One of the most profitable franchises of the last decade is the Hunger Games fantasy. Reviews about the picture are mostly positive: both viewers and critics highly appreciate the creation of Lionsgate. How did the story of this film begin and what does the public say about it?
How it all began
The Hunger Games, which reviews come from all sides, was shot based on the book by Susan Collins. Initially, Collins wrote only children's books, but then she created two teenage series - "Chronicles of the Underground" and "The Hunger Games". The film company Lionsgate and personally directed by Gary Ross took up the adaptation of the last series.
Gary Ross once directed the movie Pleasantville, which was nominated for an Oscar, and the historical drama Favorite with Toby Maguire. He refused to direct the subsequent parts of Hunger Games, and even wrote the script for the first film. The soundtrack to the first part was invited to write by James Newton Howard, who had previously worked on music for the paintings “Devil's Advocate” and “The Dark Knight”.
The second part of The Hunger Games was entrusted to be shot by Francis Lawrence, who is the creator of the projects Constantine: Lord of Darkness and I Am a Legend. He also worked on the first part of Mockingjay and the last film The Hunger Games. Mockingjay, part two. " Reviews of Lawrence’s work in the cinema have always received support from both critics and the public. If you add professionalism to the cast and a fascinating story, it immediately becomes clear why the franchise, released by an unknown film company, has become so popular.
Cast
Many Hollywood stars have honored the Hunger Games with their presence. Reviews of the film confirm that the producers and the director were not mistaken with the selection of actors during the casting.
Many believe that starring Jennifer Lawrence is ideally suited for the role of Katniss. But few people know that Jennifer herself did not want to star in this film. The actress liked the heroine proposed to her, but she was afraid that participation in a large-scale project would change her life too and cause a lot of problems. To agree to the shooting, Miss Lawrence was persuaded by her mother.
The role of Pete - partner Katniss in the show The Hunger Games - was played by Josh Hutcherson, who had to dye his hair white before filming. Josh also starred in the films The Story of a Vampire and The Madhouse on Wheels.
The public is also well aware of Liam Hemsworth - the brother of Chris Hemsworth (“Thor”), who in the franchise got the role of Katniss's friend.
Oscar-winning Julianne Moore played District President No. 13. And Philip Seymour Hoffman (Mission Impossible 3) appeared in the guise of game manager Plutarch Hevensby. Unfortunately, Hoffman died a few days before the end of the filming of the franchise, but still managed to finish his work in the movie The Hunger Games. Mockingjay, Part II. ” Reviews the game of this actor has always received the most supportive, so his death in America was a very sad event.
The Hunger Games: A Short Story
First of all, we note that the Hunger Games franchise captivated the audience with an original storyline. The picture shows an anti-utopian reality in which the land of a certain state is divided into districts, and one dictator, Coriolanus Snow, rules everything.
But this is not the main thing in the movie The Hunger Games. Reviews from enthusiastic viewers indicate that the audience appreciated the plan of the writer Susan Collins, who placed the story of an unusual reality show in the center of the plot: a show in which two representatives from each district are placed in an
enclosed space and must kill each other in order to survive .
The annual selection for participation in the Hunger Games is a tragedy for every district, because everyone understands that it is unrealistic to return alive. But everything changes when the wayward Katniss Everdeen gets on the TV show. With her arrival, the organizers and spectators of the show felt that this time events would not develop according to the standard scenario. And they were right ...
The Hunger Games: Critical Movie Reviews
On the IMDb website, Gary Ross's film has a rating of 7.30. This is a pretty high rate. What do film critics say about the movie The Hunger Games?
Reviews of journalists from around the world in 84% of cases are positive. For example, the publication Variety Russia believes that the adaptation of Gary Ross is a rather “strong” work, which keeps the viewer in suspense and does not let everyone get bored for 2.5 hours while the film is on.
The reviewer from the newspaper New Time saw in the film The Hunger Games the denunciation of the bourgeois and well-fed sections of society with their rudeness, cruelty, and limited thinking. “Snickering Clowns" - this is how he characterizes the inhabitants of the Capitol.
But not everyone was imbued with the "high" meanings of the picture. For example, a reviewer from Rolling Stone believes that the actors did not give all the best and look “sluggish” in the frame. In general, the whole film was made “through the sleeves”, since the producers of the tape were sure in advance that the bestselling book by Susan Collins in any performance would be “eaten with a bang” by fans of the book.
Journalists from the Kommersant newspaper also support this opinion: it seemed to them that Jennifer was fed too densely during the filming (a hint of the fatness of the actress), so she constantly wants to sleep in the frame (a hint of the inexpressiveness of facial expressions).
Viewers reviews
What do viewers think about the movie The Hunger Games-1? Public reviews of the first part of the franchise largely repeat the reviews of critics.
Fans of the book Susan Collins went to the cinema in good mood in advance, so they were satisfied with the film adaptation. Moreover, at about the same time the media began to regularly sing “praises” to the young actress Lawrence about her unearthly beauty and talent. Any project with the participation of Jennifer henceforth evokes the favor of the public, moreover, with an "advance".
Viewers like the courage of the protagonist of The Hunger Games, her romantic image of a warrior for justice. Men usually become superheroes in movies, so the plot, in which there is a girl leader, a girl fighter, usually causes interest and a sense of novelty. Some fans saw a certain philosophy in the Lionsgate film company’s project, because social inequality, dividing the world into beggars and rich, “is all so familiar!”
Approximately 25% of viewers do not support talking about the originality of Hunger Games. On the contrary, the standardness with which modern filmmakers paint anti-utopian societies is annoying: all the same gray sky, all the same meager image of an unemotional and cold dictator. And in this “dirt” and “poverty” a love is suddenly born that conquers everything. In a word - there is still something to complain about.
"The Hunger Games. And the flame will flash ”: a short story
The first film grossed $ 694 million at the box office, and the producers of the project realized that they were on the right track. Exactly one year later, the Hunger Games 2 were released. Reviews about this film were even better than about the previous one. What is it about in the second part of the franchise?
Katniss Everdeen and her Hunger Games playmate Pete have become local celebrities. Their lives are in full view, so young people have to constantly play the show in public: they must still play the role of lovers if they want to survive. The situation is further complicated by the fact that Katniss and Pete unwittingly became a symbol of disobedience to the Capitol when they refused to kill each other in the final of the show. From now on, wherever this couple comes, riots begin everywhere.
Katniss is difficult to play a double game: hide his hostility to the Capitol, portray the perfect couple with Pete. To get rid of the wayward and dangerous Everdeen, President Snow is organizing the next Hunger Games, in which winners of past seasons should fight. Katniss and Pete will again have to enter the battlefield, and this time the chances of survival are even less.
Second movie reviews
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire movie, reviews of which could be read as early as the end of November 2013, was even better received by the public and critics than the previous part of the franchise.
Journalists unanimously claimed that Francis Lawrence did better with his directorial task than Gary Ross, that he was able to breathe more dynamics and life into this story. The plot from this did not become less naive, but the shift in focus from the heroine’s personal romantic torment to the more global torment really brought the picture to life. From now on, Katniss devotes more time to thinking about the fate of her people, and not that she is forced to meet not with someone she likes.
But skeptics still expressed their weighty word during the heated discussions of the tape. The reviewer from the Kommersant newspaper claims that nothing has fundamentally changed since the change of director in the second part of The Hunger Games. The critic complains of long uninteresting dialogues, of a predictable plot twist, in which the girl suddenly appreciated the sacrifice of the boring Pete and reciprocated. In addition, many journalists gloat over the exploitation of the theme of the love triangle in teenage franchises of various film companies. To take at least Twilight is the same story: during all the films Bella rushes between two guys. Critics jokingly remark that Bella and Katniss do all this “out of greed”.
Viewers reviews
Now about how the audience reacted to The Hunger Games 2. Reviews about the film were voiced more than positive. Fans of the franchise actively defend it on the forums, proving that there are absolutely no similarities with Twilight.
Grateful viewers say that the film inspires them and the cast, and musical accompaniment, and the scenery. It was also noted that the expanses and landscapes of Panem in this part acquired a clearer outline and reinforced the special atmosphere of the tape.
More perspicacious people noticed a lot of discrepancies between the proposed circumstances of the film and what they see on the screen. For example, the characters in their conversations claim that the inhabitants of the districts are starving and exhausted, and in the frame we see a pink-cheeked, well-fed Katniss, who doesn’t really pull on a girl dying of hunger. Moreover, Katniss preys on such thick turkeys that they have a place on a rich farm, and not in the woods. Not to mention that the impoverished inhabitants of Panem have a dazzling white smile. Perhaps this Capitol pays for the annual professional teeth whitening for every citizen?
The Hunger Games 3: A Short Story
In November 2014, the world saw the Hunger Games. Mockingjay". Reviews of the third part of the franchise are not much different from comments on all previous films: those who love the tape continue to praise it, those who Katniss Everdeen and her adventures did not cause sympathy continue to look for flaws in the frame. What is the story of the new film about the Mockingjay?
The Hunger Games-3, reviews of which captivated the entire Runet at the end of 2014, begin with the fact that Katniss wakes up after the next show and her own abduction. When she realizes that the revolutionaries only abducted her and a certain Gale, she was furious: now Katniss suddenly realized that she loved Pete and demanded that all revolutionaries go to his rescue. The president of revolutionary district No. 13 is trying to explain the situation to the girl, but all to no avail.
Together, the rebel leaders manage to persuade Katniss to become the face of the revolution. But it’s not known whether something good will come of this.
Reviews and reviews of the third film
As rated The Hunger Games. Mockingjay 1 "? Reviews about this part of the franchise sound less enthusiastic. The movie rating on the IMDb website fell from seven points to six.
The movie The Hunger Games. Mockingjay, Part 1, reviews of which again became the subject of heated discussions on the network, a little disappointed both critics and viewers. Within two hours, nothing practically happens on the screen: Katniss wanders within the bunker of the revolutionaries and wonders whether to join her in the struggle or not? Sometimes she is distracted by the suffering that Pete is participating in the television shows of the Capitol and looks somehow unimportant.
Fans of the book The Hunger Games: Mockingjay also expressed their opinion: reviews say that the "cut" of the novel into two parts in order to earn more money did not succeed. It was necessary to release everything in a single film strip and not to torment the viewer with “intermediate” parts, in which not a single important event actually occurs. The romantic line also fed up with the order, since Katniss first suffers for one guy, then for another, then returns to the old relationship again. Watching this third movie in a row is sheer torture.
The Hunger Games 4: A Short Story
Fans eagerly awaited the release of the movie The Hunger Games. Mockingjay, part 2 ". Reviews about the movie novelty are still being received in limited numbers: the world premiere took place only in November 2015, the picture is still shown in movie theaters of different countries.
It has already become known that the Lionsgate film studio is not going to say goodbye to the "gold" vein so easily: the producers are now looking for ways to continue the topic and make several more films. Doesn’t it all finally end in the Hunger Games. Mockingjay, part 2 "? The reviews of the audience say that they are not satisfied with the final franchise, the scriptwriters really didn’t put a bullet point.
So, at the beginning of the fourth part, Katniss Everdeen is as unhappy as ever: Pete considers her enemy No. 1, Snow still rules the Capitol, and the revolutionaries are not able to beat all the districts into open speeches. The president of the 13th revolutionary district uses the girl only as a symbol and forbids her to participate in military operations. But Everdeen still begs for a team of attack aircraft that plan to attack the Capitol of the second district. In this fight, the girl is seriously injured. The situation is constantly becoming more complicated, and it is not completely clear whether the struggle of the revolutionaries will be crowned with any successes.
Reviews on the fourth picture
About the movie The Hunger Games. Mockingjay, part 2 "reviews appeared immediately after the premiere. What did the journalists say this time in their reviews?
The percentage of negative reviews in the press increased slightly: if previously a positive assessment was given to the picture in 80% of cases, now it is only in 70%.
The journalist of the Fontanka publication claims that the creators of The Hunger Games became the founders of a certain avant-garde in modern cinema: they mixed cultures of different eras in their creation, combining them with modern trends in art. But the reviewer also talks about the shortcomings of the fourth part: a sluggish plot and a strange pretense that appeared among respected actors, and only in this franchise film. Perhaps they wanted to add dynamics to the plot with their unnatural facial expressions?
A reviewer from Vedomosti magazine expressed the basic idea of ​​the last part of The Hunger Games like this: "The end does not justify the means." In his opinion, the whole conflict of the fourth film devoted to the revolution in Panem lies precisely in this saying. It was a big shock for Katniss when she realized at the end of the picture that the revolutionaries who advocated for humanism and equality were in fact more cynical than President Snow. New characters were added in the final part: in the sewers of the Capitol, the Mockingjay and her friends meet some white critters. Unfortunately, they do not look somehow original, but rather resemble the holum from The Lord of the Rings. And indeed, a lot of borrowing from other projects in the film “The Hunger Games. Mockingjay 2 ".
Negative comments came this time from the publications Komsomolskaya Pravda, Rossiyskaya Gazeta and many other magazines. Critics agree that the advertised fourth picture is not worth it. It has been suggested that the Hunger Games will soon be forgotten successfully, and for the second time no one wants to watch this epic.
"The Hunger Games. Mockingjay, Part II ": viewers reviews
Viewers do not share the pessimistic mood of critics. About the movie The Hunger Games. Mockingjay, part 2 ”reviews come not only from teenage girls, but also from quite adult women who claim that the tape literally conquered them. Of course, the fair sex understands that the picture is imperfect, and if you wish, it can be criticized to the nines, but they still continue to watch all the franchise issues and will do it if the Lionsgate film company really decides to shoot sequels and prequels to the film.
Is there really anything special in the movie The Hunger Games. Mockingjay 2 "? The reviews rather indicate that there is no increase in the audience of the film, everyone who came to this tape to the cinema has already seen all the previous parts and bought a ticket to continue as usual. It's like a series that you watched until the middle, and then you can’t quit until you see the final. Although the plot is already quite predictable, especially for those who read the books of Susan Collins.
What conclusion can be drawn from all this? If you are not a romantic teenager, you won’t lose anything especially without ever seeing the Hunger Games. But if you watched at least one part of the franchise, then get ready to watch all the other films in the series, because this lesson is really addictive.