Posts
kinda turns into a review of the books
So I went to see it last night. I've had a while to think about it and put my thoughts into order, lets see how I do.
 |
| I'm really not a huge fan of the Mockingjay pin design, mainly because the bird looks like neither a Mockingbird or a Jay. |
It's safe to say then, that the movie had a lot to live up to. The burning question was, did it? The answer? Yes and no. It succeed in being an adaptation of a high standard. It was slick, it was cool and it most certainly held my attention. I do not want to give away any spoilers for those that haven't seen it or read the books, but there is a certain scene in this movie that will stay with me for a long time, involving Katniss and a sign of solidarity she makes after a particularly moving event. That completely and utterly ruined me and I blubbed like a baby. So it's safe to say they managed to capture some of the raw emotion that the books have in abundance. It also accurately conveyed the fear and desperation of all involved and the depravity and cruelness of those in control.
What I was most afraid however, was not necessarily that the film would be bad; the sheer amount of positive reviews told me that this wasn't going to be another catastrophic book adaptation. It was rather that I would no longer feel the same about the book series. That my feelings towards them would be forever tainted. I am pleased to report however, that the opposite is true. Because I could see how much they were not able to include, it made me love the books even more for the simple fact that you can feel so much closer to Katniss and all her fellow characters. You can explore better the relationships she has with Gail, Peeta, Rue and Haymitch, all of which I feel were not developed fully in the films. Trying to read anything now will be struggle as all I want to do is pick them up and immerse myself in the story once again and rediscover them in their awe inspiring brilliance.
If you are reading this, I am assuming you are a book lover and therefore will have read The Hunger Games series. If by chance, you haven't, then what are you waiting for?
I envy all those who are reading these books for the first time. A part of me wishes I could wipe them from my memory, so that I could re-live, and re-love them all over again.
Thank you for reading >.<
I'm currently going through the whole Hunger Games experience at present.
ReplyDeleteI can see from the film that they have alluded to or brought forward certain plot elements from Catching Fire into the film adaptation of the first book.
It's probably down to the fact that they can't present the film totally from Katniss's point of view, even though Jennifer Lawrence is in for the majority of the film, that the film makers need to do a form of visual "short hand" to give a sense of impact because what sometimes works for a book doesn't necessarily work in a film, and they have to foreshadow certain aspects for the rest of the film series (now that Catching Fire is going to be made) whilst giving the film itself a sense of "finality" if it hadn't been successful.
I get why they did what they did. I've seen enough book adaptations to know that some things just don't translate well to the big screen. Those written from a first person perspective especially are always going to suffer.
ReplyDeleteThey did well to cram in what they did, and like I said, it was a decent enough movie, but seeing it just made me love the books, and to be honest, books in general, even more, because of how much more they can convey. That's not a criticism of movies, I get the limitations, but for the kind of storytelling in these particular books, they were never going to be able to do it justice. But they did ok.