The winter season is upon us, and with it comes the second batch of blockbusters. Yes, come Christmas time, cinemas are filled to the brim with the second most anticipated blockbuster hits of the year; all the films that Hollywood was too scared to release in the coveted summer slots. This is a time filled with sequels, quirky comedies and “artistic” films, clearly trying too hard to win an Oscar.
However, this season has earned its reputation for a reason: Indeed, the fall/winter season is well-known for releasing new installments in popular film franchises, and this year is no exception. This year’s holiday blockbuster? The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. Because nothing says “’tis the season” like children killing children.
Catching Fire is, as its full title suggests, a continuation to the 2011 adaptation of The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. Loosely resembling the famed Battle Royale series, the series focuses on the exploits of one Katniss Everdeen played by Jennifer Lawrence. In a dystopian future, the Capital of the country of Panem keeps its civilian populace in line through a rather unorthodox means: Every year, they select one young man and woman from each of the 12 districts and pit them together in a fight to the death known as the Hunger Games. The winner is awarded fame and fortune, while the 23 losers are obviously less fortunate.
If you do not want to have aspects of the first film spoiled, please proceed to the next paragraph, as it is unfortunately impossible to introduce Catching Fire’s plot without some minor spoilers. The film picks up several months after the first film left off. Katniss and her fellow Hunger Games participant Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson), now living in wealth and luxury, remain haunted by the events of the first film. Traumatized and confused as to her potential romantic feelings toward Peeta, Katniss finds solace in seclusion in the woods and the company of her longtime friend Gale (Liam Hemsworth).
However, all is not well: Following the events of Katniss’ Hunger Games, tensions have been mounting between the districts and the Capital. Hoping to quell a potential rebellion, President Snow (Donald Sutherland) orders Katniss and Peeta to use their fame and romance to calm the nation, threatening to kill them and their families should they fail.
What’s more, the next years Hunger Games loom over Katniss and Peeta, like an ominous shadow, threatening to pull them back in to the conflicts they had fought so hard to escape.
What’s really amazing about this film is how it manages to surpass its predecessor in every possible way. From the plot, the pacing, the atmosphere, acting, and cinematography, Catching Fire is able to stand as a more than worthy successor to The Hunger Games.
In terms of plot, the story functions much better than in the previous film. Whereas the prequel was plagued with a lot of buildup and little payff, this film instead has equal amounts of both. The film shifts the focus from just Katniss and the games to Katniss and how she plays into the workings of the entire world of the movie; this allows the film to branch off and explore aspects of the series’ world beyond simply “children killing children.” Using Snow as the primary antagonist creates much more suspense, as the characters’ situations feel far more helpless. And, as that helplessness grows, the bonds between the characters begin to feel that much more important.
Of course, the writing isn’t the only thing making these relationships feel all the more potent; the actors play no small roll in enthralling the audience.
Jennifer Lawrence brings a remarkable amount of energy to her portrayal of Katniss Everdeen. One of my primary complaints with the first Hunger Games was solely with how boring Katniss was as a character: very emotionless, very deadpan. While these aspects are certainly an integral part of Katniss’ character, there is a line between disconnected and disinterested, and Lawrence had clearly crossed it. This time, however, it feels as though she has grown into the role more and is better able to convey a wider range of emotions. It is much easier to empathize with the protagonist this time around, in no small part thanks to Lawrence’s emotional performance.
Additionally, this film adds a very large number of supporting characters, each with very distinct personalities and quirks; while many of them are given very small roles and often no more than perhaps 10 to 20 lines of dialogue in the film, each is very clearly shown as being their own person. There are no throwaway characters in the film this time, something which is greatly appreciated. In fact, it serves to sharpen the “edge” of the film. While there are antagonists — both young and old — they no longer feel like textbook antagonists. They have lives, goals, agendas and fears; they have a humanity which is easy to latch on to.
Of course, not every performance can be so perfect. Hutcherson’s performance as poor lovelorn Peeta, while functional, unfortunately pales when compared with the powerhouse work around him. His performance is not bad, by any stretch of the imagination, but it is clearly far less seasoned than the others. For a character allegedly so invested in everything that happens in the games, he is rarely able to convey the depths of his feelings in his face or voice.
Other welcome changes appear in the film’s cinematography, for which I cannot thank director Francis Lawrence enough. Gone are the ten-thousand face close-ups of the first film. Gone are the oddly placed jump-cuts. And, most importantly, gone is the incredibly irritating “shaky-camera.”
Rather than constantly shaking the camera to convey a false sense of adrenaline and movement, the film instead holds long, steady, sweeping shots, which encapsulate the action yet remain fast-paced enough to keep the energy high. As a result, everything that happens in the film manages to both be tense and easy to see.
While by no means a perfect film, and admittedly a little slow-paced at times, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire accomplishes what any good sequel film should strive to achieve: being a marked improvement over its predecessor. With stronger plots, performances and craftsmanship, Catching Fire is a fine way to ring in the season’s blockbusters.
Overall Rating: 4/5
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