Hunger Games, The (3/23/2012)

Rated PG-13 for intense violent thematic material and disturbing images – all involving teens.

Directed by Gary Ross (Pleasantville, Seabiscuit)

Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson

For Jonathan’s perspective, check out the blog he posted right after he saw the film, “After Seeing Hunger Games”

JAY’S WORD: So, when I ask people what they think about The Hunger Games novel, I only ever seem to get two different responses: 1) I haven’t read it, or 2) I LOVE it!

TODD’S WORD: Wow, that’s funny. I actually haven’t read the books, but my kids (Brianna 14 and Caleb 10) have read all three. The LOVED the movie; in fact when we walked out of the theater they immediately asked what I was going to score it…They were not pleased when I jokingly said, “A Coaster for sure.”

JAY’S WORD: Ha ha! I think the crowd where I was would have mobbed you if they heard you say that.

TODD’S WORD: Agreed. This movie overwhelming pleased its fan base.

JAY’S WORD: I think the reactions to The Hunger Games movie are going to be very similar to the reactions I usually hear about the books.

TODD’s WORD: The odds may be ever in its favor. I have to be honest, I was expecting ridiculous lines, a bazillion teens and preteens running around and all out chaos. But they opened the theater about 15 minutes earlier which meant no lines – we bought some popcorn, walked right in and found great seats. The night was off to a great start. What happened there in Texas?

JAY’S WORD: The theater I went to was pretty tame, but my Facebook feed is filled with some pretty crazy tales about some other opening nights…but we better press on. What did you think of the film?

TODD’S WORD: Well let’s cover all the good stuff first. The cast of both kids and adults was excellent. I’m not a huge Woody Harrelson fan, but I loved him in this role. At first he is a trashy drunk, but turns into a caring, compassionate mentor.

JAY’S WORD: Yeah, Haymitch is my favorite character in the books and Harrelson really did him justice. I thought Stanley Tucci as Caesar Flickerman was incredible too. I couldn’t help but smile every time he was on screen.

TODD’S WORD: True. But what makes this film so popular with teens and tweens is the cast of younger actors and I was very impressed with their performances.

JAY’S WORD: I was impressed too, especially with Jennifer Lawrence. She really carried this movie. Katniss is simultaneously mature and naïve, headstrong and cautious, strong and insecure; it is no wonder that teens everywhere are resonating with her.

TODD’S WORD: I totally agree. So what did you think of the story?

JAY’S WORD: I’m a huge fan. I thought it was cool that instead of focusing on the little details that give the book its rich back-story, director Gary Ross chose to do what can only be done through film: he shows us what the world of Hunger Games is like. We see the bleak, grey lives of the citizens of District 12, so when Katniss is taken into the Capitol and we see the splendor and luxury there we feel the injustice. And when The Games begin, we feel Katniss’s terror and her anguish over the senseless death of innocent teens.

TODD’S WORD: That’s actually one of the things that bothered me about the film. At its core, it has an “anti-violence in the media” message that is told in an overwhelmingly violent movie. In a recent interview author Suzanne Collins said she “was lying in bed channel-surfing between reality TV and coverage of the Iraq War. She said, “Those two things kind of fused together. Sort of a combination of young people being killed and the nation watching it on TV.”

Not to mention this basic plot has been done in films like The Running Man, Condemned (which no one saw) and Death Race. Now before you jump down my throat, I know these are kids who are victims and not hardened criminals on death row. But like Ecclesiastes 1:9 says, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”

JAY’S WORD: See that’s why I think this film is important. The concept isn’t anything new. Truth be told, it cut a little too close to home for me. In a world where millions struggle to get food on a regular basis, at any point in the day we can turn on the TV and watch a show about competitive cake making, or people who volunteer to try to win prizes by surviving in harsh environments.

TODD’s WORD: Hmmmm…good point. That’s a really broad topic, though.

JAY’S WORD: Right, let’s get back to the film.

TODD’S WORD: Yes. There was one other thing about The Hunger Games that I did not care for. I did not like the shaky, handheld camera shots during the fight scenes. It was so distracting and difficult to watch, but I completely understand why they did it. This is an R-rated film wrapped in PG-13 packaging. The plot is dark, the imagery is disturbing and the action is intense. If you take out the shaky shots, you either have vanilla fight scenes or they amp it up and you have an R-rated film.

JAY’S WORD: I have to agree with you there. I’m not a fan of the shaky-cam either, but I think it is cool that director Gary Ross understood that this story belongs to the teens and made sure the movie reflects that. Like you said, the fight scenes were intense, but they weren’t terribly gory and I appreciated that. And, there are enough lighthearted and heartwarming moments to keep the pace from dragging. When the movie ended, I could hardly believe a full two hours and forty-five minutes had passed.

TODD’S WORD: Yeah, despite those two “flaws”, this is still a very entertaining movie that takes on the big issues like war, power, sacrifice, personal ethics, the class system, and reality TV. I’d go see it again because it’s “Theatre Worthy.”

JAY’S WORD: To be honest, I could talk about this movie all day, but I would rather people be in the theater than reading this, so I have one last question for our readers. Are you going to be one of the people who says they haven’t seen The Hunger Games…or one of the people who says they loved it?

SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
I think this movie is a must for more mature teens. But a lot of the subject matter is dark and even though there is little gore, the action scenes are very intense.

Conversation Starter:

1. In John chapter 15 Jesus says this to his disciples:
   
   As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love…My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
   
   What are some examples of the way that Jesus loved his disciples (and us)?


2. What are some examples of ways that characters in The Hunger Games showed this kind of love?


3. What does that mean for us? How does Jesus command us to love each other?


4. What are some ways that characters in The Hunger Games failed to show this kind of love?


5. What are some ways we fail to show this kind of love?