The Hunger Games!

[Toa Zaz]

Another problem with these books is the author's very apparent fashion obsession, which really makes the plot drag and throws you out of it. A lot of critics complain about this, actually.Part of the problem with the movie, from what I can tell, is that, unlike Battle Royale, they seem to be making the adaptation more kid-friendly, when they really should be keeping it on-par with the book, if not upping the ante on the violence. If I was directing it, I might even go ahead and up it to an "R," in order to really do the book's message justice.

I don't mind that the author is "Fashion obsessed" I think that shows that she has some class, if you will. Why don't you like that?RCF

Because it adds nothing and makes the book drag. I wouldn't mind a little of it, but there's a LOT.You know, if the author went through and tookout everything that added nothing to the story, she could probably fit whatever was left into one book.

[Republic Commando Fixer]

Because that's what hipsters do!But yeah, the series seems to be getting a lot of hate here. Kinda sad. You'd think the target audience would actually lap up the violence and whatnot. But I guess the romance bits killed it for some people.Regardless, only like, two weeks until the movie. I'm excited.

I could see how the "romance" could kill some of the guys off! But I know for us girls we love that sorta thing! Lol I agree the first book and was pretty violent. I'm pretty sure the makers of the movie were having a hard time trying not to make it rated R because they wanted the young kids to able to watch it as well as adutls and teens. They still wanted to have violence in the movie(s). I personally am super excited about seeing it. I mean c'mon guys we should give this series more credit then Twilight! Yes they both have romance but at least in Hunger Games they aren't any sparkling vampires named Edward! RCF

[Lara White]

You have a point, but then again it's not hard to be better than Twilight. :w:

Edited March 8, 2012 by Lloyd: the White Wolf

[Republic Commando Fixer]

You have a point, but then again it's not hard to be better than Twilight.

Haha some of the Twi-hard fans would disagree! Anywho I'm on chap 15 of Catching Fire. And i'm pretty ticked of that all is happend in the past 3 chapters... Were any of you guys mad also?Oh and Team Gale? or Team Peeta? RCF

[Jean Valjean]

I haven't read the books yet. Don't worry, I will, but I'm going to start as a neutral reader. However, from what I've seen of the trailers and read in the magazines it doesn't impress me too much, as far as the basic pitch goes. I'm getting vibes that it might, in its own subtle ways, be a bit formulaic. Love triangles tend to set up a red flag for me. Love quadrangles, not so much, but the triangle is always a nuisance. Especially when it's in a movie and the actors look more like models than real human beings. It's not so bad if you knew that they weren't going to be in a romance, but when they look that pretty and they're in an inevitable romance that happens to be a love triangle composed of teenagers, I worry.The other thing that has me tapping my feet is the author's understanding of society. A cousin and I agreed when we heard the basic pitch; there was no way that it was ever going to happen, and I being really into sociology had my willing suspension of disbelief stretched to the breaking point from everything I've seen and heard so far.That said, it all still looks to be an entertaining ride. A page-turner? I haven't done that in a while. Actually, Inheritance was an odd exception for me, but then perhaps that was because it was high fantasy with a precisely defined magic structure, precarious politics, intricate descriptions of the mind and self-awareness, and puzzling ethical dilemmas. Although that one had a formulaic romance, too. At least they never ended up together. And they weren't both teenagers. And there wasn't a triangle. But anyway, from what everyone's been sayiing, it will be an entertaining read nevertheless.Nevertheless, I will be reading the books. After I finish The Hunchback of Notre Dame and the diary of Anne Frank (this time every year I always try to finish it). I expect to enjoy them, although not become a fan.Your Honor,Tyrannosaurus Kraggh

[Hahli Husky]

I started out not thinking much of it; like, I watched the trailer and it didn't strike a chord in me. But then I read the series in under a week, which is highly unnatural for me. When I finished, I sat around in a daze, feeling like I had just lived through the whole scenario. It really appealed to me, and there's so much content and things that the author leaves you to figure out on your own.I'm so excited for the movie this Friday! The casting is amazing, the scene snippets I've seen so far look and feel right, and the interviews with the actors are just great. I also received a Mockingjay pin replica, but it broke so I'm wearing it as a necklace. Janus keeps telling me that doing so makes me a trendy Capitolist. Hahurr.

You have a point, but then again it's not hard to be better than Twilight.

Haha some of the Twi-hard fans would disagree! Anywho I'm on chap 15 of Catching Fire. And i'm pretty ticked of that all is happend in the past 3 chapters... Were any of you guys mad also?Oh and Team Gale? or Team Peeta? RCF

Hahah, Hunger Games seems to be beating back Twilight's popularity, at least a little bit.I chewed through Catching Fire too fast to be mad; I just wanted to know what happened next. But my dad was kind of irritated with what happened in that one.Also, Team Peeta. XP Edited March 20, 2012 by Hahli Husky

[SolarSurge]

I hate to say this, but I just can't help myself...I read these books before they were cool.No really, I started reading the first at around about the beginning of last year. No one had heard of them back then.Needless to say they are very good books and I'm sure they'll make a great movie.

[Republic Commando Fixer]

I started out not thinking much of it; like, I watched the trailer and it didn't strike a chord in me. But then I read the series in under a week, which is highly unnatural for me. When I finished, I sat around in a daze, feeling like I had just lived through the whole scenario. It really appealed to me, and there's so much content and things that the author leaves you to figure out on your own.I'm so excited for the movie this Friday! The casting is amazing, the scene snippets I've seen so far look and feel right, and the interviews with the actors are just great. I also received a Mockingjay pin replica, but it broke so I'm wearing it as a necklace. Janus keeps telling me that doing so makes me a trendy Capitolist. Hahurr.

You have a point, but then again it's not hard to be better than Twilight.

Haha some of the Twi-hard fans would disagree! Anywho I'm on chap 15 of Catching Fire. And i'm pretty ticked of that all is happend in the past 3 chapters... Were any of you guys mad also?Oh and Team Gale? or Team Peeta? RCF

Hahah, Hunger Games seems to be beating back Twilight's popularity, at least a little bit.I chewed through Catching Fire too fast to be mad; I just wanted to know what happened next. But my dad was kind of irritated with what happened in that one.Also, Team Peeta. XP

I finshed the first book in 2.5 days. I could not put it down! I'm almost done with Catching Fire. I believe i'm chapter 25 or 26. Three days till it's out in theatres!! I can't wait! The cast is absoluty fantastic. Liam,Jennifer and Josh do such an amazing job as Gale,Katniss and Peeta! I've seen the tralier like 30 times already! I have also seen a bunch of little clips and they are amazing! Pshh I bet Hunger Games is going to crush Twilight and Harry Potter (Yep you heard me right). The box office think it's going to make anywhere from 75 Million to 150 million on the opening weekend! The fan base is freaking HUGE!!! Team Peeta huh? I'm so torn between which one. But I have to say Gale! I mean I want a man like Peeta but Gale is PERFECT for Katniss! I do believe the world will be talking about the Hunger Games for a while! RCF Edited March 20, 2012 by Republic Commando Fixer

[T-Dawg]

I always showed an interest to the series but till now I"m loving it I even got midnight tickets to the movie.

[Shadow Kurahk]

This series is absolutely boring. The first 50 pages or so of the first book just sucked. It was a pain to even try and get through it so I put it down. After reading a brief synopsis...I have to say that not a single part of it is unique at all. It steals completely from Battle Royale, an older book with nearly the same exact plot.The movie looks awful too. The acting is...horrendous, from what I've seen.Also, before anyone tells me to try again, just stop. I've tried to read it eleven times, I think. If a book fails to capture me in the first 50 pages, why's it worth reading at all? And again, it's unoriginal. I can't stand when people fall in love with pieces that copy from older pieces instead of the older pieces themselves.-SK

Edited March 23, 2012 by Shadow Kurahk

[American Hustle]

A lot of hate in this thread which suprised me, but I also know that when a series is more popular, it has a habit of attracting haters. Not trying to call anyone out, I'm just saying that popularity has probably overhyped it for a lot of people who will point out the flaws more quickly.I've read only the first book so I can't comment on much, but from what I've read, it's actually pretty good. Someone pointed out that it had no chance of happening, I find that ridiculous. It is afterall fiction and 90% percent of fiction has no chance of happening either. As for the fashion, I never really felt that it overshadowed the plot. Instead, it showcased how ridiculous the Capitol people are, showing such vanivty over looks and outfits.One thing I'd like to say that I don't care for in the book is the names... It seems odd, but to me, I see no reason on why people should have these weird, wacky names when it's set in a future Earth-setting. Even if North America is long gone, I doubt the people are going to start coming up with random names.

[Republic Commando Fixer]

This series is absolutely boring. The first 50 pages or so of the first book just sucked. It was a pain to even try and get through it so I put it down. After reading a brief synopsis...I have to say that not a single part of it is unique at all. It steals completely from Battle Royale, an older book with nearly the same exact plot.The movie looks awful too. The acting is...horrendous, from what I've seen.Also, before anyone tells me to try again, just stop. I've tried to read it eleven times, I think. If a book fails to capture me in the first 50 pages, why's it worth reading at all? And again, it's unoriginal. I can't stand when people fall in love with pieces that copy from older pieces instead of the older pieces themselves.-SK

What if we have never read the Battle Royal books? I myself have not. Would you still get upset at people like me who have not read those books? Also you said the movie looks awful and that the acting is horrendous. Which parts in the tralier look awful and what acting parts look horrendous? I have seen all the trlaiers tons of times and I certaily don't think that the movie looks awful and I think their acting is just fine!You said that you tried the fist 50 pages and they sucked. Everyone that I have talked to can't put the book down. What was it that you saw or read that made it suck? Just trying to understand! P.S THE MOVIE COMES OUT TODAY!!! I get to see it in two days! Can't wait!!! <3RCF

[BBBBalta]

I've read only the first book so I can't comment on much, but from what I've read, it's actually pretty good.

Yeah, the first book is pretty good, but it's all downhill from there. Edited March 23, 2012 by Toa Balta #3

[Republic Commando Fixer]

I've read only the first book so I can't comment on much, but from what I've read, it's actually pretty good.

Yeah, the first book is pretty good, but it's all downhill from there.

Really? I thought book 1 and 2 were the best. I've just started book 3 and it's not that bad either. Granted book 1 is the best. Book 2 is still pretty good!RCF

[Noxryn]

I haven't read the books yet, but from some of my friends I hear that they're worth reading (so I'll likely read them). A part of it that does interest me, actually, is that the author included romance as constant violence tends to be a most incredible drag and has a tendency to leave a story feeling... lackluster. (Not that I've seen people here advocating for pure violence, but I'm just saying).Although, for people who go on about it being a Battle Royale ripoff, how is it? Is it the main plot? Or is it the scenarios that occur? Are the endings the same? Are the beginnings? Are the characters? The plot twist? Or is everything a cookie-cutter copy with a new name and the author hasn't injected any semblance of creativity into the story? I haven't read the Hunger Games so I wouldn't know of the similarities, but if it's just a basic similarity (ie: same core plot, or same core setting, or same archetypes) I wouldn't see it as a big deal (and wouldn't be calling it a ripoff). There's a lot of stories that are "ripoffs" if the term is relentlessly applied (I can't say less so or more so than this series) as there really aren't any original ideas anymore. What catches people is generally the presentation, or an interesting twist, or good writing itself, something that sets it apart from its predecessors (why Star Wars became so popular, and why the Inheritance Cycle is more unpopular). And also, for both sides, why is it good or why is it bad? What appealed to you most, or appealed to you the least? Why was it boring, why did you stop reading it so quickly?I'm genuinely curious about knowing why people see it as good, why people see it as bad and why people see it as a ripoff (as I may pick up the books eventually to kill some time xP)

[Vorahk1Panrahk2]

And also, for both sides, why is it good or why is it bad? What appealed to you most, or appealed to you the least? Why was it boring, why did you stop reading it so quickly?

I didn't care for it because the book didn't really seem to have any reason to exist except to be morbid. It was about teenagers killing each other for the entertainment of their country. I couldn't find a theme or moral, and the love story seemed forced, out of place, and unnecessary.I liked the first part, though (before the games start) because the author did a good job setting up what kind of world this is and what kind of characters inhabit it. But then the fighting started and it became pretty tedious, with no real conclusion to any of it. Obviously that conclusion comes in the next two books, but I have no interest in reading them. So maybe that's my problem and not the story's.As for the claims of a Battle Royale rip-off, I never read the book or saw the movie so I can't comment.

[BBBBalta]

Dividing my criticisms into three parts, one for each book.The Hunger Games

A pretty decent book, all in all. The titular Games were naturally the highlight of the book, as Lloyd stated previously. The romantic subplot began as just that - a subplot - and didn't detract from the more interesting parts of the book in any major way. It even started out as mildly interesting (though it quickly became irritating). Fortunately, the fact that Gale was only in the first few chapters helped to prevent it from being a major thing. Let's see...I was hoping to see some rebel action already in the first book, which of course didn't happen, but that wasn't a big deal...Oh, and I thought the author did a pretty good job building the world of the book in the first few chapters. Also, too much of the book was spent on flashbacks of Katniss' life. Again, a pretty decent book overall.

Catching Fire

This book was mediocre at best. For the first half of the book, pretty much nothing happened, other than the romance ceasing to be a subplot and taking center stage. The Games were one again the highlight of the book, though I thought it was kind of a cop-out on the author's part - "Ummm, I don't know what to make this book about, so I'll just have the main character participate in the Games again! It worked before, right?" Also, the fact that half the participants were killed on the first day and all but, like, four of those who were left teamed up - including the main characters - kind of lessened the intensity of the Games. This was helped along by the fact that they were only in there for, what was it, three days? I also thought that the arena wasn't described very well. First it seemed like it was in the middle of the ocean with no land in sight and the Cornucopia on a floating metal island, then it seemed like the Cornucopia was on a real island and there was land off in the distance, then you find out that the arena is actually a clock and the Cornucopia is in the center and the land is ringed around the edge and the land and Cornucopia are somehow connected. Also, minor complaint, it was never explained how the other contestants got water. Then the whole thing with the escape from the arena - that was cool and all, but it just happened too suddenly for my liking. There was very little foreshadowing, and all the stuff regarding how it happened was explained in one giant OOC paragraph (i.e. not through dialogue or anything). I'd also have liked this to have happened sooner in the book. Also (random thought), Cinna's death was very sudden, unexpected, and pointless.

Mockingjay

Hooo, boy. This book...terrible. Simply terrible. Well, maybe that's a little harsh - the majority of the book was no worse than Catching Fire, but the ending was terrible.Okay, I shall begin my rant by saying this: If you have an elite team of snipers who get separated from the main body of their forces, and their commander's dying wish is that they go on agead and assassinate the enemy's leader, and nearly all of them die in the attempt...the mission is supposed to succeed. C'mon, this is elementary stuff, people. It's not that hard. Half the main characters gave their lives for this mission - you don't just have them fail. It doesn't work that way.Next. Yeah, what was that with Katniss condemning the Capitol Children to the Hunger Games. As Lloyd put it, "these Games are horrible and we rebelled to overthrow them but they're not so bad that we won't continue them." Also, you were so concerned about killing the workers in the Nut - the people who were trying to kill you - and yet you have no second thoughts about killing children who were in no way responsible for your suffering. Should'a shot Coin then and there.​Also, having the main character dissolve into self-centered, suicidal, morhpling-addicted wreck is not good character development. Enough said.I was extremely dissatisfied with the conclusion of the romance. It seemed as if, when the author went to write the last chapter, she flipped a coin and said "Heads it's Gale, tails it's Peeta." I mean, seriously. What was with that. Gale just conveniently gets a job in District 2 and completely cuts off all communication with Katniss etc etc even though the last time they saw each other they were saving each others' lives and Peeta miraculously recovers from being tortured and goes back to District 12 and they live happily ever after. It could just have easily been "Peeta never recovers from the torture and gets a job in (insert random District) and then Katniss goes into the woods and Gale's there and they live happily ever after."Also, regarding Peeta's torture/"hijacking," I really don't get how he miraculously recovered. Basically, everything Haymitch says in any of the books is dead-on accurate, and yet he was somehow wrong about Peeta never recovering? Not buying it.Also, Prim's death was completely unexpected and therefore had virtually no impact on me as a reader and thus seemed unnecessary. The author should have played it up more, with foreshadowing, making that scene longer, having Katniss investigate whose fault it was more than she did etc etc.In fact, the majority of the deaths in the series as a whole seemed unnecessary and/or poorly timed. You gotta have some main characters die, I get it, and it would be quite lame actually if none of them die. But that doesn't mean all of them have to die, and it also doesn't mean you can just throw in "and Finnick got eaten by mutant lizards" and it'll work in the story.Speaking of Finnick, I thought the FinnickxAnnie subplot was interesting. Would've been nice to see more backstory on that. It also made Finnick's death more annoying - it was like Tonks and Lupin from Harry Potter, but with only one dying. And dying pointlessly so that a mission destined for failure could succeed. At least Tonks and Lupin died for a reason.End rant for now. I'm sure I'll think of more later.EDIT: Oh, and, I was hoping District 13 would be more like the Varden from Eragon and less like the bunch of losers that they really were.

Oh, and how was the movie, by the way? In terms of similarity to the book.

Edited March 24, 2012 by Toa Balta #3

[T-Dawg]

The movie was surprisingly very similar to the book with only a few things that didn't happen. This is just a little fact but the movie made 19 million dollars just for the midnight premier, and the premier was awesome.

[Archer Vonn]

I haven't read the book, doubt I will, might go see the movie, but I get the sinking feeling it will disappoint.

[TahnokVa123]

I liked the first book, it was pretty good in my opinion, as you could relate to that (like when Katniss couldn't find water, you thought of that time when you were REALLY thirsty on a really hot day and you were outside), but the other two books just fell short. The ending was so rushed and it was harder to relate to.Still going to see the movie, though. I was going to see it today, but I got loaded with homework.

[dotcom]

Mockingjay

Hooo, boy. This book...terrible. Simply terrible. Well, maybe that's a little harsh - the majority of the book was no worse than Catching Fire, but the ending was terrible.Okay, I shall begin my rant by saying this: If you have an elite team of snipers who get separated from the main body of their forces, and their commander's dying wish is that they go on agead and assassinate the enemy's leader, and nearly all of them die in the attempt...the mission is supposed to succeed. C'mon, this is elementary stuff, people. It's not that hard. Half the main characters gave their lives for this mission - you don't just have them fail. It doesn't work that way.Next. Yeah, what was that with Katniss condemning the Capitol Children to the Hunger Games. As Lloyd put it, "these Games are horrible and we rebelled to overthrow them but they're not so bad that we won't continue them." Also, you were so concerned about killing the workers in the Nut - the people who were trying to kill you - and yet you have no second thoughts about killing children who were in no way responsible for your suffering. Should'a shot Coin then and there.​Also, having the main character dissolve into self-centered, suicidal, morhpling-addicted wreck is not good character development. Enough said.I was extremely dissatisfied with the conclusion of the romance. It seemed as if, when the author went to write the last chapter, she flipped a coin and said "Heads it's Gale, tails it's Peeta." I mean, seriously. What was with that. Gale just conveniently gets a job in District 2 and completely cuts off all communication with Katniss etc etc even though the last time they saw each other they were saving each others' lives and Peeta miraculously recovers from being tortured and goes back to District 12 and they live happily ever after. It could just have easily been "Peeta never recovers from the torture and gets a job in (insert random District) and then Katniss goes into the woods and Gale's there and they live happily ever after."Also, regarding Peeta's torture/"hijacking," I really don't get how he miraculously recovered. Basically, everything Haymitch says in any of the books is dead-on accurate, and yet he was somehow wrong about Peeta never recovering? Not buying it.Also, Prim's death was completely unexpected and therefore had virtually no impact on me as a reader and thus seemed unnecessary. The author should have played it up more, with foreshadowing, making that scene longer, having Katniss investigate whose fault it was more than she did etc etc.In fact, the majority of the deaths in the series as a whole seemed unnecessary and/or poorly timed. You gotta have some main characters die, I get it, and it would be quite lame actually if none of them die. But that doesn't mean all of them have to die, and it also doesn't mean you can just throw in "and Finnick got eaten by mutant lizards" and it'll work in the story.Speaking of Finnick, I thought the FinnickxAnnie subplot was interesting. Would've been nice to see more backstory on that. It also made Finnick's death more annoying - it was like Tonks and Lupin from Harry Potter, but with only one dying. And dying pointlessly so that a mission destined for failure could succeed. At least Tonks and Lupin died for a reason.End rant for now. I'm sure I'll think of more later.EDIT: Oh, and, I was hoping District 13 would be more like the Varden from Eragon and less like the bunch of losers that they really were.

 

Okay, so what I'm getting is that you wanted the events int he book to be predictable? I get what you're saying, but you didn't like Prim's death because you hadn't been told about it in advance? Unexpected=/=bad, unless it's a complete load of crud the author pulled out of their [imagination.] And you wanted the mission to succeed because you believe that if x happens y must follow. This is, of course, ignoring the fact that the end goal was ultimately met. They captured the capitol. It just wasn't because of Katniss. Collins used dramatic anticlimax for this part of the story, and I thought it worked well.Addressing the 76th Hunger Games, again, Katniss isn't that good of a person. She never has been, nor have any of the others (Except maybe Peeta). They resent the Capitol, and rightly so. The rebellion started because they hated the Capitol and its oppression. It really wasn't all about the morality of the Hunger Games, though that played a big part. And the fact of the matter is, Katniss is a teenager. She had already been through two instances of the Games-- both times, fully convinced of her eventual death. And all the while, while she and the other tributes of the Districts fought, the children of the Capitol, like everyone else, saw these games as entertainment. And after being thrown into the head of a rebellion against her wishes, going through trauma and seeing Peeta go through worse, and leading a mission during which many of her friends were killed, her sister blew up. Right in front of her. And it's at that point that Katniss pretty much broke. The thing is, with all her rage and loss, she had no reason to care about the children of the Capitol. Those kids were just as indifferent to the plight of the Districts as anybody else in the Capitol. I reiterate, she isn't that good a person. She was given the opportunity to punish the capitol, and she took it, even though she knew the decision would haunt her fiveever. It's a testament to her love for Prim and the malice of the Capitol. And ultimately, it was one Game. They didn't continue it after that.And I would argue, turning a teenage girl into a huge suicidal wreck after being traumatized if just fine, as realistic character development goes. Having her magically mature and act like some sort of peace advocate after all she went through would have been sloppy writing, because that's not consistent with her character.Although I'd agree Peeta's recovery was a little too fast, I wouldn't say it was necessarily bad. Peeta got over it like most people get over their mental issues: therapy. It's explicitly stated Peeta got minor fallbacks even in adulthood.I do agree with what you said about Finnick, though. (I'm not going to address the romantic plot or the final decision, because I'm tired of typing, and also because I don't think I can phrase my feels about that coherently

[BBBBalta]

• [*]Yeah, I guess. I was mainly trying to say that Prim's death had less of an impact than it could/should have. Having some sort of foreshadowing would have been one way to achieve this. Regarding the mission, my opinion on that was entirely subjective, mainly due to the fact that if some great characters die, I want to see at least something come of it.[*]From that perspective, yeah, the decision would make sense, I guess. I was surprised she didn't really even stop to consider the decision, though, not to mention that she seemed plenty upset about that Capitol girl's death a chapter or two ago.[*]Point taken.[*]I still would've appreciated a little more detail on exactly how he recovered. After all, the last time we saw him he was refusing to go with the group because he thought he might go berserk and kill them all.

[Republic Commando Fixer]

@ Balta, The movie was really really close to the book! I just saw it yesterday. I thought that movie was freaking amazing! Everyone was saying violence was horrific, acting was bad, and that the whole movie sucked. I however couldn't dis-agree more.There was hardly any violence, acting was actually pretty good and the movie didn't suck. So to all the haters out there JUST GO HOME!!! This movie was awesome! The actors did an awesome job. ESP; Jennifer (Katniss) and Josh (Peeta) They portrayed the characters very well! And the fact that everyone is making such a HUGE fuss over "all" the violence in the movie is quite lame. Oh and another thing is that they are saying younger kids shouldn’t see the movie. Don't tell me you haven’t let them see Twilight, Crime shows or any other shows with wayyy more "bad" stuff. So just be consistent!RCF

Edited March 26, 2012 by Republic Commando Fixer

[Takatu]

Okay, time for me to weigh in.I admit I'd never heard of the books before I started seeing ads for the movie last summer, but didn't seem to interest me so I put them off for a long while. Last few weeks, several people I know with pretty similar tastes as me recommended I read them, so I caved and finished the first book this afternoon.For all the hype, it was a little underwhelming. Not to say it was bad, far from it. Just wasn't anything that will stick with me. It's actually funny, though, contrary to what most other people think, I thought the world-building and set up parts of the first chunk of the book was the most interesting -- pretty much everything before the actual Games. I particularly liked the fire capes, hope that's in the movie.Pretty much spoilers from here on:

The first third or so of the Games was good, too. I like that she focused so much on the actual survival part of things, like finding water and hunting, rather than jumping straight into the artificial obstacles the Gamemakers threw at them (although the fireball launchers were pretty cool). I started losing interest, though, shortly after Rue died, and Rue's last scene and Katniss's song was easily the emotional climax of the book for me, very well done there. I started questioning things, though, when they announced there could be two winners. I knew right off the bat that this was BS on the Capitol's part, and for a girl that has been shown to be very savvy of the way the Games operate for the masses, I was thoroughly confused why she didn't immediately question why they changed this rule without even giving an actual reason.The cave scene was the lowest point in the book, their "romance" there dragged on far too long, I think. I was also irritated, because I felt they were both way too ignorant of each other's feelings to be realistic. I can get the Capitol masses eating it up, I feel that was the author making a stab at how easily we eat up this stuff in real life, but Katniss and Peeta's blindness? He was so blatantly in love with her, and she was so blatantly playing it up for sponsor gifts, I couldn't figure out why they couldn't figure this out about each other.Still, once they actually got back out there, it picked up again. And the muttations twist was a nice surprise, if a little horrifying. And I liked how their last act was pretty much a giant middle finger to the Capitol (even if Peeta didn't get it till after the fact). The rebellion set up at the end was well done too, no clean little bow, which was nice.But then I had such a hard time getting into Catching Fire. Good Lord. I tried so hard, but the love triangle thing between Katniss, Peeta and Gale just got so dull. And I'm a little ashamed to admit that I just ended up Googling the plot summaries for the second and third books. From what I gather, the depressing ending would have been a redeeming factor for me, I much prefer stories where the protagonists, while victors, don't get out unscathed. Although, end book spoilers, I was a little ticked about Prim's death, purely because Katniss's need to keep her alive was the driving force that set everything in motion from the start. Like I said, I'm okay with scarred heroes, but that seemed like an unnecessary punch to the reader.Regardless, the rest of the books seemed to pan out in an extremely formulaic way, unfortunately, so I probably won't be picking the books up again to finish, at least not for a little while. I will definitely be seeing the move though, mainly because I love Jennifer Lawrence, even if the only thing I've seen her in was the newest X-Men. But for such a secondary role, I though she was great, so I really wanna see how she does in a leading role.

EDIT: Oh, and the Battle Royale comparison: Having seen BR, I can see on the surface why people might find them similar, but if you read Hunger Games, they're not that close. I supposed the general concept of throwing adolescents in an arena to kill each other is the same, but the whole reasoning and context behind it is very different. Plus the two play out way differently in the end.

Edited March 27, 2012 by Takatu

[Archer Vonn]

So to all the haters out there JUST GO HOME!!!

Yeah naw we can take you seriously now.

[Let's Henshin!]

Well I watched the movie today with my the rest of my team(my school has the eight graders divided into 3 teams. Mine and another have roughly 110 kids.) I must say I enjoyed far more than the book. I personally heavily disliked the book, but the movie was actually pretty good, especially in comparison.

[TahnokVa123]

I hated the camerawork in the movie, it was just terrible. The camera kept on whizzing around and you could barely see what was happening in the action scenes. Eeeesh. And the hallucination part was horrible. It just looked like a Spartan remix of a couple scenes. Other than that, I thought it wasn't too bad. And please, all of you stop the "Team Peeta" and "Team Gale" stuff. We don't want this to turn into Twilight.

[Republic Commando Fixer]

@ToaOnarax,I really LOVED the books! But I thought the movie was amazing! I ejnoyed them both!@TahnokVal123,Granted the camera work was kinda bad the only reason they did it was so the it wouldn't get a rated R rating. Like for example in when Glimmer got stung by the tracker jackers they wanted to make it so the adults could see all the swelling etc but that it would be OK for the younger audience to see it too. The hallucination gave me a headache. Yeah that part was pretty bad! I had to close my eyes at on point! haha@ ~JC~C'mon you know what I meant!RCF

[Takatu]

Just saw the movie, and it was fantastic. First time I've seen more added than taken away from the source material, and even then, it was one of the most accurate movie adaptations I've ever seen. Music was really good, too. And the casting was perfect. Lenny Kravitz was great as Cinna, and Stanley Tucci absolutely ate up his role as Caesar Flickerman. Woody Harrelson and Elizabeth Banks were great too.But Jennifer Lawrence was perfect. I can see why she was nominated for best actress in Winter's Bone, even if I didn't see that movie. Her last scene with Rue was particularly well done. That camerawork, though... Good Lord. The slow scenes were pretty good (pretty much everything between the Reaping and the Games, and for the most part the camerawork in the Games), but the very beginning and the action scenes were beyond dizzying. The hallucination scene was at least justified -- and ironically, I had an easier time watching that than most of the action. The only exception was the forest fire scene. But at the end, when they're fighting Cato on top of the Cornucopia... I had no idea what was going on. Didn't help that two out of the three people were the only two blonde guys in the movie.Also, the score was beautiful.

[Republic Commando Fixer]

Just saw the movie, and it was fantastic. First time I've seen more added than taken away from the source material, and even then, it was one of the most accurate movie adaptations I've ever seen. Music was really good, too. And the casting was perfect. Lenny Kravitz was great as Cinna, and Stanley Tucci absolutely ate up his role as Caesar Flickerman. Woody Harrelson and Elizabeth Banks were great too.But Jennifer Lawrence was perfect. I can see why she was nominated for best actress in Winter's Bone, even if I didn't see that movie. Her last scene with Rue was particularly well done. That camerawork, though... Good Lord. The slow scenes were pretty good (pretty much everything between the Reaping and the Games, and for the most part the camerawork in the Games), but the very beginning and the action scenes were beyond dizzying. The hallucination scene was at least justified -- and ironically, I had an easier time watching that than most of the action. The only exception was the forest fire scene. But at the end, when they're fighting Cato on top of the Cornucopia... I had no idea what was going on. Didn't help that two out of the three people were the only two blonde guys in the movie.Also, the score was beautiful.

Yes Jennifer was PERFECT for Katinss! I told my mom that she was going to be playing her and my mom thought Jennifer was going to be a horrible Katniss. But after the movie that all changed! Yes the fire scene was pretty shaky and the part with Cato and mutts was pretty bad! Hopefully for Catching Fire they will have better camera motion! Also I hear that they want to split the 3rd movie into to two. What do you guy’s think about that? I would like it even better if they did that for Catching Fire rather than Mocking Jay. If I had it my way I would rather have all three movies split into two just so that we could get the whole book in! So lemme know what y'all think about that!RCF Edited April 2, 2012 by Republic Commando Fixer

[Pantera]

I read the first book.I wasted my life just to get "AR Points".BORING.I'm sor- wait, no I'm not. They do NOTHING for the first third of the book, then KIDS KILL EACHOTHER! THAT alone should excite me!I haven't see the movie, but it IS going to be better than the book for me.Ya know what?Katniss=Bella in some ways.Hate me!

[King of the Madness Isles]

Maybe I can hopefully provide some shared opinions between fans and haters, as someone who read all three books and went to the midnight premiere of the movie, but is still dissapointed with enough to appeal to the "haters".First off, the movie:The camera work sucked. The frickin Peeta-Cato fight sucked. Worst scene in the movie-what the heck HAPPENED? Spaz, spaz, someone got eaten by mutts (and at that point everyone in the theater started...clapping? yes, that happened to me). The acting was mediocre overall. Haymitch and Cinna were amazing, Katniss was believeable, Rue was fairly good, Gale was in there for about two seconds, Peeta sucked horribly in my opinion, and no one else stood out. The fact that it stuck generally close to the book, and managed to also add in an awesome scene (the District 11 riot, though that should be in the second book, but they'll probably have another one...).The Katniss-Rue parts were replaced by a little montage, so basically Rue was in there a total of 10 minutes, and for 2 of those she was dead, and in danger for 2 more. The cave lasted like a day, compared to a while in the book.Also, the franchise is turning into Twilight. Stop the Team Peeta and Team Gale BS before you're wearing T-Shirts and getting tattoos like Twihards.The first book I actually really liked, the second was fairly good, but I kind of hate the third. Cliched, boring, dumb ending. There were a few good parts, but overall it was not good.And I've decided I'm gonna read and watch Battle Royale to see if it's better or worse.

[Roablin]

So I haven't read the books or seen the movies, but the book has been on my reading to do list for about a year now. Several of my cousins recommended before the movie was ever announced. At this point though, I want to read it just because of all the hubbub. When I first met my English teacher, he had The Hunger Games on his desk and gave his review. When I went to the dentist's office last week toting The Return of the King, he asked me if I had read THG. When I checked the library catalog, both copies have 50+ requests. That's five times more requests than I've ever seen on a book. It's getting a bit crazy, don't other books exist? At this point I just want to see what kind of book can turn the public into obsessive fans like this. Perhaps it's just the movie, but i had heard a lot of hype even before it was announced to come on the big screen.Right now I'll just wait for the library requests to dissipate. I'm expecting to enjoy it some, but it honestly cannot be the best book ever. I personally am really pumped for the movie adaptation of The Hobbit (which IMO actually is the best book ever, no kidding). I'm surprised that THG movie craze far surpassed the anticipation of The Hobbit and The Avengers, which are coming later this year.

[dotcom]

Katniss=Bella in some ways.

I'm going to ignore most of this post because it clearly seems to me like either a troll or teenage book hater type of complaints, but this opinion.This opinion is a very bad one.

[Archer Vonn]

Katniss=Bella in some ways.

I'm going to ignore most of this post because it clearly seems to me like either a troll or teenage book hater type of complaints, but this opinion.This opinion is a very bad one.

The bias in this thread is already disgusting, why add to it?

[Republic Commando Fixer]

@ Purple Bouncy,Ok so I agreed with you on 2/3 of what you said... Why did Peeta suck horriably? What was "bad" about him on the movie? So what if we want to say "Team Glale" or "Team Peeta"? Granted people went a little crazy about Twilight with shirts,tatoos etc. But atleast this movie has some morals and ethics to it rather then Twilight.@ Pantera,How DARE you compare Katniss to Bella! Why in this freaking earth would you say that? Also asking people to hate you is rather lame... Also why was the first book BOAING???Oh yeah and what do y'all think about them splitting the 3rd book movie into two parts? I think they should do it to Catching Fire rather then Mocking Jay... Wbu?RCF

[dotcom]

I think splitting Mockingjay would be fine. The first could focus on the rebellion while the second would be about the Capitol mission. I don't really think Catching Fire needs it, though. I mean, there's very little going on in the first half of the book, action-wise. I don't think they could make it work as a separate installment.

[King of the Madness Isles]

Yeah, I have to say, all the complaints about the lack of morals with the violence are invalid, because the book is teaching, as someone said, that power corrupts. It's taking it to an extreme, but many other works of literature do. Can a turtle really beat a rabbit if the rabbit takes a few naps in a race? Well, I don't know. That might just be an exaggeration. Do I think that if some government gets too much power, they will make kids murder eachother? No, but this book is showing you just how horrible too much power can make things. Some things are hard to watch/read, but still have morals. Take Passion of the Christ for example.

Edited April 3, 2012 by PurpleBouncy

[Lyichir]

Another problem with these books is the author's very apparent fashion obsession, which really makes the plot drag and throws you out of it. A lot of critics complain about this, actually.Part of the problem with the movie, from what I can tell, is that, unlike Battle Royale, they seem to be making the adaptation more kid-friendly, when they really should be keeping it on-par with the book, if not upping the ante on the violence. If I was directing it, I might even go ahead and up it to an "R," in order to really do the book's message justice.

They wanted the movie to be watchable by the people who read the books. There's no point of doing the book's message justice if the target of that message can't watch the movie. Similarly, for a book that's part of a series, there's no honor in making the first movie as accurate as possible if it means screwing over your chances of success, and by extension, the chance at making a sequel and concluding the story you started.And, while I've never seen Battle Royale, from what I've heard the two works may start from a similar premise, but they do very different things from there on. As such, I think attempts to label The Hunger Games as a rip-off or copy fall flat (although this in no way invalidates criticism of THG by comparing it to BR). I watched the movie on Monday. I thought it was really well done, being fairly accurate to the book. The casting was superb.There were some flubs, however. How was Katniss supposed to be able to hallucinate Caesar describing the Tracker Jackers, for instance? She wasn't privy to their commentary.But I do think it was a nice touch that instead of being straight-up executed as he was in the books, Seneca Crane was essentially forced to commit suicide with a bowl of nightlock berries. Not only does it have extra poignancy (since he's essentially being punished with what he was being punished for), it imbues his name with extra meaning (since the real-life Seneca, advisor to and alleged conspirator against Nero, also was ordered to kill himself).As a final aside, I'm absolutely disgusted by how this film is being marketed. The other day in a store I saw a companion book entitled Stars of the Arena with the subtitle Meet the Hotties of the Hit Film. For things like Twilight, which is essentially a romance novel, this kind of marketing might be excusable. But for a dystopian drama like the Hunger Games I think this betrays the film's message. I would imagine folks in the universe of the series, in the Capitol, would gobble up books like this, but the sane-minded folks from the districts would know better, and they're the ones real-life fans should be expected to emulate.

[Parazan]

AHH YEAH,JUST FINISHED THE FIRST BOOK!