Our whole family read the book (and loved it, of course) - here is my review. Craig, our 14-year old, got to see the movie the first day it came out, with his entire English class on a field trip, but the rest of us hadn't seen it yet. We are visiting my father-in-law in Oklahoma and finally had some free time to go to the movies yesterday (a rarity for us!).
Within the first 10 minutes of the movie, I was already crying, and Jamie, my 17-year old son, was whispering to me, "I just have to read the whole series again!" (and of course, also making fun of me for crying!). In fact, I cried three times during the movie, even though I knew what to expect after reading the book.
I thought they did a fabulous job of adapting the book into a movie; it was obvious that Suzanne Collins co-wrote the screenplay and advised on production. The casting was perfect - every character just seemed to match my mental images. I especially liked Stanley Tucci as the MC, Caeser Flickerman, with his blue hair and wild enthusiasm. And, of course, the actors in the main roles of Katniss, Peeta, and Gale were just wonderful. Lenny Kravitz was an unusual but inspired choice for Cinna.
I loved seeing the Capitol and all of its superficial people brought to life - it was just amazing eye candy! And, even though I knew what was going to happen, the action in the arena was still horrifying and compelling.
So, overall, a big thumbs up from my family. Those two and a half hours passed by very quickly (other than my full bladder by the end!). We can't wait to see Catching Fire!
What did you think of the movie?
4 comments:
The BEST! Did you hear that the director is not going to do the movie for Catching Fire. ACK!!!!
No, I hadn't heard anything yet about Catching Fire, Heidi! Oh, that's a shame - this first one was just so well done.
Sue
Ok....hate to be the negative but........liked the book much better. Yes the characters were perfect..nice casting. HOWEVER.....way too graphic and violent for me. One thing to read about someone killing another human being.....another to watch a horriffic crime by a very young person ito another young person. Open bleeding wounds....really?? Just way over the top violence for me. Also.....the games went on too long.....did we really need the mad dogs at the end??? Iguess teens love all the violence but it was too much foe me. I would be careful of the age of kids who see this. My niece and nephews (9..10..12 ) saw this!!! Not appropriate!!! I was disappointed and probably will read the rest of the books but not see the movies. When you saw "Girl with the Dragon Tatoo" you knew you were watching an adult movie...you knew it was not for teens. Again....sorry but its my opinion.
Sandra -
No need to apologize for your opinion! In fact, you've hit upon a pet peeve of mine - parents allowing young kids to read/watch stuff meant for much older teens.
You are right - the movie was very violent. But, so was the book. The concept alone was horrifying, on purpose - that was part of Collins' point, to shock the reader with what could happen if our obsessions with reality TV were taken to an extreme.
The Hunger Games trilogy was clearly intended for older teens/young adults (as I stated in my own review), yet I have seen kids as young 10, 11, or 12 reading the books and seeing the movies.
The movie WAS rated PG-13, but I've noticed many parents don't really pay attention to the rating.
Of course, all kids are different, and it is up to parents to decide whether their own child is mature enough for this sort of violence. My younger son didn't read The Hunger Games until he was 14 - when he was younger, scary books and movies disturbed him (and his sleep!).
There...now we have both expressed our opinions!
Sue
Post a Comment