[Movie Review] The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)

Posted on November 20, 2013 by thegrandshuckett in Movie Reviews // 0 Comments

Plot Summary: Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark become targets of the Capitol after their victory in the 74th Hunger Games sparks a rebellion in the Districts of Panem.

Director: Francis Lawrence

Writers: Simon Beaufoy (screenplay), Michael Arndt (screenplay), Suzanne Collins (based on the novel by)

Runtime: 146 min

Main Cast:

Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen
Josh Hutcherson as Peeta Mellark
Liam Hemsworth as Gale Hawthorne
Donald Sutherland as President Snow
Woody Harrelson as Haymitch Abernathy

Review: by Anthony and Lee

We've both read Suzanne Collins' trilogy, The Hunger Games, and loved it. We thought the first film was spectacular, and we were so excited to see the sequel, Catching Fire. The solid recurring cast, along with the new faces of some of our favorite characters (like Finnick Odair), matched with a budget that almost doubled from $78M to $140M, let us know that Catching Fire had all the makings of a great blockbuster and the potential to be better than the first movie.

What We Liked:

The acting was spectacular. Jennifer Lawrence was a leading lady in every sense of the word. Her acting has definitely improved since the last movie and it really showed in the scenes that required Katniss to display a myriad of emotions, especially her speech in District 4 to Rue’s family and her PTSD flashback while hunting turkeys.

Acting aside, the plot itself was really well done. In any book adaptation, there are smaller plot lines and details that are overlooked in favor of ones that translate better to screen, and it really felt like Francis Lawrence, the new director for the series, not only understood that but implemented it beautifully; the horrors of Panem and the idea of the Hunger Games themselves developed, and the realization hit that the corruption ran deeper than just forcing children to murder each other.

In addition to adding bigger name actors to the sequel, the wardrobe, special effects, and set design also received major upgrades due to the increased budget of $140 million. The training area for the tributes was one of the standout areas where the special effects were on display as well as the stunning arena for the quarter quell and the control room.

Trish Summerville, a new addition as Wardrobe Director, created a fantastic wardrobe for the over the top residents of the Capitol as well as all of Katniss’ dresses, particularly the wedding dress. The best example of the eccentric wardrobe of The Capitol was Effie Trinket, practically in completely different outfits, hairstyles, shoes, and color combinations in every scene.

What We Didn’t Like:

There were not many things that we did not like that were not nitpicks about the book adaptation. The only thing that really stood out was that the emotional scenes moved along quickly. We did not necessarily want them to linger on, but there was so much happening all of the time that there were very few moments to catch your breath.

Summary

Catching Fire was one of the best sequel movies we have seen to date. It was bigger and better than the first movie, but managed to still stay close to the source material. The new director for the series, Francis Lawrence, did a great job and the next two movies look to be in great hands.

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