Hunger Games - Spoilers ok!

[iheartdisney]

Is anyone going to see it in IMAX? I think it would be great in IMAX.

Not in IMAX but rather in D-Box, if you've heard of D-Box seats. Can't wait.

I really wanted to watch it in DBOX, but the only theater around here with DBOX seats doesn't have 2 seats next to each other all weekend.
So I guess I will settle for IMAX! I haven't seen an IMAX movie outside of a museum, so I am really looking forward to tomorrow!

 

[lucyanna girl]

We went to the midnight showing last night. Loved the movie! The only thing I didn't like was them not showing the gift from Rue's district to Katniss.

Penny

 

[IDoDis]

Saw the movie with the family this evening (Everyone read at least the 1st book). The movie was really well done. Jennifer Lawrence nailed it. Her part in this movie was quite similar to her role in "Winter's Bone" where she lived in a very poor back-woods community and was the caretaker of her siblings. I'm sure being in "Winter's Bone" helped her get the part in Hunger Games.

 

[CourtasanSatine]

My crush on Wes Bentley has been kicked back into life but loved the movie.

 

[rszdtrvl]

We went to the midnight showing last night. Loved the movie! The only thing I didn't like was them not showing the gift from Rue's district to Katniss.

Penny

I agree. To me, that was a big part of the book.

 

[RitaE]

We went to the midnight showing last night. Loved the movie! The only thing I didn't like was them not showing the gift from Rue's district to Katniss.

Penny

I noticed that too. They obviously inserted instead the beginnings of unrest in the District. There was still the finger salute.

 

[LilyWDW]

I noticed that too. They obviously inserted instead the beginnings of unrest in the District. There was still the finger salute.

Which I thought was a really smart move on their part because it shows the connection of what happened at the Games and the start of the unrest. They built that link and the connection of Katniss to District 11 and all the others.

Though, I did miss the delivery of the food as it shows that some of the other Districts are supporting Katniss and this will be important later on.

 

[Glynis]

Saw it last night with my two teenagers. We all loved it! I was worried about the large number of teen age girls in the theater, but once the movie started, you could have heard a pin drop! Not a sound from anyone!

I loved Jennifer Lawrence! She WAS Katniss! I also loved Josh Hutcherson. I thought he portrayed Peeta as a really sympathetic young man. His emotions were easily read on his face. Stanley Tucci was incredible as Caesar! I wanted more of him! I'm not a Woody Harrelson fan, but I really thought he was good! I had pictured someone more along the lines of John Goodman, but once Harrelson started working the role, he became Haymitch for me. I also pictured Cinna differently (more along the lines of Mr. J on America's Next Top Model), so I was nervous about Lenny Kravitz. I shouldn't have been. He was perfect! I wish they had shown more of his interactions with Katniss. I missed that!

I also liked all the nods to books 2 and 3 that they set up. The unrest in District 11 after Rue's death (although I missed the gift being sent to Katniss), the white roses of President Snow, and President Snow, in general. Donald Sutherland is the perfect choice. I can't wait to see how his character continues in the next installment!

All in all, I was thrilled with the movie! I can't wait to see it again with my husband. He's in grad school, though, and won't have time until after finals in April.

 

[Pixiedust34]

We loved the movie! It hit a good balance between the horrid nature of the society and the romance factor of the story. With the exception of a few details, I thought it stayed true to the book. Can't wait for the sequel!

 

[3prettyprincesses]

Which I thought was a really smart move on their part because it shows the connection of what happened at the Games and the start of the unrest. They built that link and the connection of Katniss to District 11 and all the others.

Though, I did miss the delivery of the food as it shows that some of the other Districts are supporting Katniss and this will be important later on.

They did a great job making that connection and setting it up for the next movie. I too missed that delivery from District 11. They were so poor and the fact they mustered up enough to send her anything was so special and sacrificial I thought. Ugh, I was a mess when Rue died, they portrayed it so well and Jennifer brought to life those emotions that Katniss always tries to keep under the surface.

 

[Bearvet]

We saw it last night and while we enjoyed it, we didn't "love" it. I think it lost some of the edginess of the book and knowing what Katniss is thinking is very important for her actions to always make sense.

That being said, our group was myself, DH (age 52), DS23, DS17 and his girlfriend. It's the first time in a long time that our group was excited about seeing a movie together and we all read the books. For a single movie to interest such a diverse group is really amazing.

I agree with PPs about 2 things they changed: Katniss getting the pin in the Hobb (because the mayor's daughter is important in future books) and the gift to Katniss from District 11 (although I forgot about that until I read it on here). Other than that I felt everything was well done.

I did love the addition of the gamemakers - that added a dimension that the book didn't. It was interesting to see them manipulate the games.

I know it's marketing, but the Team Peeta/Gale thing drives me nuts! Yhey're trying to make it into the next Twilight, which it's not. Twilight's main focus IS the romance while in HG, it's the games and society with romance on the side. Oh well, I guess it sells.

 

[Diana Lyn]

I found this article interesting as it really compares the differences between the movie and the books. It is a complete spoiler though, so don't click unless you have read and seen the movie.

The biggest "disappointment" for me was Katniss finding the pin in the Hob and not getting it from Madge.

http://www.mercurynews.com/movies-dvd/ci_20234560/hunger-games-seen-movie-10-reasons-still-read

 

[JenM]

I thought all the blurry fast movie pace during the fight scenes were because they didnt want you actually seeing young kids killing each other..It was done very good I think..you understood what was happening without seeing all the blood bath..One of my friends who went with us actually had to close her eyes during these scenes cause they made her sick as well..

And it also conveyed the utter panic of those moments so well too.

I loved it. Thought it was one of the most perfectly cast adaptations I've seen in a long time. Everyone was just terrific.

I loved how it never looked like some big budget special effects extravaganza (John Carter, take note), but instead looked like a survivalist war movie. That was just brilliantly done.

Noticed a few changes from the book (Katniss and Peeta weren't nearly as battered at the end the games), but they worked well moving the story forward and setting up what's coming next.

The scene with reaction from Rue's district was amazing. Can't wait for the next movie!

 

[ZachnElli]

My dd and I saw it this morning, we loved it! I wanted to add just one thing. It appeared that a teenage girl in our audience had a seizure during the movie. They stopped the movie, raised the lights and an ambulance came. She did walk out on her own leaning on a paramedic, so Im sure she is ok. But, if you know someone prone to seizures, I think it best they stay away from this movie! I did hear her scream/ moan and was shocked when I saw her, I didn't expect her to be so young. And everyone around me all said, it must have been a seizure.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

I haven't read all three books (got bored in the second book and stopped), and I don't have nearly as much invested into it as I did Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings.

In general, I thought the movie was decent. There were a few things that bothered me.

I did not like the choice of quick, up close, shakey cuts. I am willing to bet they were used to help shy away from an R rating. But by doing it this way, I think the filmmakers were morally gutless. The viewer is supposed to feel disgust by the entire atrocity of The Games. That's not what the audience in the theatre I was in got out of it.

Seeing the movie in IMAX was not worth it, and my eyes hurt afterward.

Katniss was too well dressed in the beginning (in her hunting gear) compared to the other residents of District 12, along with the quality of the dress she wore to The Reaping.

There are definitely some things lost in translation from book to movie, since it was a first person book, and there was a lot of internal monologues explaining why things were happening the way they were.

I liked how they used Caesar Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith to do some "sports analysis", and help explain things that can't otherwise be explained in a movie.

Book specific:
I like seeing more of the politics behind the game as it was run.

But, I don't like that District 11 rioted. Adding this is speeding up the oncoming rebellion. The riot didn't occur until the victory tour in the second book.

 

[StephMK]

DS9 & I saw it this afternoon. I mistakenly told him he couldn't go to the movie until he read the book first. It took him 2 days. He has been driving us nuts since then to go see it.

I have not read the books yet so we had different perspectives. He LOVED it, said it was the most awesome movie ever. The shaky scenes made me motion sick - all the running, jerky shots throughout the movie made it hard for me to watch. But I liked the choppiness of the violence because it got the point across without being overly graphic or gory.

I thought it was very well done & I didn't know any of the younger characters before this. While I hated the kids fighting each other, it made sense based on the history given in the beginning. It was hard to think about as a parent. Plus it kind of touched on the whole reality tv fascination - how far will people go & think of it as entertainment, govt control, etc.

DS is really into bows & arrows right now so he loved all that action. I like that it is a thinking type of movie and goes into bigger issues. I would be interested in reading the other books after DS gets done. He has to wait for DD's friend to return #2 and he is really impatient!

 

[iheartdisney]

Well, just got home. I have been looking forward to this movie for 6 months. with that said, i liked it. Not loved it. I liked it. DH- who also read the books- did not. He says he'll wait to see Catching Fire on DVD

It seemed to be a highlight of the book, not in depth at all.
Parts that I missed from the book:
* I missed the Avox character. I loved that story loop in the book, so I really missed her in the movie.
* I really missed Katniss's attitude, how she played for the cameras. In the movie you didn't really get that.

IMAX was so NOT worth the money!!
Some of the cinematography was amazing. Some not so much. I hated the shaking cameras. i could see it if they were shooting it in a reality TV kind of fashion, but as it was it just was totally dizzying!

That said... it did a great job of pulling on the old heart strings. The reaping scene really turned my blood cold. It was amazing!
And the cave scene... amazing! The tension was palatable. I wish they would have kept in the part about her drugging him. As it was, he went to sleep and she left.

So, overall I am glad I saw, because I loved the book so much. I place it below John Carter.

 

[Contraflow]

Movie was total meh for me.

I never once believed Jennifer Lawrence as a 16 year old girl. She looked and acted like the 21 year old she is.

If you have heard Suzanne Collins reading the books, you know Katniss has a very thick drawl typical of the Appalachian region. You could say this was wiped out in the 100-999 years in the future this takes place, but I didn't buy it.

Speaking of, at one point Liam's Aussie accent comes out while talking as Gale to Katniss.

I understand why other characters were used for expositionville, the entire story takes place from Katniss' point of view.

A 4X4 fence post could have replaced Josh for Peeta, his performance was that wooden!

I did see Seneca Crane as a grown up Ricky Fitts!

 

[PaulaSB12]

I think this sort of story is important for kids and adults to read. When you look at the cruelty shown in so many reality shows how far from this scenario are we? Very very much closer than people want to admit.

 

[Mickeyistheman]

I read the first book and could not put it down. So I was totally stoked to see the movie. I was very disappointed. I was expecting a better set up for their backgrounds than what I saw.

I thought Woody was excellent and I liked the relationship between Cinna and Katniss. I was upset that you could not hear Katnisses inner monologue, I think it would have helped. I have not yet read the other 2 books but now that I have seen the first movie and what I think will be a very pivitol scene which will come into play in the next book (District 11)

I know they want to make money, but it should have been rated R. Katniss and Peeta were beat up, especially Peeta I mean come on. There was hardly any backstory and I know they only have so much time but if they could have added 30 minutes to the movie I would have been happier.

I also was annoyed by the Dogs/wolves......they were quite different in the book and also it seems like they were only in the Arena for a short time which they were not.

However, I will be starting to read the second book and I hope that for the second movie more will come through and be more true to the book.

This is not a love story, this is about power and who has it and who doesn't. They remind their "people" every year by doing this so you know who is in charge. While children killing children is quite upsetting, I think its important for the correct age group to go and see it.