There has been quite a fuss since last friday concerning The Hunger Games and it’s all been nothing but positive review after positive review.
So, I made this thread for not just people who have seen the movie but for people who have read the books too.
You must’ve read my mind, Movie-Brat, because i was just about to say something about it. Now, I’m probably going to see it this week. I can’t say I’m in any big hurry, as I’ve never read the books. And I’m one of those guys who, the more a movie is hyped, is less inclined to go see it. It’s just a thing where I feel as if it’s being shoved in my face. But since Ocelli and I have some free time tomorrow, we may as well go see it.
But anyway, one of the other reasons I probably haven’t been too excited about seeing it is because I feel as if I’ve seen this kind of story before. There have been lots of stories about humans hunting other humans for sport and/or the entertainment of the masses. And I wanted to put up some other movies as suggested or recommended viewing if they’ve either read the books or going to see the movie.
The Most Dangerous Game (1932)-
Directed by: Merian C. Cooper Starring: Leslie Banks, Joel McCrea, Robert Armstrong, Fay Wray
Based on a short story by Richard Connell, it was made into a movie produced by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest Schoedsack, who would go on to make King Kong a year later. It also stars future Kong leads Robert Armstrong and Fay Wray.
A big game hunter (McCrea) is the sole survivor of a shipwreck who washes ashore on an island owned by an eccentric millionaire (Banks). After enjoying his hospitality, he soon finds that he and some fellow guests (Armstrong and Wray) are to be subjects for his hunt. Apparently after traveling the world and hunting every wild animal there is, he finds that hunting man is the most thrilling of them all. So they must run through the wilderness, trying to outwit their would-be killer.
The film and the story have served as countless inspirations for other movies and even one-off episodes of TV shows as diverse as Gilligan’s Island, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, The Simpsons and Supernatural. But perhaps one of the more noteworthy takes was a B-movie version entitled Bloodlust! that starred a pre-Brady Bunch Robert Reed and was made fun of on Mystery Science Theater 3000.
Battle Royale (2000)-
Directed by: Kinji Fukusaku Starring: Chiaki Kurayama
A lot of people have been comparing The Hunger Games to this movie, which came from Japan. The premises are certainly similar, as both involve teams of adolescents who are forced to hunt each other in a televised reality/game show for the entertainment of the society. However, the contestants are all picked from the same school, and unlike Hunger Games, they also wear explosive collars that can be triggered at any time. It got a sequel, and both were released on Blu-Ray last week, obviously to coincide with the release of The Hunger Games.
Series 7: The Contenders (2001)-
Directed by: Daniel Minahan Starring: Brooke Smith
This film is kind of obscure, but does have a similarity to The Hunger Games as it deals with a televised reality show where the contestants have to kill each other. It also features a resourceful female heroine, this one played by Brooke Smith, whom you may remember as Buffalo Bill’s victim in Silence of the Lambs. However, her character has one problem that Katniss Everdeen never had to deal with: she’s eight months pregnant!
[B]Death Race 2000 /B-
Directed by: Paul Bartel Starring: David Carradine, Sylvester Stallone
In this cult action/dark comedy film produced by Roger Corman, a cross-country race is sponsored by the future dictatorship to appease the masses. Points are earned not by racing proficiency, but by how many pedestrians are killed. Features cult movie favorite David Carradine as the hero racer Frankenstein, and a pre-Rocky Sylvester Stallone as his rival, “Machine Gun” Joe.
The Running Man (1987)-
Directed by: Paul Michael Glaser Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Richard Dawson, Maria Conchita Alonso
Okay, everyone’s probably familiar with this Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, which was based in a short story by Stephen King written under his Richard Bachman pseudonym. So I don’t think I really need to say much more about it here, other than like Hunger Games, it’s set in a totalitarian regime where condemned criminals have to earn their freedom through a televised deathmatch.
[B]Rollerball /B-
Directed by: Norman Jewison Starring: James Caan, John Houseman
Of all the movies here, I think this one is most similar to Hunger Games in terms of its themes and concept. In the future of Rollerball, corporations have replaced governments, and the titular sport - which is basically an amped-up version of Roller Derby with elements of arena motocross thrown in - has replaced war as a means of settling disputes. The film centers on star Rollerball player Jonathan E., played by James Caan. At the top of his game, he’s the most popular player in the world, but his corporate owners wish him to retire. They first try to pressure him by taking away his lover (Bond girl Maud Adams) as she is considered corporate property. But as he continues to refuse, they start changing the rules of the game, making it more lethal and dangerous. The uitimate idea of Rollerball, as in The Hunger Games, is a means for the ruling class to keep the masses cowed by showing the futility of the individual. And since Jonathan runs counter to this idea, they see him as a problem to be eliminated.
I’ve found the film in successive viewings to be eerily prescient on many things, as corporations pretty much all but run the political system today, and the fixation upon reality television. It’s pretty heady stuff that any fan of The Hunger Games should definitely check out. Oh, and avoid the 2002 remake at all costs.
Smash T.V.- Ok, this is cheating a bit as it’s a video game. But it’s one I’m reminded of when thinking about The Hunger Games. It was released in arcades in 1988. It’s probably most famous for its dual joystick control scheme (one to move, the other to fire). Both players are contestants in a game show where they have to run a gauntlet of enemies such as club-wielding mutants and robots to obtain cash and prizes. It’s never made clear why people would voluntarily risk life and limb for, say, a toaster or a VCR. But there you go. It’s also best remembered for its announcer, who says memorable phrases like “BIG money! BIG prizes! I LOVE IT!!!,” “Total carnage!!!” or (quoting from Robocop) “I’d buy that for a dollar!”
This game incidentally got a sequel in 1993 called, appropriately, Total Carnage and was inspired by - and satirized - the Iraq war. It’s also the game Ocelli and I met over while playing in the Towson University student union.
So there you go. Check these out after you leave the theater.
If there’s anything Doug Walker’s review told me, the film updated the concept of the previous films you listed. Alot of it can be very satirical considering the buttload of reality shows.
Well, watched it last night [/URL][URL=“http://carte.browsergamez.com/”]with a few colleagues…it was not even so much about the games (sadly)…not really worth it in my opinion.
Well, Ocelli and I went and saw it today. My verdict? Good, but not great. As I thought, it incorporated a lot of the elements from the movies I mentioned above; particularly Rollerball and The Most Dangerous Game and maybe some Battle Royale (can’t say how close the comparisons to that one are as I still haven’t seen it). I didn’t really think that was a bad thing, though, as considering Rollerball was made 40 years ago, I doubt it would resonate with today’s kids. So basically, this is their generation’s re-interpretation of it.
[LEFT]There were a few things that bothered me. For one, the citizens of the Capitol looked so gaudy and overdone that I half-expected Lady Gaga to show up at any moment. Also towards the end, they call in these genetically-engineered dog mutant things that looked for all the world to me like the Terror Dogs from Ghostbusters.
But I did think Jennifer Lawrence was good. I’ve liked her since I saw her in X-Men: First Class as Mystique. So I knew she was capable of carrying a movie on her own. I was also pleasantly surprised to see Isabelle Fuhrman again after her role in Orphan, although the character she played here wasn’t that big of a part.
And while I was curious to know what happens next in the sequels, I wasn’t exactly filled with a burning desire to go read the books. More likely, I’ll probably go to their Wikipedia entries and read the plot synopses. So to sum up, it was okay. Though I still think John Carter was the better movie, as I got more out of that.
Bob Chipman (aka MovieBob on The Escapist and GameOverthinker on Screwattack) did a review that more or less echoed how I felt about it, though I generally would give it slightly higher marks than he did.
[/LEFT]
Good to see that you liked it as well. I intend on seeing it myself.
Great film, very well made adaptation of the novel and does remind me of those movies you mentioned including Battle Royale which rocks and i known that movie since i got a director’s cut copy of it in 2003 and now have it on R1 Blu-Ray in it’s collection that also includes that version.
I do not understand why this series is so insanely popular. I read the first book, then I watched the movie, then I read the other two books. They are dark, depressing and disturbing.
Lord Slithor, in response to your comment about not liking how the people in the capitol looked and likening them to Lady Gaga, that is exactly how the author described how freakish these people looked.
As for the dog creatures near the end. The thing they left out of the movie is that when these dog creatures came, Katniss noticed that they had the eyes of the other tributes who had already been killed in the arena which really unnerved her. She saw Rue in one of their faces, for example, and she was freaking out about it.
One thing I absolutely hated about the movie - shaky camera movements. It made me feel motion sick just trying to watch it. I am not a fan of the shaky camera thing.
On a positive note - the violence and gore and graphicness of the movie was far more tame than the book. For example, when Cato finally fell to the dogs, they feasted and tortured him all night but didn’t kill him. Not until daylight when Katniss got tired of hearing him suffer did she finally end his misery for him. In the movie, they had her end his life pretty fast.
I do think they did a good job casting. The second book was ok to read but the third was incredibly depressing and I felt like the ending of the third book was very anti-climatic.
Yeah, I kind of felt pretty unimpressed by the movie. I don’t know if that’s because I was older than the target demographic or what. Then again, I remember feeling the same way after seeing the first Lord of the Rings movie, and I had never read the original books either (Yes, shocking I know!) I was at a loss in trying to understand what it was that people were so excited and losing their minds over. But then, around Return of the King, something happened and everything clicked into place for me, and now it’s one of my favorite movie series to the point where I have all three extended editions of Blu-Ray. So maybe something like that will happen here.
Lord Slithor, in response to your comment about not liking how the people in the capitol looked and likening them to Lady Gaga, that is exactly how the author described how freakish these people looked.
I guess maybe that could have been her point. Makes me wonder then if Lady Gaga might have read the books years ago and simply took inspiration from them? Either way, I find it amusing - and maybe somewhat appropriate - that the costume designer for this movie, Glenn Hetrick, also happened to work for her as well!
As for the dog creatures near the end. The thing they left out of the movie is that when these dog creatures came, Katniss noticed that they had the eyes of the other tributes who had already been killed in the arena which really unnerved her. She saw Rue in one of their faces, for example, and she was freaking out about it.
That would have made them a lot more effective. But they probably left it out for the same reason as the other thing you and I had a big issue with below…
One thing I absolutely hated about the movie - shaky camera movements. It made me feel motion sick just trying to watch it. I am not a fan of the shaky camera thing.
I hate, hate, HATE shakycam! Used well and in moderation, it can be used to give a feeling of immediacy like in Saving Private Ryan or Black Hawk Down. And I generally don’t mind it in those “found footage” movies either like Cloverfield, The Last Exorcism or [REC] as it’s kind of the point.
But far too often, I’ve found directors like to use it as a crutch in filming action scenes as they either don’t know or can’t be bothered to learn good blocking and action/fight choreography. The Expendables was the worst example of this.
Now, the reason the director probably used it was because they wanted to make sure it had a PG-13 rating. Like you pointed out, things get pretty violent in the books. And had they remained true to that for the movie, it probably would have gotten an R rating. But to make sure the teen audience who comprises the majority of the books’ fan base could see it, they had to tone things down.
The shakycam was probably a compromise; to depict the brutality of the violent scenes without actually depicting them. But still, I thought they did it WAY too much and too often.
Now I understand that there’s going to be a different director for the sequels. Gary Ross couldn’t accommodate them into his schedule, as it was going to conflict with Jennifer Lawrence’s shooting of the sequel to X-Men: First Class. So hopefully the next guy they get will be one who knows how to direct action. It’s been reported that Lionsgate has a short list of who they’d like to get that includes Alfonso Cuaron and David Cronenberg.
Personally, I think they should get someone like Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker) or maybe even Robert Rodriguez. But I just hope they get someone who’s good at directing action.
Except that they had the shakycam thing going on in the opening scene where she snuck out of her village to go hunt with Gale. There was no need for it then as there was no violence to try and subdue.
The capitol people are freaks. Their appearance is very freakish looking, loving to wear colored wigs, have plastic surgery, and wear crazy make-up. The first capitol person to impress Katniss was her stylist - Cinna, who was much more real and down-to-earth than any of the other capitol folk. They are extremely silly and shallow which they would have to be to find it entertaining to watch children brutally murdering one another.
I never would have imagined the actor they chose for Haymitch when I read the books. I liked him a lot better in the movie. In the book you read a lot more about how much Katniss despised Haymitch.
The books, by the way, are written in first person. All from Katniss’s persepctive. So when I watched the movie, the scenes she was not in surprised me because those were not in the book. The scenes in the game room, the private conversations between President Snow and the Gamekeeper, the scene where the Gamekeeper was escorted into a room and saw the poisoned berries waiting for him. They tie in. We find out in the second book that the gamekeeper died and they replaced him - President Snow was very angry with him for allowing two winners.
Well, it looks like they got a director for Catching Fire, and it looks like it’s going to be Francis Lawrence. If you don’t know who he is, his previous work includes I Am Legend, Water for Elephants, and Constantine as well as directing and exec-producing the short-lived but well-regarded TV series Kings.
While he may not be a very big-name director, I’m satisfied with this choice. Considering his prior work, he certainly is familiar with Science Fiction, unlike Gary Ross. Also unlike Ross, it’s proven he can do action and has a good visual style as evidenced by I Am Legend and Constantine, which were both pretty serviceable films. So yay! No more shakycam (I hope)!
MTV.com has an article that gives all the good reasons why hiring Francis Lawrence made sense, and I agreed pretty much with all those points.
Honestly, I was hoping for the guy who directed the film Moneyball but Francis Lawrence works too.
I finally saw it for myself and I apologise for the double post and I really liked it. Katniss Everdeen is one of the best female protagonists I’ve seen in years and the film itself was intelligent and brutal. The shaky cam while obviously done to censor the violence actually adds to the brutality of the games and I liked how the silent moments tend to have the expressions from the actors speak louder than the words. And I enjoyed the dark satirical take on reality television and the glamour of the rich concerning the scenes with the citizens of the Capital.
I didn’t feel confused, it was able to stand on its own even if you hadn’t read the book.
Except the shaky cam began in the very opening sequence and not just used to censor the brutality of the games. It was clearly a style choice done throughout the entire movie by the director. I wouldn’t mind the shaky cam as much if it had been done just during the games.
Okay, maybe the beginning was unnecessary concerning the shaky cam but honestly, I didn’t mind it.
