THE FILM
TITLE: The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
RELEASE DATE: 05 Nov 2023
WATCH DATE: 14 Mar 2024
TYPE: live-action feature film
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THE PEOPLE
DIRECTOR: Francis Lawrence
PRODUCER: Francis Lawrence, Henning Molfenter, Charlie Woebcken, Brad Simpson, Nina Jacobson, Christoph Fisser, Cameron MacConomy, Christopher Surgent, Greg Capoccia
WRITER: Michael Arndt, Michael Lesslie
ACTORS: Tom Blyth, Rachel Zegler, Peter Dinklage, Jason Schwartzman, Hunter Schafer, Josh Andrés Rivera, Viola Davis
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THE STORY
RUNTIME:
STORYLINE: a cunning young man mentors a female tribute and helps develop new ideas for the 10th Hunger Games, in hopes of getting recognition and status in the Capitol
STYLE/GENRE: fantasy, sci-fi, origin story, villains, political drama, friendship, betrayal
Based on the The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (A Hunger Games Novel) by Suzanne Collins
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THE CRITIQUE
THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is a return to Panem - but long before the events we know. This time, it is for the 10th annual Hunger Games. We meet President Snow as a student, eager to rise in the Capitol and redeem his family name. It is an original take on an original story, and weaves in shocking references to characters and details we know from the series.
The story is told in three parts - just like the book, which I appreciated. This structure also sets it apart from the rest of the Hunger Games series. Speaking about the book itself... I was not impressed. It felt a bit forced and mainly inspired by "The Hanging Tree" song from Mockingjay Part 1 instead of a true origin story for President Snow. Coriolanus first of all has the hardest name to read or pronounce, which is not great character design. His character development from a struggling Capitol student to a Hunger Games maniac occurs far too quickly. Throughout the storyline, I kept waiting for events and decisions to push him toward the character we are familiar with, but it all happens in the last 10 pages of the book. We end up caring too much about him, and the 180-degree switch he makes doesn't flow smoothly with the rest of his character arc. This crucial scene in the film comes off as tense, yet a bit awkward as a ton of internal thoughts struggle to be communicated on the screen. Tom Blyth rises to the challenge to portray Snow's transformation, and his struggle to overcome these wild situations is tangible.
The film adaptation handles this issue a little better, but the ending still doesn't seem to make sense with Snow's character. Other characters suffered from poor development as well. Dr. Gaul was powerfully creepy in the book, and Viola Davis embodied those aspects. I still think there were greater depths to which Davis could have taken the character. Seeing her character come to life on the screen is ghastly and makes your skin crawl - as it should. Lucky Flickerman's character was given some weak lines and Jason Schwartzman sadly struggled in the shadow of Stanley Tucci's Caesar Flickerman. Perhaps a poor casting decision for this role. Casting for Snow and Lucy Gray was spot on though. Blyth and Rachel Zegler portrayed the stark contrasts of Capitol and District in their characters both in their physicality and their performances.
Costuming, makeup, and hairstyling particularly stood out, as it has been a significant aspect of production design for this film series. The student's uniforms were ridiculous and felt out of place in the Capitol. Dr. Gaul’s customing was great, informing the audience of her extravagant, yet dangerous nature. I was distracted by the hair though; it took too much away from Davis' strong facial expressions. The tributes' attire was fitting to their supporting roles - not distracting from the main characters, but with a few pieces that stood out, like Reaper’s shirt. Lucy Gray’s dress was beautiful for her character, but felt too simple; not striking enough for a person who had traveled the Districts performing music. Snow’s red suit and mid-length hair in the final scene were iconic; a power move. These few minutes felt more like a character on his way to becoming President Snow. I wanted to see more of this version of Snow.
Overall, the film was middle-ground. It’s good, but not great like Catching Fire. Snow needed more time than the storyline allotted to become the tyrannical president we’re familiar with. This origin story fits in with the rest of the Hunger Games stories and hopefully opens up possibilities for more tales to be told for other favorite characters from the series.
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THE RECEPTION
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THE IMPRESSION
IN A SINGLE WORD: exciting
MOST STRIKING ELEMENT: book-to-film adaptation
REWATCH: mmm probably not…
RATING: 3 // 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐
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