearing HG author Suzanne Collins talking about Josh's audition and said, "But I tell you, if Josh had been bright purple and had six-foot wings and gave that audition, I'd have been like, 'Cast him! We can work around the wings.' He was that good." Well Bravo Ms. Collins and director Gary Ross. You were right. Team Peeta. And it's not just the two of them, Liam Hemsworth as Gale, Elizabeth Banks as Effie, Lenny Kravitz as Cinna, Woody Harrelson as Haymich, Stanley Tucci as Caesar, Amandla Stenberg as Rue ...I could go on and on. They were all perfect!
People have asked me if it was true to the book and I have to say yes. Some things weren't exactly as I pictured it in my head, but I'm ok with that. All I really wanted out of this movie was for them to show how badass Katniss is, to follow the main events as they happened in the book, and to fall in love with Peeta all over again. For me...done, done and done!
I'm a big believer in reading the books before the movie, and in this case I've been begging people to do that. It is such a well written book, you get to have your own vision of it first, and in the case of the Hunger Games, I feel that you have a better appreciation of the movie. For me, there were things that happened in the movie that I felt I got on a deeper level because I had read the books.
Of course as a Twilight fan, I have to address the comparisons. You know I love Twilight dearly, but looks like there's some competition for my heart. I have to say that I'm a little bothered by the comparisons. I know that it's tempting to do because both have a passionate, crazed fanbase, but come on, they are SO different. The one thing I will say, and it hurts my heart to say it, is that I do feel that the Hunger Games movie was done much better than the Twilight movies. Wow! I feel like a mother who just said she loves one of her children more than the other one. BUT, in Twilight's defense, it had a $37 million dollar budget to work with (first movie) and the Hunger Games had $75 mil.
No matter what anyone thinks about this movie, it's going to be a major blockbuster. Insiders estimate the movie will make about $145 million dollars! The final Harry Potter movie holds the record for the biggest opening ever at $169.2 million. I remember hearing Jennifer Lawrence saying that she was a little hesitant at first about taking the role because she knew how much it would change her life. Well, get ready girl because you'll never be able to eat out in public in peace again!
I would love to hear what you think once you see it. Make sure you leave a comment here or hit me up at Pebbles@Jamn945.com. Enjoy, and May the odds be ever in your favor! I know...I couldn't resist!
