On Saturday night I went with a friend to see The Hunger Games. In short it is set in a post apocalyptic North America in which the continent has been carved into 13 colonies. As retaliation to a colonial uprising against the capitol colony the 12 other colonies give up two young people between the ages of 12 and 18 in a roman gladiator meets survivor arena called the Hunger Games. The competition is to the death, the last child standing is the "winner". (For a detailed synopsis go here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hunger_Games_%28film%29).
Before I go any further I want to say that I have not read the book, by Susan Collins, upon which the film is based, so, keep that in mind as I reflect on the movie.
This is one of those stories, one of those movies, that has stuck with me and has a similar feel to The Giver, by Louis Lowry, both by it dark nature and the idea that the idealism and strength of children (or, minors in the case of The Hunger Games) can bring change against systems and ideals that marginalize and exploit their youth and vulnerability.
As far as the movie, directed by Gary Ross, goes, it is well done. The acting is strong despite some weak points in the script and the hurried feel to the story at large. Obviously there is more in the book and from a strictly movie stance this could easily have been two movies and given, I assume in ignorance (again, have not yet read the book), the themes in the story -- friendship, loyalty, family, the abuse of power, the spectacle of reality T.V. standing up for personal values and beliefs, et. al. -- a lot more time and attention. As it is the movie is intensely gripping and drives forward with action from start to finish.
Lots of adventure movies are gripping and exciting but few bring home such powerful moral themes in such a vivid way. The nature of the Hunger Games themselves are haunting, watching young adults not yet in puberty fight to the death with wounded lion ferocity is horrifying. To see them compromise their personal values to survive for their families is both realistic and heart breaking, to watch a power hungry government exploit and capitalize on the innocence of children is sickening. But this movie is worth it.
Yet, for my praise, I am troubled by the low PG-13 rating (so eloquently criticized by David Edelstien here: http://www.npr.org/2012/03/22/148941034/acting-trumps-action-in-a-games-without-horror) and the fact that so many people, teens and adults alike, are watching The Hunger Games in the same fashion as the spectators in the movie, with a hunger for entertainment and sensationalized action. These same people are going home to watch American Idol or Desperate Housewives or Survivor (is that still a show on T.V.?) or Deadly Catch or Ice Truckers or whatever-the-hell-people watch to find some sort of vicarious life outside their media programmed lives.
I am afraid we will miss the opportunity to have a conversation about what our lives look like, what we value as entertainment, what it means to stand up for who you are and what you believe irregardless of age, status, size, race, or sex.
The Hunger Games is a good movie with strong acting and a powerful story but does it go far enough? I am not sure.
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