I'm too much of a nanna to have stayed awake for the midnight sessions, but I heard there were character dress-ups, and a few verbal disagreements about the quality of the film from avid book fans. Plus there was a whole lot of excitement, as the Australian midnight sessions were among the first screenings worldwide - winning! So, I packed it in early and headed in with the after school crowd to see what all the fuss was about.
Many years ago, there was a war, an uprising of the poorer outer districts against the wealthy controlling Capitol. Now, what started as a punishment and a constant reminder of the uprising is one of the most highly anticipated and widely watched events of the year. Each district selects a boy and a girl to fight to the death and it's broadcast live. Reality TV folks, no matter how sick it is, it still gets the ratings! Katniss Everdeen volunteers to take the place of her younger sister Primrose, and it's all very dramatic and exciting.
The story was enough to keep me entertained and it was slightly suspenseful for me because I haven't read the books and I had no idea what was going to happen next, let alone in the end. If it wasn't for the annoying tweens sighing and commenting "that's not what happens in the book" I would have been none the wiser.
As far as an adaptation of a series I haven't read goes, I can only compare it to the TWILIGHT movies, and whilst I haven't actually seen any of those, I can compare it to the god-awful trailers and tell you that they've done a much better job of this, not only in terms of casting, but also script and directing.
The casting is fabulous, Jennifer Lawrence (if you're not across her it's time you got with the program - WINTER'S BONE), Stanley Tucci, Elizabeth Banks, Woody Harrelson and Lenny Kravitz. Plus the two men vying for Katniss' heart, Josh Hutcherson and our very own Liam Hemsworth (not my fave Hemsworth, but still...cute).
According to reports from people who have read the book, the film is not as dark, not as violent, and there's plenty cut out. The cutting of scenes, is no surprise to me and nor should it be to you - it happens in book adaptation. My assumption with the violence and the darkness is that film makers were going for an M rating rather than an MA15+ as the appeal of the books starts from that tweeny age group. For me it didn't have huge affect because I didn't know what it was meant to be like, although a little more guts and gore wouldn't have gone astray!
I think it will be a smash at the box office this weekend, but I'm not sure if it will have the staying power of the HARRY POTTER. I liked it, but I didn't love it, but there are plenty of people in my session that certainly did love it.
3.8/5
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