Rating of
2.5/4
Love Bites
Chris Kavan - wrote on 11/26/23
This prequel to the original Hunger Games trilogy follows a young Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) decades before becoming the ruler of Panem. Far from the action-driven direction the original films took, this one is more dramatic, more romantic and while it works most of the time, it does seem to drag at times (especially the last act) and could have used a little more kick.
The film is divided into three parts - part one finds Snow, looking forward to winning his school's big prize (and the money is comes with) as his family, Tigris (Hunter Schafer) and his grandmother (Fionnula Flanagan) put on a good show but are woefully short of cash. He has made some friends in school, including the rebel-leaning Sejanus Plinth (Josh Andrés Rivera), who comes from a powerful family. But the Hunger Games have been losing popularity with the masses and if things can't turn around - well, that's it. Thus Dean Casca Highbottom (Peter Dinklage) announces a new twist - now the reaped contestants will have a sponsor - the top students - and whoever shows the most aptitude will win the prize. The games are designed by the somewhat mad Dr. Volumnia Gaul (Viola Davis - going full-on villain, evil laugh and all) and she is willing to hear out new ideas to spice things up.
Dean Highbottom has a long-standing grudge with the Coriolanus family (which is spelled out later) and thus seems to deal Snow a losing hand by pairing him up with District 8 tribute Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler) who proves she has a great singing voice but not much of a chance in the arena. But it is here that Snow begins to devise a plan - connecting with the girl (perhaps a little too well) and treating her like a person, not a sacrifice. He knows that if the games are to succeed, the people need to connect to the tributes as well - make it emotional. All seems to be going well until a rebel attack hits the arena - but the games must go on.
The second part is the closest we get to the original Hunger Games as it takes place during the games themselves. It's nowhere near as exciting (and a much smaller venue) but we get plenty of death to go around. Here is also where Snow lets his attachment cloud his better judgement as, against the rules, his give Lucy some distinct advantages. He also has to rescue his pal Sejanus, whose old friend (and now tribute) has been killed and decides to enter the arena himself to try and make amends.
Part three finds Snow having to face the consequences of his actions during the games - much to the delight of Casca - and he is demoted to a faceless grunt - but manages to get assigned to District 8. But if he thinks choices are going to get any easier from here, they will not, as he has to decide what life he wants to live - and what he is willing to do to get it.
As I said, part 3 feels like it drags on much longer than it needs to be and I think they could have trimmed it down somewhat. Most of the tributes (and their respective sponsors) are also given mostly cursory characteristics - violent girl, sick girl, big dude - even the ones that are given more to do - like Coral (Mackenzie Lansing) the leader of the violent pack and Jessup (Nick Benson), Lucy's bat-bitten fellow District 8 tribute - are really shallow. I get the film only devotes a part to the Hunger Games portion, but it still feels like a short-shrift.
Blyth does give a good performance as conflicts arise and he has a good connection with Zegler, who is also a good fit for the role. Still, I think I liked Davis as the villain the best - over-the-top but just bursting with energy. Dinklage isn't given enough to do as the morphine-addicted Dean, but he's enjoyable whenever he's needling into Snow or simply trying to come to terms with what he has delivered unto the world. Also, I must note Jason Schwartzman as Lucky Flickerman (ancestor, of course, to Caesar Flickerman played by Stanley Tucci) who is a showman first and foremost, but even better when things go wrong.
Since this film follows Snow, it is more focused on drama and, yes, a bit of romance and while it manages to strike a good balance with the action, it still feels a bit bland compared to the original films. I can see why this was embraced by a mostly female audience as it seems more keyed in with that demographic. Not quite what I was expecting but still worthy of a watch.
