Movie Review: ‘THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE’

As someone who never read any of The Hunger Games books, I was pleasantly surprised at the film adaptation from last year. It didn’t really feel like a Young Adult novel adapted to the big screen geared towards teens. It was versatile. It had appeal to all moviegoers. When I heard that director Gary Ross was departing the series and Francis Lawrence would be directing the latest installment, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, I was a bit concerned. After all, Lionsgate gave the keys to a franchise to the man who directed mediocre to horrid adaptations like I Am Legend and Constantine. I’m not sure if feedback from his previous films improved his approach or not but The Hunger Games: Catching Fire doesn’t just carry the caliber that the previous film left off with, it improves it.

Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson), the champions of the 74th Hunger Games, live in their District under the illusion that they are still a couple after overthrowing the basic rule that only one winner can come from the games. As they gear up to prepare to “pass the torch” to players for the next game, Katniss and Peeta learn that the 75th Hunger Games will be a Quarter Quell. The Quarter Quells were basically special editions of the games, a twist on the regular editions. The twist for this third Quarter Quell would be that the tributes would be past winners of The Hunger Games.  This is a move executed by President Snow (Donald Sutherland) to end the rebellion that Katniss and Peeta have started by what they did to win the previous game. Katniss battles with trying to live a normal life and is reluctant of being the leader of this upcoming revolution against the Capitol because of this. However, she has to face the consequences to her rebellious outcome of the previous game. A good chunk of the first act is based on this.

While the new addition of Philip Seymour Hoffman‘s game maker character Plutarch is welcome, there aren’t many scenes with him to take over. That’s not to say that he isn’t an important character, because he is. Plutarch fuels Snow’s ambition to destroy Katniss in cunning fashion. Plutarch states that it is more important to destroy the symbolism of Katniss moreso than the physical embodification. When it comes down to the actual Hunger Games and the new arena, it loses some of the ferocity of the previous adaptation. Granted, the body count isn’t as high but this game takes place in where the objective is more clear: destroy Katniss, destroy the rebellion. The arena is the enemy of all the players. As such, alliances are made – maybe even for a bigger reason than just to survive the longest – and teamwork forms quickly. Other welcome additions to the cast are Jena Malone as Johana, a tough, fun and fiesty player who seems to have no filter in her animosity towards the games. Jeffrey Wright and Amanda Plummer as a nerdy team that used science and logic to their advantage to win the previous games.

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is a definite improvement on an already decent start at the franchise. Better yet, director Francis Lawrence shows that his attraction, interpretation and vision for dystopia adapts well to The Hunger Games mythology. Lawrence takes the reigns of the franchise and shows he is not a director for hire. While this film doesn’t really stand on its own like the previous entry, it feels like the start of a bigger and better story that will continue with The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 & 2. It’s just a shame that we have to wait another year for the next entry.