 |
| May The Odds Ever Be... Oh Shut Up! |
To be honest with you, I haven't read the books. I just found them too gruesome and they're not my cup of tea. In fact, I would probably wouldn't have watched this if you guys didn't tell me to review this. So let's get started.
After a catastrophic war destroys North America, a new nation comprised of twelve districts emerge from its ruins to be called Panam. (No relation to the airplane industry that was ahead of my time.) Sadly, all of the districts are ruled by the insanely rich/evil Capitol. How evil is it? Well for starters, it decrees that every year, every district will send "one courageous man and woman" to an arena where they will all fight to death on a televised show. (In other words, it's like if The Truman Show, The Most Dangerous Game, 1984,The Minotaur Myth, The Lottery, and basically every adventure story were invited to party where Battle Royale was its theme.) Simple really.
Anyway, Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) volunteers to go fight when her sister, Primrose, is chosen. What follows is her preparation and training for the big battle, which happens for half of the movie. She also falls in love with her fellow tribute named Peeta (Josh Hutcherson). Then, the battle begins, and I pose this question to you: Will she live or will she die? If she lives, does that mean that she have to watch her love one die?
To say it again, I've never been a fan of the original book, since it was too disturbing for my taste. Yet, I love the fact that kids are willing to think about issues even more. Issues like feminism, religion, class system, governments, war, and of course how they will get over the fact that Suzanne Collins used to write for the popular T.V. series, Little Bear. (I'm not kidding on the last statement.)
I hate the way that in the beginning, the director decided to use hand-hand camera , which really is annoying. No one wants to feel seasick from the cinematography. I also agree with Light Camera Jackson's opinion that the ending is a "a cop-out ending." Sorry for the spoiler, but I had to do it. I really hate those kind of endings. Plus, I also agree with Roger Ebert who wished for more social commentary, which would made it even more interesting. Does that mean that you should skip it? Nope.
The directing awesome, the sets remind me of Metropolis, which is a high compliment, and it's so suspenseful that my knees were shaking all of the time. In fact, I'm very glad that Suzanne Collins co-wrote the script, for it always help if the original creator wrote the script. (It makes it more fun for the reviewers and audience.) But, my favorite part of this is the acting! All of the acting were great, and for some reason I was always interested with Elizabeth Bank's character, which I have no explanation for. Maybe because she looks good in those clothes.
The real scene stealer is Jennifer Lawrence! She had the strongest acting and she was lovely and feisty as Katniss. Yet, she's got a heartbreaking side as she will do anything for her sister's survival. Plus, most reviewers/fans have noted that they knew that only she could pull the role off perfectly as Clark Gable did with Rhett Butler in Gone With The Wind.
Note for those non fans , like me : This movie will not change your opinion of the books. It's just too disturbing/violent , and since most non fans have that idea, you will not be won over. However, there are exceptions , like my mom wants to know what happens next. So, that makes a fan who will probably see this movie for the 74th time. For non fans: May The Odds Ever Be In Your Favor.
8/10
