first reactions
The Hunger Games post-apocalyptic trailer is finally here and we've got chills
Early this morning, Lionsgate Films premiered the first full-length trailer for the highly anticipated film adaptation of The Hunger Games.
Based on the trilogy of books by Suzanne Collins, this post-apocalyptic young adult series tells a story of violence and survival and has caused a stir in both the YA and adult literary worlds for its dark focus.
The books have been monstrously popular — even garnering a rave review from the master of horror himself, Stephen King, who said, "[The Hunger Games] is a violent, jarring, speed-rap of a novel that generates nearly constant suspense... I couldn't stop reading."
If you're new to The Hunger Games, here's the official synopsis:
Every year in the ruins of what was once North America, the evil Capitol of the nation of Panem forces each of its twelve districts to send a teenage boy and girl to compete in the Hunger Games. A twisted punishment for a past uprising and an ongoing government intimidation tactic, The Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in which "Tributes" must fight with one another until one survivor remains.
Pitted against highly-trained Tributes who have prepared for these Games their entire lives, Katniss is forced to rely upon her sharp instincts as well as the mentorship of drunken former victor Haymitch Abernathy. If she's ever to return home to District 12, Katniss must make impossible choices in the arena that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.
Did Jennifer Lawrence bring the strength and vulnerability we want from Katniss Everdeen? As she screams a gut wrenching “I volunteer, I volunteer!” and races after the countdown into the forest, I can see why director Gary Ross chose her to portray main character Katniss.
I’m not 100 percent sold on Josh Hutcherson’s Peeta; he’ll have to work to convince us of the sweet-faced baker who turns into a selfless warrior. Dressed in a pink frothy costume and nearly unrecognizable makeup, Elizabeth Banks plays Effie Trinket in an unfamiliar and terrifying way.
When I originally heard of the casting, I wasn’t totally convinced of Lenny Kravitz as Cinna, the stylist in charge of making the tributes from District 12 shine, but after hearing his bass voice croon “I’m here to help you to make an impression,” I get it. And Woody Harrelson is not how I was picturing Haymitch Abernathy at all (I imagined him older, grayer and more stout), but once you get over his ridiculous hair, he does evoke that tortured out-of-it vibe with moments of brilliance.
Noticeably missing from the trailer: the actual Hunger Games. The fighting, the injuries, the deaths and the monsters that help kill off the tributes inside the arena. No doubt director Gary Ross is keeping that under wraps to build suspense on what the actual Hunger Games will look like and if they will take it as far as they do in the book.
So the question is: Will the movies live up to the books' hype? Tell us what you think.
