The Hunger Games

It regrettably misses the mark as a social parable and a critique of a reality show (the classic misguided product syndrome: I criticize myself and I’m not aware of it), as a sci-fi hopelessly non-original, toothless as an action film, pubertal dull as a drama... the argument that it is the absolute opposite of Twilight does not stand up - simply because the heroine is "tough and unyielding", that director Ross and especially cinematographer Stern are at a higher level (the raw filming raises it above average), and that the story has a certain deeper subtext - is not enough. The Hunger Games is similarly poser-like dull and harmlessly consumable. I would like to write that this is The Truman Show for teenagers, but the truth is that this is all to which Weir's film is critically defined. If only it worked as "simple entertainment". But it doesn't. Without knowledge of the book, it is confused, unfinished and overwhelmed with obligatory clichés and affected by a very tied up imagination. (03/21/2012)

The plot roller coaster, which greatly enhances the desire to read a book, but also works as a surprising teenage hit until the very last minute. The characters are precise, the actors amazing, the relationships believable, and despite several seemingly exaggerated scenes towards the end, it's actually hard for me to find any specific criticism. Perhaps if the second part goes deeper into the interaction between the main characters, I will be fully thrilled. Those who mock the partial resemblance to Orwell or Truman Show have not understood that there is a slightly different metaphor here. Katniss Everdeen for the win. P.S.: I became friends with the book practically instantly, and after reading the entire saga, I would give Suzanne Collins almost anything. Just for the record. (04/08/2012)

The Hunger Games is another of those interesting fantasy book series that got adapted into a Hollywood movie. I was quite reluctant to see this. Even though I like fantasy films very much, I never know what to expect from them, and what I’ve seen lately was mostly so mediocre that it made me sad. But in the end, I made time for The Hunger Games one Sunday afternoon. I chose Sunday because the film has almost three hours. A film of this length must inevitably have some balls to grab my attention and keep me from falling asleep. The first half an hour was an introduction to the fantasy world in question. There was nothing much going on, but it served its purpose. Nevertheless, at the moment the titular hunger games kicked off, I started to enjoy the movie very much. I found the premise really intriguing, and the way this movie was shot is also not exactly ordinary. The story is quite realistic, with a lot of food for thought. And I must say that even though I felt kind of skeptical about this fantasy world at first, over time I grew fond of it and I began to wonder what the creators – and the source book – have in store for us next time. So yes, I must say that there is something about this world. The execution is also well-done, so the remaining two and half hours passed in the blink of an eye. I was satisfied with the result, and now I’m curious about the sequel. (12/13/2013)

A slightly above average film that could have been more. Maybe it's because I haven't read the books, but I kept feeling like I needed to know more about the world in which The Hunger Games takes place in order to believe that such a thing was really possible. That's why I had trouble accepting the idea that there's been a killing contest for 74 years, the purpose of which is, among other things, to pacify the population, and that people have accepted it and somehow it works. Sci-fi or not, the world in which a story takes place should simply be believable. However, I have to give The Hunger Games credit for its fine cast (except that the main antagonist should not have been such a similar type as the main male protagonist, I kept getting them mixed up), the nice pacing that made the two hours and something pass pretty quickly, and James Newton Howard's score. Directionally, however, it was no miracle, and I don't think I'll remember any of the scenes – hopefully the next installments will turn out better in that respect at least, since Francis Lawrence has been placed at the helm. (08/02/2020)

The idea for the book just spontaneously came to the author’s mind and most certainly wasn’t inspired by the Japanese Batoru rowaiaru (2000). Well, let's just say I’m not buying it. I'm going to rudely assume it was a standard American rip-off, just with added bombast, a play on emotions, and a moronic plot. Even if the Americans had set fire to all twenty-four athletes, they couldn't have put together a pair of characters that would entertain me as much as the Japanese duo, Pot lid and Binoculars. Those of you who know something about me must have known that I wasn’t going to be happy with the casting of the lead. Jennifer Lawrence does have something going for her; after all, she is one of the world's top actresses regarding "leaked" photos and videos. There’s no denying that. I just think she should take up poker instead of acting. Her constant unreadable expression can compete even with the likes of Ben Affleck or Mickey Rourke. However, the latter helped himself to it surgically, which disqualifies him in my eyes. The film didn’t start off looking entirely bad, but as time went on, my hopes started to fade, only to vanish completely. The film was made to look like it was about the right values, but actually, it just wasted over two hours on yet another story about a love triangle that teens and American housewives just can’t get enough of. / Lesson learned: Never eat alone and don’t be the first one to eat in a group. (09/08/2022)