The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is one of the best book-to-screen translations I’ve seen in quite some time. Every decision, from what to leave out, what to change, and what to include is a smart one that helps serve the story well for a screen version of a pretty good book. More importantly, just about everything that is put up on screen that ends up on the screen plays out pretty much the way I envisioned it while reading the book, and how often can one say that happens when a popular book becomes a movie?
A big part of that is casting. Everyone really comes into their own this time around and really captures the essence of the character from the book. Everyone knows that Lawrence is talented, but when all of the actors around her really become the characters, not just her, it’s so easy to be immersed in the world of the book. Sutherland, Harrelson, and Hoffman all bring their characters to life in such a way that it just feels like the characters from the book have jumped right onto the screen. If there’s one weak link, as it was last time, I’d have to say it’s Hutcherson and his portrayal of Peeta. Again, I think part of that is that he really doesn’t have much to do. Much more will be demanded of him in the next couple movies, so it will be interesting to see if he will be able to represent the radical transformation his character goes through well. Still, on the whole, this cast does a superb job, and combined with tight scripting and some smart directing, the book really comes to life in this screen version, in a way that I’ve only ever seen with Jurassic Park or The Lord of the Rings.
If there’s one thing that’s lost in translation, it’s some of the depth of Katniss’ character. She is inspiring hope in a world filled with hopelessness, but she herself has no hope for herself in the books. She can’t see the hope that others see in her, doesn’t want any part of being any sort of hope than others, and more than anything just wants to get by as best as she can. Much of that is lost in the film, but it’s no poorer for it as the film still tells a compelling story. Indeed, it may be better for it because if there’s one thing I really did not like about the books, it was how hopeless they were. The world of the Hunger Games is truly bleak, and despite all that happens to Katniss, hope is just something she never really discovers. The truth is we do live in a bleak world of our own, and there are plenty of hopeless people in it.
We can find hope in others, but that only leads to disappointment. Voting for hope lead to disappointment, and Katniss finds it disappointing that people look to her for hope because she feels that she doesn’t have any for herself, let alone others. Fortunately, we are given another option. There is hope for us in our most hopeless, and it comes not from just some “inspiring” person but from Someone who was the embodiment of hope itself. It was hope displayed on a cruel cross. It was hope revealed in an empty tomb. It’s hope freely given through grace, forgiveness of sins, and eternal life. It is the hope that is found in Jesus Christ. It’s the hope that Katniss needs so desperately, but cannot find. Fortunately, our story can be brighter than hers can because God has not hidden hope; he revealed it for all in Jesus.
The Hunger Games was sort of a surprise hit a couple years ago when it debuted. The sequel is far more confident as it pushes forward. True, much of the layout of the story may seem similar to the first movie, but then that was the way the book unfolded as well. The difference is this time the stakes are much higher, and far more personal. The games are over and war is coming. While there are some key points from the book that seem rather ambiguous in the movie (unless you’ve read the book, of course), on the whole, the sequel tells a much tighter story where everyone feels much more confident and comfortable in what they’re doing. I’m still a bit leery of the whole “break the final book up into multiple parts to stretch out making profits from the films for longer.” I wonder if in the case, that might actually work out well. Whatever the case, this was my wife’s favorite book, and it was telling that as we left the theater she stated that the movie lived up to her very high expectations and was easily a favorite over the first movie. You can’t have a better review than that.
Catching Fire is rated PG-13. It has some heavy themes, some dark moments, and plenty of violence. Most of the grisly parts take place off screen, but there are a few dire, bloody moments that are on display. Take the PG-13 rating seriously.
