A review that isn’t a review: The Hunger Games and its ripple-effect

Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen, Hunger Games 2012.

A week ago I was standing in line for The Hunger Games. After three years of waiting, it was exhilarating to finally watch the characters and places I had formed in my imagination take shape and flesh and color on screen. I left the cinema that night with the intention to watch the film again – this time with my fiance who has not read the book – compare notes, and write a review dialoguing the two perspectives.

And then a monster virus struck. Not a computer virus – the old-fashioned kind that strikes your immune system. Talk about annoying. I am the kind of person who is too busy to get sick. I don’t allow colds or flu-like symptoms to interfere with my work or writing or projects, damnit. So imagine my shock when this wretched virus knocked me out flat. For four days. My brain and muscles are equally exhausted. I feel completely out of the social media loop. And I’m sure hundreds of Hunger Games reviews have been written and posted by now, such as this one by my good friend Nicole M. Miller.

Today is the first day that my brain has been able to grasp a coherent, fully formed thought. The rest has been a haze of fitful sleep, NyQuil, fabulously bad ’80′s television (Remington Steele) and Torchwood marathons. (More on the latter two in a future post.)

Three Hunger Games items have punctured through the drug-head fog this past week. First, box office numbers. The Hunger Games made $155 million during its opening weekend, making it the third-best opening weekend ever. Thar’s right – it surpassed all Twilight movies and all Harry Potter installments save the final one (Deathly Hallows Part 2). Pretty impressive for the little studio Lionsgate.

Writers such as Melissa Silverstein and Thelma Adams have pointed out that HG‘s success is all the more significant due to its central female protagonist. This isn’t a blockbuster about Spiderman or Batman. Katniss is a sixteen-year old girl, and this powerful character is providing a strong role model for young girls across the country.

Second item: Astonishingly, despite the popularity of Katniss, some have criticized Jennifer Lawrence’s body in the film, claiming she doesn’t look “hungry enough” or that she is “too big” to play Katniss. One critic (Todd McCarthy) actually calls attention to Lawrence’s “lingering baby fat.” Such comments are repulsive. Are you frickin’ serious?

I found Lawrence utterly refreshing to watch onscreen. She is healthy, normal, and, um, beautiful. There are too many ultra-skinny women in film, television and media. How sad is it that underweight, dieted bodies are the “norm” for Hollywood – so much so that critics cannot recognize a normal, fit, and healthy body on screen? Thankfully people have been speaking out against this appalling bodysnarking, and the reviewers ought to feel ashamed of themselves.

Third item: the Jezebel article. You know what I’m talking about if you’ve read it. For those that haven’t, here’s a brief summary: Several Hunger Games fans expressed racist comments on Twitter and Tumblr after watching the film last weekend. Apparently, even though Suzanne Collins described Rue and Thresh as having “dark brown skin” in the novel, these viewers were shocked and angry that their “favorite characters” were black in the film. One particularly loathsome tweet said that the casting “ruined” the movie, and another confessed that Rue’s death was not as sad because she was black. WTF?

I don’t know what’s worse: that this kind of racism is still present  – and so highly vocalized! – in 2012, or that the hateful tweets were predominantly posted by teenagers. In what kind of culture is this behavior deemed okay to our youth? I am outraged that this kind of prejudice is still so clearly and unapologetically demonstrated in this country. It’s the kind of prejudice that leads to vigilante citizens shooting an unarmed black teenager wearing a hoodie.

A review on the actual film will be posted in the coming days. For now I thought it important to recognize that The Hunger Games is highlighting issues that extend far beyond war and youth and hunger. This movie is (unintentionally, I’m sure) provoking dialogue on the current state of gender, body image, and race in this country. That’s pretty powerful.

What conversations have you seen or been a part of relating to The Hunger Games?

 

Katniss vs. Bella — a comparison feminists can get behind

This morning I read a post on the Women Media Center’s blog, written by Melissa Silverstein. Ms. Silverstein’s post focuses on the current Katniss vs. Bella comparison, and she laments that such comparisons are pointless. She concludes that Hollywood doesn’t know what to do with films such as The Hunger Games and thus turns the comparison between Katniss and Bella into a “cat fight.” You can read her entire post on the WMC blog.

I have trouble with Ms. Silverstein’s conclusions, and I submitted a response to her post. I thought I would republish my thoughts here for your consideration:

“I would like to think there is something more to the Katniss/Bella juxtaposition than a mere cat fight. Both The Hunger Games and Twilight series amassed massive fan followings and provoked similar fan “mania,” if you will. Both began as young adult novels. Tenuous similarities to be sure, but I suppose those are a few of the reasons why people are comparing the two characters.

Twilight, whether you loved or hated the series, catapulted Kristen Stewart and her character of Bella into the media spotlight. Bella was the most recent megastar of fiction until Katniss came along. Perhaps this is another reason why the two characters are being compared. These characters have risen beyond their textual and cinematic confines and have become pop culture figures. Icons, even. What other young female characters have risen to this level of public and pop culture awareness within the past few years? Maybe Hermione Granger, though she was usually bundled together with Harry Potter and Ron Weasley.

You write that comparing these two characters makes no sense. In regards to theme, style, and franchise, you are absolutely right. However I have found the comparison between Bella and Katniss to actually open up conversations amongst young women about the differences found in these two characters. Teenage girls are identifying the traits within Katniss that they like – those they want to emulate. She is fierce, strong, independent, resilient, resourceful. Girls find her strength attractive and compare it to Bella’s weak passivity. They admire Katniss’s independence instead of Bella’s willingness to remain in a violent relationship. Through this activity, young women are recognizing for themselves what kind of young woman they want to be—and, in turn, what kind of character they want to support. My hope is that this will translate into a dialogue about how these young women want themselves to be represented in media.

If nothing else, I think that the Katniss/Bella comparison offers a tremendous opportunity to encourage feminism within girls and young women. Instead of dismissing the comparison as silly (even though it certainly appears so at first), let’s turn the conversation around, note the differences, and encourage women – of all ages – to aim for strength and confidence.”

Have you encountered Katniss/Bella comparisons? What do you think of them? Share your opinions below!

 

want the fashion of Effie Trinket? Capitol Couture offers glam galore

Effie Trinket on 'Capitol Couture'

Last week I came upon this delightful piece of transmedia, thanks to the obsessive coverage by Entertainment Weekly of all things Hunger Games.

It’s the new “Capitol Couture” blog for all those fashionistas who love the mad style and glittery colors of Suzanne Collin’s fictional District One (a.k.a. The Capitol). Unlike the Panem website, which requires a Facebook or Twitter login, Capitol Couture offers a splashy, magazine-style format for anyone interested. Posts are divided into such topics as Cover Stories, Profiles, Capitol Look, Guides, Intel, and Citizen Activity. Fans can read, like, share, and comment on each post, further generating fan engagement and interaction.

The tumblr blog is clever and imaginative. There is a banner that advertises the 74th Annual Hunger Games, creepily similar to the ad banners we all encounter across the web. There is a space for you to write to the editor and a Twitter stream in the sidebar so you can stay up-to-date with the latest announcements from Panem. (Yep, they’ve got a Twitter account, too.) There is a competition for anyone wishing to channel their inner Cinna in the hopes of being selected as their district’s stylist. There is even a Capitol line of nail polish called “Colors From the Capitol” by China Glaze, each color representing a district. You can purchase your favorite starting March 1st.

Several posts incorporate real-life fashion photographers and designers, such as this entry: “Craig McDean – Steal the show from the Tributes with this high-necked number at your next Sponsor’s banquet!” Other posts echo the voice of another fictional fashion-and-society blogger – Gossip Girl – like so: “Spotted! Yummy grosgrain peep-toes on one of the Capitol’s favorite socialites. Just how black were they in person? Coal-black. A sure sign of the District 12-inspired fashion revolution we predict is just around the corner.”

The insider references to districts, events, and characters are sure to delight fans. But really, what is the point?

Lionsgate (or a digital marketing company that is working with Lionsgate) has certainly taken advantage of online and social media to build buzz around the film’s March 23 release. Transmedia elements, like Capitol Couture, do more than garner excitement and prompt Siri reminders. They allow for fans to become part of the story while simultaneously welcoming new fans into the fold.

Sound familiar? AMC executed the same strategy for the third season premiere of its Emmy-winning series Mad Men (coincidentally produced by Lionsgate studio). With the creative genius of Deep Focus, fans were given the chance to create customised, 1960’s-era, Mad Men-inspired likenesses of themselves and then spread them throughout social media. The result? 3.3 million viewers for the premiere – up from the usual 2 million.

Sure, it’s cute and creative to post about Effie Trinket’s shoes as if she were a real person. Yet it is the spreadable and immersive nature of this transmedia that heightens visibility and deepens investment – something producers hope will translate into mega-numbers at the box office.

 

first trailer of The Hunger Games released!

Okay. My morning just received a high-octane shot of 100% thrill. Lionsgate released the trailer of The Hunger Games today, and it is worth the wait. Granted, I was surprised that the 2.39 minute video only highlights the story up to the start of the Games. So a lot of attention is placed on the Reaping, Katniss & family, Katniss & Gale, and her journey to the Capitol. There are flashes of several characters – Haymitch! Seneca Crane! Cinna! Rue! The excellent Donald Sutherland is creepily perfect as President Snow. We get a glimpse of Stanley Tucci’s Caesar Flickerman. And Elizabeth Banks’ Effie Trinket goes above and beyond my expectations. Her white pancake makeup, gaudy metallic lipsick, platinum blonde wig, and hot pink Neo-Victorian get-up is simply brilliant. For a novel that so many readers have fallen in love with, Lionsgate has the insurmountable challenge to bring that story – which differs in each person’s imagination – into visual and auditory existence. It will not meet every reader’s expectations, but, so far, The Hunger Games is doing a surprisingly good job at transforming script to screen.

They’ve made an effort to make Jennifer Lawrence (as Katniss) more ‘plain’, so her transformation at the Opening Ceremony is all the more delectable. Despite her fiery red dress and make-up, it is Lawrence’s unsure, awkward face that exactly captures Katniss’s character. Josh Hutcherson still is not the Peeta I envisioned, but I’m liking what I see in this trailer. More so than Liam Hemsworth’s Gale.

The trailer ends as Katniss is shot up into the arena, as all the Tributes stand on their respective discs around the cornucopia. The ominous countdown descends from ’10′, and we’re given several more shots of Panem’s citizens, all riveted to various screens, watching the beginning of the Games. Already I’m excited to see how the film’s creators have presented the significant power and influence of technology and surveillance in the film.

I am a huge (make that obsessed) fan of The Hunger Games, so I might be a bit biased. This trailer, however, has the potential to grab the attention of the non-fan as well. Even after the fourth viewing of the preview, I’m still like a five-year old on Christmas morning. Giddy with excitement, delighted with the artistic choices, and eagerly anticipating the release of March 23. I simply cannot wait.

What do you think of the first Hunger Games trailer? Write your thoughts below!

 

I’m from District 11. Which is your district?

Over the past two and a half months I have been visiting the Capitol’s website. And I do mean the Capitol from the bestselling The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanna Collins. Lionsgate—distributor of the Hunger Games film next year—is presumably the creative producer behind the website. You can register for a Panem district via your Facebook or Twitter account. Once registered to a district (I’m from District 11—go agriculture!), you can download your official District Pass (badge) and keep up with Capitol announcements, such as: “Dreaming about being picked as a Tribute? Remember to choose your District token carefully. Tokens which can be used as weapons will be confiscated.” Certain words are highlighted in gold, which might indicate clues for future site developments—similar to other ARGs (alternate reality game). Those who keep track of such developments could receive special offers or inside knowledge about the upcoming film release. But that is all conjecture.

Also on the site are graphs depicting tessarae numbers and gross district product. A clock counts down to the 74^th Hunger Games, which happens to be the same date as the film release (23 March 2012).

Who knows what this site will offer in the coming months. Considering there are five more months before the film, it would seem that the makers of Panem’s website have more and more exciting things in store for fans. Transmedia and film have over a decade’s worth of history. Movies such as The Matrix and The Blair Witch Project experimented with ARGs and online, immersive experiences in the late ‘90’s. The Hunger Games has designed a transmedia site, but with the added connectivity of social media. It will be interesting to see how the Panem site will use these various technologies to expand the narrative experience.

I will keep you posted on my own Panem journey. So far I’ve got my registration processed and my district identification pass. I’m hoping that as the film release approaches, the website initiates a friendly competition between the districts. Already you can join your district’s Facebook page and socialize with fellow district members. Solidarity!

 

amnesia, cryptograms, and WICKED: reviewing ‘the maze runner’

Imagine you wake up in a closed elevator with no memory of who you are. The doors open to reveal dozens of boys, all staring at you with mixed suspicion and hostility. They toss foreign slang around, like “klunk,” “shank,” “greenie,” and “shuck.” They tell you that you’re in a place called the Glade, which rests in the middle of a maze—operated by people unknown. The huge, metal doors close every night, shutting everybody inside the Glade—and keeping the ugly, death-giving Grievers out. This is all routine. This is life until the boys find a way out of the maze.

But then the elevator shaft opens for the second time in one week—which has never happened before. A girl lies there. She has a message: The ending is near. And then she passes into deep unconsciousness. Now the boys need to figure out how to escape the Maze before the Maze—and those who control it—kills them all.

That is the premise of The Maze Runner, written by James Dashner. The book falls within the same futuristic/alternative reality young adult genre as The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins) and Incarceron (Catherine Fisher). Dashner creates a weird world, so full of puzzles you become addicted to the plot. The Maze is a microcosm of the greater world; boys still have responsibilities and assigned jobs. They have a mess hall, jail, and graveyard (albeit called different names). Despite the ‘order’ of the Glade, it is apparent that the Maze is a laboratory, and the boys are being studied like mice in a cage. Metal beetles with the word ‘WICKED’ printed on their backs monitor their movements and conversations. It is one, long test—yet the protagonist, Thomas, and the others have no idea what that ‘test’ is.

Readers might find The Maze Runner maddening because answers are long in coming. Like most YA novels, The Maze Runner is written in first-person narrative; we travel the story with Thomas. Because he is unfamiliar to the Glade and consumed with questions, we as readers are overwhelmed with confusion as well. Statements such as “Wicked is good” only add to the cryptic nature of the Maze. Eventually Thomas has an inkling that he has been to the Maze before, even though he cannot remember it, and he sets out to figure out the Maze’s secrets from within his own dark memories.

The Maze Runner is a suspenseful read, but I kept hoping for more. The book is vaguely unsatisfying. It is like a movie in which you want to know the end but you are not riveted to the screen. When it comes to puzzles, authors are wise to withhold information from readers. But there is a delicate formula required to maintain that suspense, and if you hold on too long, you lose readers’ patience. Dashner waited too long before giving his readers some of the puzzle pieces. The final eight pages held more intrigue, surprise, and excitement than the rest of the novel combined. If only Dashner had sprinkled some of the ending material throughout the book, rather than dump it all within the last chapter. Granted, he sets up his sequel very well. The Maze Runner concludes on an explosive, unexpected note. Yet that doesn’t help the fact that the preceding 265 pages were mostly character development instead of taut, finely crafted suspense. You know those movie trilogies in which the second installment is solely a set-up for the third film? I feel like The Maze Runner is a set-up for the sequel, The Scorch Trials.

The Maze Runner is still a fun experience, especially if you enjoy alternate realities and bizarre, survivalist culture. (With his Glade slang, Dashner paid homage to Anthony Burgess’s A Clockwork Orange and Nasdat, which is a delightful treat.) If nothing else, read The Maze Runner so you’ll be caught up to speed for The Scorch Trials, scheduled for an October release.

Four out of five stars.