Heroine Defies Dictator in The Hunger Games

A Movie Review of The Hunger Games

by Dirk Vander Ploeg

The Hunger Games is a movie set in post-apocalyptic America, shortly after a bloody civil war, where it appears there was a popular uprising of citizens against an oppressive totalitarianism regime, and the important thing to know is that the résistance lost and the government remained in control. 

'The Hunger Games' represent a holiday of sorts and a lesson for the people to understand and never forget. Teens, dressed in their finest, girls with ribbons in their hair, boys in clean white shirts, gather at festivals held in the 12-districts of the country, looking like sweet children awaiting religious confirmation or Bar Mitzvah!

This is a time of great hardship for the majority of the populace. It is truly a society representing only 2 groups of people. The haves and the have-nots. The people living in the districts supply the necessities of life; for an example the basic foods that the upper society eat, another districts supplies heating supplies and minerals from maintaining and digging mines. Many are left to eat rats, squirrels and other small animals. Bread is a luxury for the rich. The government supplements the food that teens must eat to live. Each time the youngster requests food aid their name is added to the lottery pool for the Hunger Games. Many teens have as many as 30-40 chits in the lottery.

The reality of these festivals is they are lotteries in which all children of age are DNA and/or blood tested and their info is deposited into a large globe into which one name is chosen by lot to represent the male and female representatives of the district. Each district is to have representatives chosen that are to participate in a fight to the death tournament held in the capitol city of the country: Panem. The single winner then goes home and is pampered throughout the rest of their life. The other twenty-three challengers are only eliminated when they are killed.

The heroine, Katniss Everdeen, a natural hunter and archer, volunteers to participate in the games instead of her younger sister whose name was drawn for the games. She promises her sister and mother that she will do her best to return to them. While preparing for the games she discovers that her male counterpart is and has been in love with her for years.

Watch the trailer!

At Panem, the participants act out real life and death games in a CGI generated forest, broadcasted live to all citizens. Other interesting aspect to the games is that the participants can by their actions, beauty and bravery attract sponsors that parachute food and medicine to their favorites.

There are many violent moments and touching vignettes that tie this ongoing saga together. Love also triumphs in some surprising ways and the twist ending of the movie will leave you wanting more and celebrating the movie adoption of Suzanne Collins' novel.

I highly recommend this movie.