Firestar
macrumors 68020
They weren't going to eat eachother, but I'm sure somewhere in the book they killed eachother so they could have the other person's food....
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The Hunger Games
- Thread starter obeygiant
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chrono1081
macrumors G3
Nope, all my knowledge is impressions from the preview and what friends who read the books told me.
If I'm wrong I don't want to know because I've already had too much spoiled for me by people who blurt the ending, or talk about the love triangle that goes on, and I can't mention the other thing I learned because it'll spoil it for someone else.
Tomorrow
macrumors 604
No.
Highlight for potential spoilers: their names are drawn to participate in a fight to the death for the Capitol's entertainment. The winner does get to live in (but not own) a nice home, and receives extra money and food, but in the end the only reason they're killing each other is because it's a game of kill or be killed.
Firestar
macrumors 68020
I've read all three, I know. I'm just saying that I'm sure somewhere in the book series someone killed the other to have the food that they have, to survive themselves. I understand why they're killing.
jbachandouris
macrumors 603
First off, love these pictures.
I bought the trilogy on ebook format from Amazon on the 8th. I finished the third book last night (the 17th). Spoilers actually made me MORE interested. At first, I would read only one chapter or two at a time, but by the 2nd book, I was spending 2-3 hours at a clip because I just wanted to know what happened to these characters.
Interested in seeing the movie, yes. Amped? Not so sure as there is only so much they can put on screen. I did add the wallpaper to my iPhone.
Oh right, ...and may the odds be in your favor!
Tsuchiya
macrumors 68020
Just spent the better part of last night and this morning reading the first book.
I really liked it, it was much better then I was expecting. I've got Catching Fire on my iPad now, I'm in two minds whether or not I want to start it yet considering that I really need to get some work done today 😛
Think I might have to though, with all the attention the series is getting at the moment, spoilers/clues about books 2 and 3 will be inevitable.
edit So I did about an hours worth of work today...and devoured the rest of Catching Fire.
Mockingjay is waiting on my iPad, it's 12am and tomorrows a day off.
Do I start? Hmm...
edit 2: Just finished Mockingjay. Wow, just wow. I need to talk to someone about it!
I really liked it, it was much better then I was expecting. I've got Catching Fire on my iPad now, I'm in two minds whether or not I want to start it yet considering that I really need to get some work done today 😛
Think I might have to though, with all the attention the series is getting at the moment, spoilers/clues about books 2 and 3 will be inevitable.
edit So I did about an hours worth of work today...and devoured the rest of Catching Fire.
Mockingjay is waiting on my iPad, it's 12am and tomorrows a day off.
Do I start? Hmm...
edit 2: Just finished Mockingjay. Wow, just wow. I need to talk to someone about it!
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Tomorrow
macrumors 604
Very possible. It took me less than eight hours to read the first book. They go rather quickly.
What are they like 300 pages each, with a super low reading comprehension and good flow? 1 min a page max, 900 minutes, 15 hours tops. If one had not much else to do, that's easy. That's also a super conservative estimate in my mind, but I'm a quick reader. It'd probably be more like 2 pages/minute easily (I don't know exactly -- I read 2 and 3 in pdfs that didn't follow the book page #s and it's been a while since I read the physical copy of 1).
GoKyu
macrumors 65816
Hunger Games is an Americanized version of Battle Royale?? Oh man, I can't wait to see that...
I'm going to an HP training session Sunday night at our local theater and Hunger Games is the free movie at the end of the night 🙂
iBlue
macrumors Core
They're not very long and they're written really simply so it's easy to fly through them. I read them all in about 5 days and it only took that long because I stopped for the weekend.
Anyone see the movie yet? How is it?
Don't panic
macrumors 603
people in the districts are poor and and the brinks of starvation.
food is rationed. the victor brings to his/her district extra food.
but apart that procurement of food is an important part of playing the game in the arena, there is no cannibalism or anything like that.
the books are routinely read by pre-teens, and the movie will likely be tamer still, so i on't think there is any excessive violence issue..
probably much less than in your average videogame.
def a kid's movie, but might be ok for adults too.
i read the books with my son (11) so we could talk about it. they are ok.
some of the books they assign him at school, might be less gory, but i think they are much more violent (emotionally).
So anyone seen it yet? Work was utterly dead today and a friend who lives in the burbs was in the same predicament (wanted to see it, no one to go with), so I left early, hopped on the Metra to the burbs and saw it with her at 5:20.
I always try to keep expectations low for movie adaptations of books due to the limitations and translation between genres. However, I really think The Hunger Games fails where the Harry Potter series imo did not - preserving the feeling of the books in the movie. You may argue that significant scenes were cut or condensed in any of the 8 HP movies, but I would argue that you felt like you were still in the place you were mentally when you read the corresponding book.
Some more detailed/potential spoilerish stuff, so highlight (don't want to ruin it for anyone): Like the stuff with the games itself. I know there's a need to keep the movie PG-13, but it's a major hit and major movies get insane leeway - especially when language or homosexual sex isn't involved. Not even looking for gore, but actual action and suspense. I mean any "battle scene" is just shaking camera spazzing to hide the fact that not much is going on. And those moments were incredibly brief. Add to the fact that the danger expressed in the games is really summed up in (a) beginning (b) fire (c) careers underneath the tree (d) retrieving medicine and (e) ending. Each scene just seconds really, besides the careers part.
I dunno. It just really didn't impress. The few negative reviews I read seemed to hit it - it's solid acting by Katniss that tries to hold up a lackluster screenplay.
I always try to keep expectations low for movie adaptations of books due to the limitations and translation between genres. However, I really think The Hunger Games fails where the Harry Potter series imo did not - preserving the feeling of the books in the movie. You may argue that significant scenes were cut or condensed in any of the 8 HP movies, but I would argue that you felt like you were still in the place you were mentally when you read the corresponding book.
Some more detailed/potential spoilerish stuff, so highlight (don't want to ruin it for anyone): Like the stuff with the games itself. I know there's a need to keep the movie PG-13, but it's a major hit and major movies get insane leeway - especially when language or homosexual sex isn't involved. Not even looking for gore, but actual action and suspense. I mean any "battle scene" is just shaking camera spazzing to hide the fact that not much is going on. And those moments were incredibly brief. Add to the fact that the danger expressed in the games is really summed up in (a) beginning (b) fire (c) careers underneath the tree (d) retrieving medicine and (e) ending. Each scene just seconds really, besides the careers part.
I dunno. It just really didn't impress. The few negative reviews I read seemed to hit it - it's solid acting by Katniss that tries to hold up a lackluster screenplay.
Yes I saw it. I thought it was very good. Katniss was played perfectly, and any reservations I had about Jennifer Lawrence are gone completely. Much of the book deals with Katniss thinking and dealing with issues in her own head, and since there's no voice over, Lawrence had to emote all that inner anguish. It does have a subtle shock value because this violence you're witnessing are with young people so emotions run very high. The Rue scene in particular which looked very true to the book.
SactoGuy18
macrumors 603
A tidbit about claims that The Hunger Games plagiarized the original Japanese novel Battle Royale--author Suzanne Collins has said publicly that she did not know about the 1999 Japanese novel and 2000 live-action movie when she wrote the first novel in the series, and only found out after The Hunger Games started to reach bookstores (I think).
Tsuchiya
macrumors 68020
Yeah, I didn't have much to do this week 😀 (though I probably would have tried to find the time anyway...)
Saw the movie this morning, it's really good. It's been well adapted from the books, they've not had to overhaul it to make it fit as a film. What really pleased me was that they haven't toned the film down too much to suit a younger audience. There is still gore, still violence and the deeper implications of making children fight are highlighted.
A few notes about popular comparisons though:
1) The premise is very similar to Battle Royale as in there are kids who fight to the death in an open arena...but there are enough differences in the story that people shouldn't put it down for this similarity. I saw BR years ago, and usually I'm one of the first to criticise a Western remake/interpretation. The Hunger Games isn't one of those though.
2) The media need to back off with the other "young adult" comparisons. I think we know what film I'm talking about here. They are completely different :/
I thought the movie was good, but not spectacular, through no fault of it's own. A lot of small details could have been explained better, and the portrayal of Katniss's relationships with Gale and Peeta could've been better too. But that's understandable because they didn't have enough time to make explain everything and the viewer isn't privy to Katniss's thoughts unlike the reader is when reading the book.
I just re-read the first two in under 12 hours today. Not sure on exact time since I was occasionally doing other things. That's how I spent my lazy Saturday 😛 It was cool and overcast and crummy today anyway.
Not going to bother with re-reading Mockingjay probably anytime soon though.
But back to more movie thoughts, my one friend and I discussed it and her point was kind of clear - it took a way from the actual feelings from the book a bit, but as a positive did enhance the actual greater conflict (cut ins from the Capitol) in order to appropriately set up the 2nd/3rd movies. The ending was rather 3rd book-esque. She also mentioned hearing something about the 3rd book being split into two movies and I hope more than anything that doesn't happen. That would be the most blatant money grab - even worse than stupid Twilight copying HP7 (which is the only one of the three that could justify needing two parts).
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The unabridged audio version is 12 hours long, very enjoyable and a nice change-up from the written word.
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VPrime
macrumors 68000
I saw the movie the other day. Never heard of the books or any thing, just was bored and decided to watch a movie.
There was a huge line up of young teen girls ( 13-15) so was kind of worried that I wouldn't like it.
Surprisingly it was very good. much darker and gritty than I was expecting.. ( especially after seeing the audience). I think I liked it as much as battle royale, but felt very differently.
The beggining of the "game" was also done exceptionally well. When running through the forest and coming across someone also running she does like a complete 180. Lots of little things like that which made the movie a good watch.
There was a huge line up of young teen girls ( 13-15) so was kind of worried that I wouldn't like it.
Surprisingly it was very good. much darker and gritty than I was expecting.. ( especially after seeing the audience). I think I liked it as much as battle royale, but felt very differently.
The beggining of the "game" was also done exceptionally well. When running through the forest and coming across someone also running she does like a complete 180. Lots of little things like that which made the movie a good watch.