A young adult series suddenly reaching a massive audience
and then getting turned into a blockbuster movie: sound familiar?
Meet: The Hunger Games. In this series of three novels, Katniss
Everdeen, a particularly unlikable protagonist, sets off to participate in an
annual event called the Hunger Games. The Hunger Games are a gruesome spectacle in
which two children from each “district,” like a state, are forced to fight to
the death until only one reminds. In the
end, Katniss finds that her opponents are not only the other 23 competitors,
but the Empire itself. The books themselves
received widespread popularity, if not memorable critical acclaim. And soon, these books will become movies –
all starting with The Hunger Games,
set to debut in theaters March, 2012.
The following is a trailer for the movie.
I’m beyond trying to compare a set of books to its Hollywood
interpretation. Although the desire to
compare is tempting, the reality is this: the books and the movies have two
overlapping but different audiences.
Die-hard fans will only read the books.
Casual fans and non-readers will only watch the movies. But young adult
literature enthusiasts, dystopian fiction fans, and those like me – with a
tendency to obsess over fictional worlds delivered in series (I have to admit
my bias and say I read books sometimes only because they come in series) – will
read the books, see the movies, participate in the online buzz surrounding the
new release, know all the names of the actors for the characters, complain
where the book deviates from the movies, complain that Katniss is portrayed as
too pretty, re-read the books again, and then one more time to pass the time, download
the soundtrack before it’s even released… what?
Oh, right, anyway.
The internet is a great place to snoop for details about the
upcoming movie, and I’ve been doing just that.
I was disappointed in the casting, unsatisfied by the love triangle portrayal,
unsure of how the violence would be depicted… in short, I was furious. I even considered going to see the movie the
night of the release instead of the midnight showing, which I consider to be
the ultimate insult. But then… then I
saw the trailer. And I saw Cinna (Lenny
Kravitz) talking to Katniss, and Katniss’ smug attitude, and Peeta being all
sweet and revolutionary at the same time… and suddenly, it all came
together. The movie will probably be
terrible compared to the books. But,
hey. It might be a good movie after all.
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by Sarah Quartey
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