World Wide Phenomenon

“May the odds be ever in your favor,” has become the most known phrase worldwide over a two week time span—yes, I’m referring to Suzanne Collin’s “The Hunger Games” which hit theaters officially at midnight on March 22, 2012. Since then, the movie has eased its way into the top grossing movies on opening weekend with $150 million, earning the third top movie in opening weekend history next to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part two and The Dark Knight.

The Hunger Games describes a post apologlyptic world where once the 12 separate districts of Panem attempted to overthrow the government in war and lost. In punishment, the Government has forced the 12 districts to provide one man and one woman between the ages of 12 and 18 to fight to the death in order to bring their districts honor and wealth to their families who would starve on their own. The movie follows young Katniss Everdeen, who at 16 years old, volunteered as tribute in her younger sister’s stead and recreates the emotional turmoil of having to comprehend the fact that she may die simply for the governments pleasure in the arena.

Despite the expectations and fears that fans had regarding turning a 350 page book into a two and a half hour film, director Gary Ross, did an excellent job. Sure, the film had a minor number of missing details, five in the least, but critics are praising “The Hunger Games” as one of the most sensational films to hit the theaters this year.

Personally, as a fan of the book series, I found that the film adaptation to be both riveting and emotionally gripping. Having seen the film twice now, I found that Jennifer Lawrence, the actress playing Katniss Everdeen, pulled her youth in to making a strong rebel of a teenage solider. Josh Hutcherson, the lead actor playing Peeta Mellark, also moved into playing his emotionally conflicted role.

Although the film is depicted to be a “simple adaptation” towards a novel filled with violence and heart ache, “The Hunger Games” is a movie that takes a toll on its viewers and has them thinking about it far after the movie has stopped screening.

One major setback though has caused major disturbance amongst movie critics across the nation—the film is receiving huge discriminatory comments towards three of its central characters. To anyone who has a twitter account, I’m sure you’ve seen what I’m talking about. Far too many posts have been reoccurring since the film’s premiere about how three African American characters: Rue, Thresh, and Cinna ruined the film because of their skin color—critics are extremely disappointed in this outcome.

If you’d like to see an example of this, please visit an article by Jorge Rivas on ColorLines.com. (http://colorlines.com/archives/2012/03/on_twitter_hunger_games_fans_demand_to_know_why_black_characters_are_black.html)