Hungry for Hunger Games

Now that the hype has died down a bit I have decided to share my opinions about the Hunger Games. If you have not seen the movie or read all three books you may not want to read this. Not sure if there will be spoilers or not but I’d hate to ruin anything for anyone.

First I need to state that after reading the books they cast the movie perfectly. When I heard Woody Harrelson was going to be Haymitch I couldn’t have been happier. Next I wish I would have seen the movie first. As always (except for in the case of Forrest Gump) the book was better. At least this time it was for lack of time. I think overall they did a pretty good job. My only complaint was relationship building. I didn’t really feel much of a connection with any of the characters. In fact I knew the characters well after reading the books and still didn’t feel a connection. I know they had so much to get in and only two and a half hours to do it but still I think character development is the most important aspect in an story.

I am not much of a fiction reader unless there is a movie. I really prefer a non-fiction especially true crime but these stories were so well done it seemed plausible. I think it helped that I watched The Road the evening before (which by the way was filmed out near my parents home and the cast stayed at my parents motel). I almost felt as if the books were a continuation of that story. It was kind of creepy. The thought of people using humans as entertainment is nothing new. Look at Jersey Shore, it’s almost as hard to watch. 😉 The only thing harder was that they used children. However, these teens were honestly brighter than should be expected which made it even more intense.

I enjoyed the books so much more but can’t lie when I say I can’t wait for the movie sequel. It is fun to see it all in action. I know the second book was so much more focused on relationships than the first anyway so I’m hoping the movie can bring that in a bit more. Either way, good job Suzanne Collins and Gary Ross for a great story with the best possible ending.