I never got a chance to review The Hunger Games when it had it's cinematic release, but if I had done, I would have given it a fairly positive review with perhaps a 7/8 rating against it. But that's an easy conclusion to make based simply on reflection of how good it's follow-up film turned out to be.
I couldn't give Catching Fire anything less than 10 as quite frankly, it couldn't have got any better in my eyes. It wasn't a ground-breaking, experimental masterpiece, but it told the story well, progressed enormously (considering the storyline is essentially the exact same as the first, this is a commendable achievement) and left me dying for the third movie.
Being someone who hasn't read the books, I wasn't really expecting anything when seeing it, which may have helped in making it better for me personally as it didn't have any criteria it had to go by. However, not having read the books, the story needed to be clear to me. Insider nods and stones left unturned would have left me a little confused but Catching Fire didn't leave anything out (or even if they did, I didn't know it!)
After winning The Hunger Games in the first film, joint victors Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark have to keep up their romance for the cameras as they tour around the 12 Districts, under the watchful eye of President Snow. Seeing Katniss as a beacon of hope for finally standing up to The Capitol, people from the lower Districts start to slowly realise their chance for an uprising and understanding the enormous threat that this poses, Snow sends Katniss and Peeta back into the games to ensure that everyone knows just how powerful he, and The Capitol is. But this time, the young protagonists are up against other past victors.
Being the second film, the utilitarian harsh subject matter of the film seems to hit a little harder this time round. Knowing the characters that little bit more, and understanding what they went through in the first movie really makes for a surprisingly tough and albeit, dark movie and you can't help but feel the heroes hatred towards The Capitol and all those controlling them.
The film tackles all kinds of subtext such as poverty, social class and even so far as covering autocracy and dictatorship, but in such a clever way that children can still enjoy the drama without being confused, and older viewers can really think about the meaning of the film. But it's not all heavy stuff, surprisingly there are a fair few moments in this movie that have you chuckling! Something the first definitely did not possess!
It's not just the games that are of interest in Catching Fire, Katniss and Peeta's relationship is explored more than ever in this film and the beginning of a true love triangle starts to make itself known. In fact, because we know all the characters more this time, all the relationships between every character are developed further from the last film as we grow to emphasise with each person.
Everything in Catching Fire is bigger than the last film, the build-up, the games themselves, the dresses. It's very clear the budget rocketed since the first for this production. Because of this and with the games being set in an elaborate tropic-like environment , the film is very pleasing visually and often boasts brilliant CGI and sets. It is really worth seeing it on the big screen!
Whereas The Hunger Games was very much all about Katniss "The Girl On Fire" Everdeen, Catching Fire seems more of an ensemble piece which works really well. The unity of all the characters really emphasises the idea of joining together and audiences can't help to feel involved themselves when certain people start to rebel against Snow.
During the promotion for this film, I must admit, I wasn't that interested in the other characters I knew were making an appearance in the second instalment. Movie magazines everywhere were trying to give me a "low-down" of who's playing who, and in what role, but I just wasn't interested enough to warrant my reading time. I knew Katniss, Peeta and the handful of others and that's all I felt I needed to know. But I was very wrong. 
The new characters provide some freshness to the series and really add intrigue from beginning to end. Finnick O'Dare (Brit actor, Sam Claflin) and Johanna Mason (Jena Malone) in particular, play large parts in Catching Fire and keep audiences guessing with their motives from beginning to end. Both actors play their characters well, making viewers unsure whether they are good or bad, as both effortlessly switch between cocky and arrogant and humble and sentimental. It's clear from the ending and how much emphasis is on these two characters that will play even bigger parts in the third film, and I can safely say, I'm excited to see their growing involvement.
Mockingjay's filming, which will be the last in the trilogy, has already been confirmed to have started but with the final book being split into two, avid fans like myself have not only one, but two films to look forward to. Part 1 is pipped to being coming out sometime in 2014, and after being blown away by Catching Fire, I for one, cannot wait.
No comments:
Post a Comment