Every year in the ruins of what was once North America, the nation of Panem forces each of its twelve districts to send a teenage boy and girl to compete in the Hunger Games. Part twisted entertainment, part government intimidation tactic, the Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in which “Tributes” must fight with one another until one survivor remains. Pitted against highly-trained Tributes who have prepared for these Games their entire lives, Katniss is forced to rely upon her sharp instincts as well as the mentorship of drunken former victor Haymitch Abernathy. If she’s ever to return home to District 12, Katniss must make impossible choices in the arena that weigh survival against humanity and life against love. The world will be watching.
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Credits: TheMovieDb.

Film Cast:

• Katniss Everdeen: Jennifer Lawrence
• Peeta Mellark: Josh Hutcherson
• Gale Hawthorne: Liam Hemsworth
• Haymitch Abernathy: Woody Harrelson
• Effie Trinket: Elizabeth Banks
• Cinna: Lenny Kravitz
• Caesar Flickerman: Stanley Tucci
• President Snow: Donald Sutherland
• Seneca Crane: Wes Bentley
• Claudius Templesmith: Toby Jones
• Cato: Alexander Ludwig
• Clove: Isabelle Fuhrman
• Rue: Amandla Stenberg
• Primrose Everdeen: Willow Shields
• Hob Vendor: Sandra Ellis Lafferty
• Katniss’ Mother: Paula Malcomson
• Registration Woman: Rhoda Griffis
• Propaganda Film Tribute: Sandino Moya-Smith
• Peeta’s Mother: Raiko Bowman
• Peacekeeper #1: Dwayne Boyd
• Peacekeeper #2: Anthony Reynolds
• Peacekeeper #3: Judd Lormand
• Venia: Kimiko Gelman
• Flavius: Nelson Ascencio
• Octavia: Bruce Bundy
• Thresh: Dayo Okeniyi
• Glimmer: Leven Rambin
• Marvel: Jack Quaid
• Portia: Latarsha Rose
• Tribute Boy District 3: Ian Nelson
• Tribute Girl District 3: Kalia Prescott
• Tribute Boy District 4: Ethan Jamieson
• Fox Face: Jacqueline Emerson
• Tribute Girl District 8: Mackenzie Lintz
• Tribute Boy District 9: Imanol Yepez-Frias
• Tribute Girl District 9: Annie Thurman
• Tribute Girl District 10: Dakota Hood
• Avox Girl: Amber Chaney
• Atala: Karan Kendrick
• Birthday Boy: Shane Bissell
• Hovercraft Tech: Kate Kneeland
• Game Center Tech #1: Steve Coulter
• Game Center Tech #2: Sharon Conley
• Game Center Tech #3: Tim Taylor
• Game Center Tech: John William Ross
• Katniss’ Father: Phillip Troy Linger
• Capitol Citizen (uncredited): Jeremy Bonham
• Martha (uncredited): Julie Ivey
• District 12 Citizen (uncredited): Mary Fox
• District 12 Resident (uncredited): Nicholas Azarian
• Resident: Mark Meekins
• Tribute Boy District 10 (uncredited): Jeremy Marinas

Film Crew:

• Casting: Debra Zane
• Director of Photography: Tom Stern
• Location Casting: Jackie Burch
• Original Music Composer: James Newton Howard
• Additional Music: T Bone Burnett
• Second Unit Director: Steven Soderbergh
• Production Design: Philip Messina
• Editor: Stephen Mirrione
• Editor: Juliette Welfling
• Second Unit Director: Jon Kilik
• First Assistant Director: Aldric La’Auli Porter
• Costume Supervisor: Dan Moore
• Art Direction: Robert Fechtman
• Foley Artist: Catherine Harper
• Foley Artist: Christopher Moriana
• Co-Executive Producer: Chantal Feghali
• Costume Design: Judianna Makovsky
• Second Unit Director: Chad Stahelski
• Makeup Artist: Wendy Bell
• Makeup Artist: Robin Beauchesne
• Additional Photography: Patrick Loungway
• ADR Mixer: Tami Treadwell
• Sound Editor: Christopher Assells
• Sound Designer: Lon Bender
• Music Editor: Jim Weidman
• Editor: Christopher S. Capp
• Screenplay: Billy Ray
• Set Decoration: Larry Dias
• Director: Gary Ross
• Makeup Artist: Cheri Minns
• Visual Effects Producer: Jacquie Barnbrook
• Hairstylist: Sheryl Blum
• Executive Producer: Robin Bissell
• Animation Supervisor: Dino Athanassiou
• Character Designer: Dawn Dininger
• Unit Production Manager: Louise Rosner-Meyer
• Assistant Costume Designer: Lisa Tomczeszyn
• Compositing Supervisor: Michel Barrière
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Joanie Croteau
• Visual Effects Supervisor: Thierry Delattre
• CG Supervisor: Lafleche Dumais
• Compositor: Veronique Guay
• Visual Effects Producer: Daniel Leduc
• Compositor: Francois Leduc
• Effects Supervisor: Danny Levesque
• CG Supervisor: Nicolas-Alexandre Noel
• Visual Effects Producer: Pierre Raymond
• Compositor: Sébastien Rioux
• Compositor: Guillaume St-Aubin-Seers
• Visual Effects Supervisor: Philippe Theroux
• Administration: Anne Tremblay
• Compositor: Véronique Tremblay
• Stunts: Boots Southerland
• Assistant Art Director: Lindsey Moran
• Stunts: Ryon Marshall
• Stunts: Casey O’Neill
• Executive In Charge Of Production: Donna Sloan
• Stunts: Larnell Stovall
• Second Assistant Director: John R. Saunders
• Animation Supervisor: Colin Brady
• Hairstylist: Frances Mathias
• Score Engineer: Shawn Murphy
• Key Makeup Artist: Nikoletta Skarlatos
• Animation: Bill Rodgers
• Stunts: Lateef Crowder
• Propmaker: Ben Howe
• Second Unit Director: Peter Rodger
• Stunt Coordinator: Allan Poppleton
• Art Direction: Paul Richards
• VFX Supervisor: Victor Grant
• Makeup Artist: Martha Callender
• Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Michael Keller
• Novel: Suzanne Collins
• Songs: Taylor Swift
• Location Manager: S. Todd Christensen
• Co-Producer: Martin Cohen
• Makeup Department Head: Ve Neill
• ADR Mixer: Ron Bedrosian
• Foley Mixer: Nerses Gezalyan
• Sound Editor: Glenn T. Morgan
• Matte Painter: Thomas Vincent
• Stunts: Tara Macken
• Art Department Coordinator: Cindy M. Ichikawa
• Producer: Nina Jacobson
• Makeup Supervisor: Kris Evans
• Supervising Art Director: John Collins
• Stunts: Eddie Fernandez
• Foley Supervisor: Gary A. Hecker
• Concept Artist: Tim Flattery
• Foley Editor: Nancy MacLeod
• Executive Visual Effects Producer: Marc Sadeghi
• Stunts: Richard King
• Chief Lighting Technician: Ross Dunkerley
• VFX Supervisor: John F.K. Parenteau
• Hairstylist: Diana Acrey
• Stunts: Jeremy Marinas
• Compositor: Pierre Blain
• Animation: Marc Aubry
• Music Arranger: Stuart Michael Thomas
• Lead Character Designer: Scott Patton
• Compositor: Sean O’Connor
• Stunts: Tim J. Smith
• Character Designer: John Rosengrant
• VFX Supervisor: Sven Martin
• Special Effects Coordinator: Steve Cremin
• Stunts: Ashton Moio
• Makeup Artist: Edouard F. Henriques
• VFX Editor: Sean Lahiff
• Costume Illustrator: Christian Cordella
• Ager/Dyer: Bren Cook
• Stunts: Kimberly Murphy
• Makeup Artist: Linda Kamp
• Construction Coordinator: Thomas A. Morris Jr.
• Costumer: Wendy Moynihan
• Foley Artist: Gary Marullo
• Boom Operator: David M. Roberts
• Shop Electric: Wes Mattox
• Music Editor: David Olson
• Orchestrator: Isobel Griffiths
• Dialogue Editor: Margit Pfeiffer
• Concept Artist: Laurent Ben-Mimoun
• Visual Effects Supervisor: Betsy Paterson
• Sound Designer: Kris Fenske
• Additional Visual Effects: Scott Farrar
• Third Assistant “B” Camera: Maurice K. McGuire
• Makeup Artist: Travis Pates
• Compositor: Robert Blue
• VFX Editor: Harry Yoon
• Costumer: Tiffany Busche
• Set Designer: John Berger
• Production Supervisor: Douglas Dresser
• Still Photographer: Murray Close
• Visual Effects Art Director: Kristin Solid
• VFX Supervisor: John Dietz
• Rotoscoping Artist: Simon Herden
• VFX Editor: Alex Meddick
• Transportation Captain: Mike Shannon
• Sound Editor: Greg Hedgepath
• Sound Designer: Bill R. Dean
• Third Assistant “C” Camera: Robby Baumgartner
• Makeup Artist: Marie Delprete
• Sound Editor: Paul Hackner
• Matte Painter: Vanessa Cheung
• Property Master: Trish Gallaher Glenn
• Costumer: Steve Constancio
• Props: Ron Mendell
• Set Designer: George Lee
• Transportation Coordinator: Craig Fehrman
• Compositor: Randy Vellacott
• Concept Artist: Alex Jaeger
• Camera Operator: Christopher A. Schenck
• Script Supervisor: Dawn Gilliam
• Set Dresser: Edward J. Protiva
• Third Assistant “A” Camera: Duane Manwiller
• Makeup Artist: Cyndi Reece-Thorne
• Makeup Artist: David Dupuis
• Makeup Artist: Conor McCullagh
• Set Designer: Alex McCarroll
• Visual Effects Producer: Gary Nolin
• Sound Editor: Peter Zinda
• Makeup Artist: Jason Willis
• Special Effects Technician: William Purcell
• Hair Designer: Linda D. Flowers
• Hairstylist: Yvette Stone
• Animation: Sam Baker
• On Set Dresser: Scott R. Hankins
• Music Editor: Curtis Roush
• Hairstylist: Barbara Cantu
• Hairstylist: Bryan David Moss
• Set Dresser: Kenneth Bryant
• Makeup Artist: Rick Pour
• Hairstylist: Patricia McAlhany Glasser
• Propmaker: Cindy Berry
• Greensman: Guy L.G. Covington Jr.
• Costumer: Teresa Beach
• Costumer: Shawna-Nova Foley
• Costumer: Ginger Knussmann
• On Set Dresser: Julia Rusthoven
• Concept Artist: Christian Alzmann
• Hairstylist: Beka Wilson
• Makeup Artist: Anita Brabec
• Compositor: Jammie Friday
• Character Designer: Michael Ornelaz
• Makeup Artist: Erin Keith
• Pyrotechnic Supervisor: William Dawson
• Compositor: Julie Stark
• Visual Effects Producer: Mary Stuart
• Digital Intermediate Editor: Mark Sahagun
• Fight Choreographer: Jon Valera
• Scenic Artist: Rae Signer
• Makeup Artist: Becky Cotton
• Hairstylist: Colette Slattery
• ADR Supervisor: Glynna Grimala
• Compositor: Annabelle Kent
• VFX Production Coordinator: Richard Thwaites
• VFX Supervisor: Björn Mayer
• Set Designer: Brian Baker
• Hairstylist: Colleen LaBaff
• ADR Recordist: Patrick Christensen
• CG Animator: Thomas Bremer
• Lighting Supervisor: Fabio Zangla
• Grip: Eric Townsend
• Propmaker: Russell Evans
• Hairstylist: Iraina Crenshaw
• Stunts: Mark Rayner
• Makeup Artist: Tricia Sawyer
• Compositing Supervisor: Jason Madigan
• Digital Intermediate Producer: Bob Peishel
• Animation: Eric Bates
• Visual Effects Editor: Shawn Broes
• Set Production Assistant: Adam Meadows
• Production Coordinator: John Sanchez
• Painter: Ben Woodworth
• Rotoscoping Artist: Ben McEwan
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Virginia Wilson
• Prosthetic Designer: Glenn Hetrick
• Rotoscoping Artist: Owen Carroll
• Costumer: Linda Lindsay Edwards
• Set Production Assistant: Ben White
• VFX Production Coordinator: Guo-Feng Tang
• VFX Supervisor: Dennis Jones
• ADR Mixer: Chris Navarro
• Intern: Lisa Wilson
• Mechanical & Creature Designer: David Covarrubias
• Compositing Supervisor: Richard Martin
• Hairstylist: Mary Everett
• Hairstylist: Christina Raye
• Makeup Artist: Lindsay Irish-Desarno
• Compositor: Timothy Bowman
• Stunts: Sam Ly
• Makeup Artist: Veronica Lorenz
• Set Dresser: Anthony Campbell
• Hairstylist: Susan Buffington
• First Assistant “B” Camera: John Kairis
• Graphic Designer: Beatriz Kerti
• Matte Painter: Chris Grun
• Animation: Chad Shattuck
• Costumer: Myra N. Foy
• First Assistant “A” Camera: James W. Apted
• Stunts: Dino Muccio
• Co-Producer: Bryan Unkeless
• Visual Effects Production Manager: Gemma James
• Animation Director: Victor Glushchenko
• Co-Producer: Louis Phillips
• Co-Producer: Diana Alvarez
• Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Michael Prestwood Smith
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Eric Withee
• Costumer: Robin McMullan
• Makeup Artist: Suzanne Diaz
• ADR Recordist: Shane Hayes
• Makeup Artist: Lisa Rocco
• First Assistant “C” Camera: Jimmy E. Jensen
• Assistant Editor: Patrick J. Smith
• Ager/Dyer: Janet Melody
• Mix Technician: Robert Althoff
• Production Controller: April A. Janow
• 3D Supervisor: Eric Hance
• Animation Supervisor: Daniel Jeannette
• Animation Supervisor: Wayne Lewis
• CG Supervisor: Curtis Edwards
• CG Artist: Todd Mesher
• Digital Effects Supervisor: Brennan Prevatt
• Digital Effects Supervisor: Mark Rodahl
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Amy Spanner
• Visual Effects Editor: Sean Rourke
• Greensman: Jeffrey DeBell
• ADR Mixer: Steve Giammaria
• Lead Painter: Erin Draney
• Production Sound Mixer: Mark Weingarten
• Foley Editor: Wade Wilson
• Propmaker: William S. Lake
• Casting Associate: Melissa Kostenbauder
• Digital Colorist: Michael Hatzer
• Key Costumer: Bill Edwards
• Costumer: Kate Sawyer
• Stunts: Aaron Toney
• Chef: Marijan Zoric
• Stunts: John Gilbert
• Compositor: Max Harris
• Hairstylist: Sylvia Hendrix
• Scenic Artist: Christopher Woodworth
• Greensman: Henry Dando
• Compositing Supervisor: Christian Boudman
• Scenic Artist: William F. Gambill
• Hairstylist: Elizabeth Robinson
• Hairstylist: Randa Squillacote
• Costumer: Natalie Nye
• Hairstylist: Deborah Ball
• Makeup Artist: Chris Varosky
• Best Boy Electric: Dan Lewis
• Makeup Artist: Jennifer McCollom
• Clearances Consultant: Cassandra Barbour
• Casting Assistant: Shayna Markowitz
• Rigging Grip: Jeff Brinker
• Assistant Chief Lighting Technician: Buzzy Burwell
• Special Effects Assistant: Brandon K. McLaughlin
• Makeup Artist: Leslie Devlin
• First Assistant “C” Camera: Steven Cueva
• Stunts: Jade Quon
• Storyboard Artist: Len Morganti
• First Assistant Editor: Richard B. Molina
• Hairstylist: Steven R. Soussanna
• Set Production Assistant: Michael A. Fry
• Production Supervisor: Curtis A. Miller
• Stunts: Jared Losano
• Makeup Artist: Elena Arroy
• Compositing Supervisor: Jean-Pierre Flayeux
• Compositor: Nadine Homier
• Modeling: Mathieu Lalonde
• Compositor: Samuel Lepage-Bedard
• Production Assistant: Belly Mingmuong
• Propmaker: Josh Pearson
• Post Production Accountant: Liam Hearne
• Compositing Supervisor: Jason Michael Zimmerman
• Administration: Deborah Zadzora
• Art Department Production Assistant: Kate Emery
• Security: Mike Stewart
• Electrician: Harrison Palmer
• Scenic Artist: Paul W. Gorfine
• Hairstylist: Evelyn Roach
• Greensman: Keith Andrews
• Stunts: Joe Nin Williams
• Makeup Artist: Vasilios Tanis
• Makeup Artist: Herita Jones
• Visual Effects Technical Director: Daniel Willis
• Assistant Property Master: Monica Castro
• ADR Recordist: Charlie Campagna
• Compositor: John Stewart
• Intern: Anna Stachow
• Special Effects Technician: Brian Deese
• Video Assist Operator: David Deever
• Transportation Captain: John Rice Sr.
• Electrician: Jack McCollum
• Stunts: Justin Yu
• Hairstylist: Scott H. Reeder
• Compositor: Lisa Deaner
• Stunt Double: Renae Moneymaker
• Hairstylist: Meagan Herrera
• Costumer: Pamela Miller
• Clearances Consultant: Laura Sevier
• Hairstylist: Priscilla Green
• Leadman: Brett Smith
• Stunts: Jackson Spidell
• Production Office Assistant: Lauren Baker
• Makeup Artist: Lufeng Qu
• Best Boy Grip: David Noble
• Propmaker: Gary W. Lang
• Production Sound Mixer: Carl Rudisill
• Stunts: Leigha Hancock
• Stunts: Raion Hill
• Grip: Leslie Gordon
• Graphic Designer: Michael Marcus
• Epk Producer: Sam Hurwitz
• Propmaker: Tim Owen
• Stunt Double: Karin Silvestri
• Costumer: Laura Wadford
• Assistant Location Manager: Jason King
• Special Effects: Nick Dawson
• Camera Department Manager: Michael Karp
• Rigging Grip: Dick Van Newkirk
• Studio Teacher: Stephanie Fowler Adams
• Rigging Grip: Chris A. Herbert
• VFX Supervisor: Matthew Twyford
• Animation Technical Director: Jimmy Gordon
• Set Production Assistant: Melissa Zeigler
• Set Decoration Buyer: Sara Gardner-Gail
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Daniel Midgley
• Compositor: Jocelyn Maher
• Compositor: Katy Savoie
• Visual Effects Compositor: Raphael Valle
• Greensman: Robert Lee Church
• Modeling: Steve Cypreos
• Modeling: Suchitra Keshri
• Art Direction: Nick Pill
• Character Designer: Theodore Haines
• Compositor: Bill Georgiou
• Animation: Mark Kennedy
• Grip: Andrew Riggs
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Kim Rampaul
• Stunts: Daniel Graham
• Location Manager: Adrian Valdes
• Stunts: Roy Burger
• Rigging Grip: Geoff Herbert
• Best Boy Grip: Steve A. Stephenson
• Stunts: Anis Cheurfa
• Driver: Robert Gillis
• Hairstylist: Bryan Whisnant
• Makeup Artist: Anthony Brooks
• Film Processor: Matthew Kelly Jackson
• Scenic Artist: Stephanie Macomber
• Scenic Artist: Gordon Huggins
• Propmaker: Alex Doyle
• Compositor: Toby Angwin
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Myléne Guérin
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Anouk L’Heureux
• Compositor: Bob Wiatr
• Animation: Josef Sy
• Compositor: Patrice-Alain Barrette
• Animation: Morgan Read
• Stunts: Chris Mark
• Set Production Assistant: Ben Hammock
• Set Dresser: Gregg Perez
• Rigging Grip: Jayson Barber
• Rigging Grip: John Michael Lowery
• Propmaker: Jeremy Holroyd
• Propmaker: Lance Carter
• Propmaker: Crystal L. Dellinger
• Driver: Todd Stacey Anderson
• Rigging Grip: Wesley R. Hardee
• Key Grip: Steve Skinner
• Hairstylist: Dawn Turner
• Systems Administrators & Support: Mark Day
• Painter: Jeremy Kelly-Bakker
• Hairstylist: Joyce Gilliard
• Rigging Grip: Scott Friedland
• Ager/Dyer: Anne Lee
• Key Grip: Guy Micheletti
• Scenic Artist: John Thomas
• CG Artist: David Alexander
• Best Boy Electric: Jamie Baglio
• Visual Effects Production Manager: Angie Howard
• Modelling Supervisor: Shamus Baker
• Animation: Eriks Vitolins
• Creature Technical Director: Andrew Butler
• Lead Character Designer: Ian Joyner
• Post Production Assistant: Emily Rice
• Production Office Assistant: Jason Blackman
• Generator Operator: Richard M. Cole
• Propmaker: William Rampey
• Set Dresser: Sean Keenan
• Hairstylist: Monica Diventi
• Mix Technician: Ceri Thomas
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Mark Story
• Compositor: Mathieu Dupuis
• ADR Recordist: Julio Carmona
• Second Assistant “C” Camera: Brent Egan
• Music Arranger: Sven Faulconer
• Data Management Technician: Ashley Farber
• Data Management Technician: Ron Perez
• Data Management Technician: George Zidd
• Stunts: Ralf Koch
• Rigging Grip: Launcelle Bustamante
• Intern: Elizabeth Guiberteau
• Hairstylist: Nicole DeFrancesco
• Character Designer: Akihito Ikeda
• Makeup Artist: Robert Maverick
• Compositor: William Johnson
• Music Arranger: William Ross
• Compositor: Ben Campanaro
• Compositor: Ante Dekovic
• Electrician: James Young
• Rigging Gaffer: John Priebe
• Costumer: Kelly Davis
• Assistant Property Master: Terry Haskell
• Compositor: John Brennick
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Joseph Shahood
• First Assistant Camera: Alan Aldridge
• Matte Painter: Onesimus Nuernberger
• Creature Technical Director: John Van Der Zalm
• Animation: Elaina Scott
• Compositor: Emma Clifton
• Set Dresser: Jordan Foster
• Driver: Victor Ybiernas
• Compositor: Emmanuel Pelletier
• Technical Supervisor: Mathieu Leclaire
• Technical Supervisor: Patrick Piche
• Visual Effects Technical Director: Emanuele Paris
• Matte Painter: Damien Thaller
• Compositor: Matthew Shaw
• Hairstylist: Gina Baran
• Animation: Alex Poei
• Rotoscoping Artist: Mauricio Valderrama
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Helen Clare
• Electrician: John Paul Palmer
• Set Decoration Buyer: Margaret Hungerford
• Animation: Jason Shulman
• Hairstylist: Melanie Verkins
• Compositor: Sebastian Bommersheim
• Compositor: Ben Dickson
• Stunts: Natalie Padilla
• Rigging Grip: Tom Leonard
• Grip: Danielle Rogers
• Compositing Lead: Ben Roberts
• Compositor: Peter O’Connell
• Graphic Designer: Trey Shaffer
• Rigging Grip: Dave Knudson
• First Assistant Accountant: David M. Atkinson
• First Assistant Accountant: Dax A. Cuesta
• Rigging Gaffer: Daniel Murphy
• Propmaker: Larry Brooks
• Matte Painter: Michael Comly
• Payroll Accountant: Penni Smith
• Scenic Artist: Chris Bogart
• Electrician: James Davidson Bennett
• Stunts: Victor Lopez
• Propmaker: Robert Ferguson
• Propmaker: Charles Mitchell
• Special Effects Technician: David Hill
• Compositor: Robert Rowles
• Animation: Freddy Burgos
• Stunts: Kara Peterson
• Stunts: Sam Tan
• Stunts: Scott Cosgrove
• Stunts: Kylie Gardiner
• Stunts: Kevin Hall
• Stunts: Mike Hugghins
• Stunts: Brian Munce
• Stunts: Joe Valera
• Stunts: Tina Fuchs Wanner
• Stunts: Le Dell Preston
• Animal Coordinator: Kenneth Shelton
• Stunts: Steven Overman
• Stunts: Tom Shelton
• Second Assistant “B” Camera: Max Deleo
• First Assistant “B” Camera: Tony Nagy
• Second Assistant “B” Camera: Walrus “Waterslide” Howard
• Second Assistant “B” Camera: Rylan Akama
• Second Assistant “C” Camera: Michael McCully
• Film Processor: Brian Matsumura
• Post Production Coordinator: Alexandra N. Gonzalez
• Boom Operator: Chris Main
• Assistant Production Coordinator: Catie Cullari
• Second Assistant Accountant: Kristen Portanova
• Second Assistant Accountant: Tara Hummingbird Grey
• Payroll Accountant: Casey Carmichael
• Accounting Clerk Assistant: Allyson R.A. Howard
• Accountant: Andrea Braswell
• Post Production Accountant: Amanda Sutton
• Assistant Location Manager: Doug Mackenzie
• Assistant Location Manager: Ellen Pfirrmann
• Second Second Assistant Director: John Nasraway
• Unit Publicist: William Casey
• Best Boy Grip: Ben D. Griffith Jr.
• Dolly Grip: Tim Rook
• Grip: Rodney Robert Hoffman Jr.
• Grip: Davidson J. Elliott
• Grip: Philip Dann
• Grip: Patrick Hayden
• Grip: Michael Dean Kiesling
• Grip: Ted C. Eachus
• Grip: Joe Harold Page
• Rigging Grip: G. Dhiensuwana
• Best Boy Grip: Cory Skipper
• Rigging Grip: Norman B. Adelsflugel
• Rigging Grip: Neal G. Beard
• Rigging Grip: Zach Dunlop
• Rigging Grip: Christopher Johnson
• Rigging Grip: Brandon Isaac Kincaid
• Rigging Grip: Mathew Larsen
• Rigging Grip: Adam Schaeffer
• Rigging Grip: Mark Stover
• Rigging Grip: Rocky Amon
• Rigging Grip: Jason W. Batey
• Rigging Grip: William Boone
• Rigging Grip: Adrienne Brown
• Rigging Grip: Derrick Brown
• Rigging Grip: Kurt Chatfield
• Rigging Grip: Trevor Hobbs
• Rigging Grip: Jonathan Little
• Rigging Grip: Jim Mahorney
• Rigging Grip: Jason M. Younger
• Electrician: Joshua D. Quick
• Electrician: Jeff Wallace
• Electrician: Chrys Blackstone
• Electrician: Benjamin Baggott
• Best Boy Electric: Ron Clifford
• Electrician: Barret B. Burlage
• Electrician: Chase Livengood
• Electrician: Henry O’Briant
• Electrician: AJ Pontonero
• Electrician: Dan Waller
• Electrician: Martin A. Wolfe
• Electrician: Danny Morganelli
• Electrician: Brett Ray
• Electrician: Jeffrey L. Sterner II
• Set Designer: Chris Biddle
• Art Designer: Joanna Bush
• Art Department Production Assistant: Eddie Mills
• On Set Dresser: Scott Johnson
• Set Dresser: Carson Gloster
• Set Dresser: Steve-O Ladish
• Set Dresser: Robert Davis
• Set Decoration Buyer: Christopher Carlson
• Set Decoration Buyer: Michael W. Poplin
• Greensman: Guy Covington
• Greensman: Jarrod Banner
• Greensman: Michael Couzins
• Greensman: Kevin Dick
• Greensman: Jordon Finke
• Greensman: Bonnie Mackenzie
• Special Effects Coordinator: William D. Lee
• Special Effects Technician: Vince Acree
• Special Effects Technician: Christian F. Eubank
• Special Effects Technician: Phil H. Fravel
• Special Effects Technician: Walter S. Kiesling
• Special Effects Technician: Rob Rieker
• Special Effects Technician: Morgan Rogers
• Production Office Coordinator: Chelsea Madison
• Production Office Assistant: Michael Cremin
• On Set Dresser: Keva Keyes
• Costumer: R. A. Hossie
• Costumer: Heidi Hafer
• Costumer: Terri Helms
• Costume Illustrator: Gloria Shih
• Makeup Artist: Peter De Oliveira
• Makeup Artist: Gunn Espegard
• Makeup Artist: Julie Socash
• Makeup Artist: Bradley M. Look
• Sculptor: Hiroshi Katigari
• Key Hair Stylist: Clare Gniadek
• Colorist: Cherry Barber-Petenbrink
• Hairstylist: Joe E. Matke III
• Hairstylist: Rex Faile
• Hairstylist: Taylor Petenbrink
• Hairstylist: Melissa B. Pollak
• Hairstylist: Nicki Alkire
• Hairstylist: Kelly E. Caldwell
• Hairstylist: Heather Chobor
• Hairstylist: Joshua Ditata
• Hairstylist: Kathy Estocin-Foley
• Hairstylist: Mary Ashton Glasser
• Hairstylist: Jennifer Hanna
• Hairstylist: Jerri Hanna
• Hairstylist: Aubrey Harley II
• Hairstylist: Mirah Hendrix
• Hairstylist: Sparkles Hill
• Hairstylist: Kimberly Holcome
• Hairstylist: Kristen Howell
• Hairstylist: Bryn E. Leetch
• Hairstylist: Laura Lindsey
• Hairstylist: Anthony Jordan McClain
• Hairstylist: Chelsea E. Miles
• Hairstylist: Michael Powell
• Hairstylist: Taylor Price
• Hairstylist: Autumn Lee Sandberg
• Hairstylist: Lavonyelle Simmons
• Hairstylist: Katrina Suhre
• Hairstylist: Taran Hoyle
• Hairstylist: Kerri Underwood
• Hairstylist: Bernard Williams
• Hairstylist: Lyle K. Wilson
• Extras Casting Assistant: T. Ryan Hill
• Set Production Assistant: Matt Appleby
• Set Production Assistant: Michele Cusick
• Set Production Assistant: Nicholas Hoisington
• Set Production Assistant: Patrick Priest
• Set Production Assistant: Tarin Squillante
• Set Production Assistant: Derek Wilson
• Intern: Michelle D’Antonio
• Intern: Sara Justus
• Intern: Dustin Davis
• Intern: Elizabeth Hines
• Intern: Will Storrs
• Intern: Rene Williams
• Intern: Sarah Egri
• Intern: Sergio Sanchez
• Intern: Julia Pechanek
• Production Secretary: Alicia R. Elliott
• Production Secretary: Caroline Livengood
• Visual Effects Production Assistant: Omar Hashmy
• Production Office Assistant: Drew Grant
• Production Office Assistant: Drew Evan Grey
• Production Office Assistant: Christopher Hewat
• Production Office Assistant: Jessica Posada
• Location Scout: Peter R. Minor
• Location Scout: I. Karl Golden
• Location Scout: Michael Bigham
• Animal Wrangler: Jonwilder Lee Bartlett
• Animal Wrangler: Kallen Hollifield Dehart
• Propmaker: Trey Gordon
• Propmaker: Paul L. Saunders
• Construction Foreman: Aaron Brent Jaggers
• Construction Coordinator: William Scot Noonan
• Construction Buyer: Lisa Kurk
• Propmaker: Kevin Apsitis
• Propmaker: Ilkay Avci
• Propmaker: Sam Cody Ball
• Propmaker: James B. Bell
• Propmaker: Hobie Bohlen
• Propmaker: William M. Bohlen
• Propmaker: Steve Butner
• Propmaker: James David Crouch
• Propmaker: Jonathan Tucker Deese
• Propmaker: Jim B. Earnhardt
• Propmaker: Thomas C. Fitzpatrick
• Propmaker: James Gallarini
• Propmaker: Jeremy Gibbs
• Propmaker: Joseph Golz
• Propmaker: Rodney N. Goode
• Propmaker: David Allen Granger
• Propmaker: Kevin Halas
• Propmaker: Michael E. Hall
• Propmaker: Kenneth W. Heist Jr.
• Propmaker: James J. Hogue Jr.
• Propmaker: Ernest Huff
• Propmaker: James Earl Jamieson
• Propmaker: Danny Kiser
• Propmaker: Jeff Kramer
• Propmaker: Matthew Lamb
• Propmaker: Reginald T. Lawson
• Propmaker: Bryan H. Lee
• Propmaker: Mario J. Liva
• Propmaker: Hal McFeely III
• Propmaker: Robert E. McNally
• Propmaker: Randall R. Milazzo
• Propmaker: Delane Moss
• Propmaker: Lenual Mukai
• Propmaker: Cal Ocampo
• Propmaker: Sam Ogden
• Propmaker: Mitchell O’Sheal
• Propmaker: Evan Pileri
• Propmaker: Tim Potts
• Propmaker: Greg Price
• Propmaker: Cara E. Rhodes
• Propmaker: Albert Sheppard
• Propmaker: Jessie Smith
• Propmaker: Marty Smith
• Propmaker: S. Curran Smith
• Propmaker: John R. Smyrl
• Propmaker: Steve Sonefeld
• Propmaker: Bryan Paul Stewart
• Propmaker: Lester V. Stone
• Propmaker: Kevin Twomey
• Propmaker: Scott B. Warner
• Propmaker: Joseph Washburn
• Propmaker: Jeffrey N. Weeks
• Propmaker: Chris Wright
• Key Construction Grip: Alexander Scutti
• Construction Foreman: Mared G. Scutti
• Scenic Artist: Richard Riggs
• Scenic Artist: Rod Garvin
• Scenic Artist: Greg Schmitz
• Scenic Artist: Thomas John
• Scenic Artist: Laura C. McPherson
• Scenic Artist: Tim Hunley
• Scenic Artist: Randal Woodward
• Scenic Artist: Penny S. Thomas
• Scenic Artist: Sean Whalen
• Scenic Artist: Alton McClellan
• Scenic Artist: Andrea Nowowiejski
• Painter: Matthew Andrews
• Painter: Thomas B. Aykroid Jr.
• Painter: Aaron John Failing
• Painter: Petra Abigail Gugler
• Painter: Michael G. Khalil
• Painter: Judith Orszula
• Painter: Jehan Purcell
• Painter: Lamont Snipes
• Painter: Frank Stone
• Painter: Nicole T. Strojny
• Painter: George Vielma
• Transportation Co-Captain: Steven C. Penix
• Transportation Coordinator: Tracy Lafferty
• Driver: Leonel Alvarez
• Driver: Neil Castles
• Driver: Dewey Graham
• Driver: John C. Granger
• Driver: Mike Gregorio
• Driver: Kevin Andrew Hyde
• Driver: Jim L. Johnson
• Driver: Timothy Johnson
• Driver: McCullen Lewis
• Driver: Ladonna P. Norwood
• Driver: Michael O’Brien
• Driver: Joey Parker
• Driver: Wayne Parviainen
• Driver: Phil Shope
• Driver: Dennis Steere
• Driver: Rick Womelduff
• Driver: Jimmy D. Wright
• Animal Wrangler: Craig Carter
• Assistant Chef: Anthony Zoric
• Craft Service: Michelle Lee Brown
• Assistant Craft Service: Robyn M. Brown
• Set Medic: Brian Marshall Turner
• Set Medic: Barry Coleman
• Set Medic: Rich Bellina
• Security: Randy Bowie
• Camera Operator: Joseph C. D’Alessndro
• First Assistant Camera: Gary Scott
• Second Assistant Camera: Warren Brace
• Sound Mixer: Sidney Williams
• Video Assist Operator: Tony Jenzano III
• Grip: Shawn C. H. Baron
• Grip: Brian Knox
• Grip: Lane Oliver
• Grip: Neil Orchard
• Gaffer: James R. Tamaro
• Costumer: Suann Sobkowski
• Set Production Assistant: Sadie Paige Barton
• Set Production Assistant: Ryan Beams
• Set Production Assistant: Lacourtney Garrett
• Set Production Assistant: George Lefave
• Set Production Assistant: Rose Luther
• Set Production Assistant: James Edward Tilden
• Set Production Assistant: Jeese Tyler
• Set Production Assistant: Caleb S. Varnadoe
• Craft Service: Cathy Mitchell
• Craft Service: Cindy Nache’ Hatchel
• Craft Service: Jacqueline “Bobbi” Wherry
• Set Medic: Jennie Lebeau
• Post Production Assistant: Imraan Ismail
• ADR Mixer: Maxime Vermette
• ADR Recordist: Robert Llamas
• ADR Recordist: Gray Bender
• ADR Recordist: Drea Morin
• Digital Colorist: Chris Jensen
• Data Management Technician: Derek Schneider
• Data Management Technician: Cameron Weaver
• Visual Effects Coordinator: S. Regina Carney
• Visual Effects Technical Director: G. “Nic” Nicholson
• Concept Artist: Reid Southen
• Concept Artist: Robert Stromburg
• Concept Artist: Ivo Horvat
• Compositor: Hubert D. Carroll II
• Compositor: Johnathan Sims
• Compositor: Randy Little
• Modeling: David Roberge
• Lead Animator: Francois Chancrin
• Animation: Nathan Srigley
• Animation: Gaetan Thiffault
• Rigging Supervisor: Dwayne Lance Elahie
• Technical Supervisor: Jalal Tchelebi
• Layout: Alain Lacroix
• Layout: Steve Pelchat
• Compositor: Oliver Beaulieu
• Compositor: Paul Beaudry
• Compositor: Michel Bergeron
• Compositor: Caroline Brien
• Compositor: Sebastien Jacob
• Compositor: Francois Metivier
• Compositor: Benjamin Myers
• Compositor: Anne Ui-Hyun Kim
• Production Assistant: Pierrot Berube
• Production Assistant: Oliver Gravel
• Administration: Caroline Belisle
• Administration: Sylvie Talbot
• Modelling Supervisor: Anto Bond
• Modeling: Ray Leung
• Modeling: Na Song
• Creature Technical Director: Paris Downes
• Paint Coordinator: Heath Baker
• Rotoscoping Artist: Susan Immomen
• Rotoscoping Artist: Jeremy Kelly-Baker
• Layout Supervisor: Eric Gambini
• Animation: Nathan Jones
• Animation: Amy Sendon
• Visual Effects Technical Director: Jared Embley
• Visual Effects Technical Director: Prema Paetsch
• Visual Effects Technical Director: Gabe Roccisano
• Visual Effects Technical Director: Timmy Lundin
• Matte Painter: Garrett Fry
• Matte Painter: Nick Cattell
• Matte Painter: Tyler Bartley
• Compositing Lead: Alana Aranki
• Compositing Lead: Beck Veitch
• Compositor: Samuel Norman
• Compositor: Simon Dye
• Compositor: Abdullah Ecirli
• Systems Administrators & Support: Spyro Polymiadas
• Systems Administrators & Support: Steven “Pix” Pickles
• Visual Effects Producer: Megan Rohrbacher
• Compositor: Jeremy Burns
• VFX Production Coordinator: Addie Manis
• VFX Production Coordinator: Viktorija Ogureckaja
• VFX Production Coordinator: Katharina Koepke
• Compositing Lead: Brooke Grossman
• Compositing Lead: Xiaowei Wang
• VFX Supervisor: Thomas Lautenbach
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Jesse Looney
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Yinai Sun
• CG Animator: Lars Simkins
• CG Animator: Kevin Kipper
• Compositor: Shawn Ewashko
• Compositor: Feng Gao
• Modelling Supervisor: Craig Chun
• Modeling: Sujesh Nair
• Rigging Supervisor: Matt Derksen
• Animation: Trey Roane
• Lighting Supervisor: Jubin Dave
• Lighting Artist: Rus Brutsche
• Lighting Artist: Thomas Capizzi
• Matte Painter: Mikael Genachte-Le Bail
• Art Designer: Marcus Collins
• Compositor: Jonathan B. Robinson
• Compositor: David Sweeney
• Visual Effects Supervisor: Don Hatch
• Rotoscoping Artist: Michael Frattasio
• Production Assistant: Allen Mascari
• Character Designer: Josh Herman
• Character Designer: Michelle Deville
• Character Designer: Jeff Deist
• Pre-Visualization Supervisor: Clint G. Reagan
• Visual Effects Supervisor: Brandon Harr
• Visual Effects Producer: Jeanette Brill
• Contract Manager: Karen Sidlow
• Music Coordinator: Willa Yudell
• Orchestrator: Gavin Greenway
• Orchestrator: Thomas Bowes
• Orchestrator: Jo Buckley
• Music Programmer: Jerome Leroy
• Mixing Engineer: Matt Ward
• Creature Technical Director: Tim Mackintosh
• Creature Technical Director: Catalin Niculescu
• Creature Technical Director: Nandan Phansalkar
• Creature Technical Director: Jeremy Yeokhoo
• CG Animator: Steve Graves
• Key Rigging Grip: Jason Dunn
• Extras Casting: Tona B. Dahlquist
• Set Dresser: Jay Smith

Movie Reviews:

• xenocast: Very well made movie with quality writing, acting and cinematography.

  **Pros**: strong performance from the star. Technically excellent.

  **Cons**: Seems to me that the ending was premature but perhaps intentionally so – for a sequel? Character development is largely weak but there are a lot of characters and already a long movie so I suspect a lot was left on the cutting room floor.

  Despite some weakness, still a compelling movie worth a watch if not up to all of the hype.

• ltcomdata: Stories about revolution can be quite good. But stories about why a revolution is needed are invariably great. The Hunger Games is such a story.

  The movie (for the most part), closely follows the book, and does a good job of it. It also sets up the next book/movie beautifully, even better than the book itself does.

  The premise, of course, is borrowed from Ancient Rome, when gladiators and/or criminals an/or people whom the emperor wanted killed were forced to fight each other to the death in a public arena for the entertainment of the general populace. And just as decadent as Rome was back then (only rescued from itself by the rise in prominence of The Christian sect), so the “Capitol” is now portrayed in the film/book—and the film portrayed the affluent decadence of the Capitol quite well.

  In this particular instance the “tributes” were chosen at random from among children aged 12 through 18, and it was meant as retribution and reminder of the “crimes” the 12 colonies committed by reveling against the authority and rule of the Capitol 74 years ago. At the public “reaping”, when a boy and a girl were chosen to become the sacrificial tributes at teach of the 12 colonies, the Decree of Punishment was read and the colonies were reminded that this punishment was established to demonstrate how weak the colonies were in comparison with the Capitol, in that the Capitol could take the most prized possessions of the colonies (namely, their children), and the colonists themselves could do nothing about it. And to really rub it in, the colonists themselves were forced to watch the tournament proceedings.

  I have to say, the punishment is deviously clever from the point of view of the Capitol. It certainly keeps the Colonies divided in spirit (they were already segregated physically, with no communication between them allowed by the Capitol), for in cheering for their own children they are therefore cheering for the defeat—and therefore death—of the other colonies’ children. It also keeps colonists divided within each colony, for there can only be one champion, which means that in wishing their children not to be chosen at the reaping, each colonist is thereby wishing that someone else’s children be chosen. Furthermore, in celebrating that their children were not chosen, they are also, incidentally, celebrating that some other person’s children will likely die. And for the families of the chosen children, in supporting their own family member during the tournament, they are incidentally supporting the death of the other family’s child. And it keeps the population of the colonies low, which the Capitol would want to promote (less chance for another insurrection if the population is low): for the youngest are taken, before they are married, and those who survive the yearly reapings will think twice about having children of their own and having them go through this traumatic process year after year during their most vulnerable adolescent years. And furthermore, the Capitol encourages the colonists’ tacit endorsement by rewarding the winner’s Colony with extra food that year (hence “The ‘Hunger’ Games”). But it is all manipulation, in the end.

  In fact, by the end of the Games, right before being killed himself, one of the most avid killers among the children realizes just how much it all is the Capitol’s manipulation, how pointless it all is to those who participate, and how, in the end, he didn’t really have a chance—that he was destined to die from the beginning—and that killing or being killed is all that not only the Capitol, but also his Colony, want from him. An eye-opening realization for someone who up to this point had been quite eager to kill his fellow children.

  Given the vicious circumstances which were thrust upon these children—none of which is their fault—the question naturally arises: how should a child bound under the moral law behave? Should he try to win, by killing the other children? Should they try to win at all? Should they let themselves be killed, in order that another might live?

  Of course, the obvious moral choice would be for none of the children to participate in this horrendous form of reality television: if they do not fight each other the show is not interesting, and eventually it is discontinued. The children would likely still be executed, along with many of their own family members in reprisal from the Capitol. If one thinks in terms of consequences only (utilitarianism), then this would be the wrong approach: after all, they would say “it is better that one person survives than that they—and all their families—die”. But such thinking is quite repugnant, however logical it is. Consequentialism is missing a big piece of the moral landscape, namely that we ought not to become evil ourselves in our fight against evil. Yes, the consequences of “civil disobedience” as could morally be practiced in this scenario are more dire in terms of the quantity of damage made. But they are much more preferable in terms of the quality of damage made. By fully participating in the carnage (and inflicting some yourself) you become complicit in the very evil which oppresses you. Similarly, your family, and even your colonies (and all colonies, for that matter) become part of the system, and in some tacit way endorse it—for they all want their children to live, and tacitly support the other colonists’ children’s death. Furthermore, what kind of person does one become after killing 23 children by brutal means at a very young age (when the impressions of life still shape us in a powerful manner)? What kind of society does one help create when one has inwardly become a psychotic monster? What kind of society abides criminal monsters in its midst?

  But, some will claim, it is unrealistic to expect each and every child to be morally minded, especially when some children (from two different colonies which are highly favored by the Capitol) actually volunteered for the “honor” to represent their colonies at the tournament. What is the correct moral response when civil disobedience is not an option (no opportunity) and some, if not most of the other children are out to kill you, whether by pleasure or need to survive?

  It seems to me there are two possible moral responses. one of them is the route of self-defense, whereby one does not intentionally kill or go out of one’s way to engage the enemy, but tries to flee as a first alternative, BUT where one DOES defend oneself against the attacks of others, and inflicts only as much harm as is necessary to stop the aggressor, AND only if absolutely necessary one uses lethal force. In the end, very likely, the Capitol would force matters to a resolution, either by forcing “aggressors” and “defensors” into a particular area (very good television), or by artificially creating natural/artificial disasters which killed whomever they disliked most. But, again, this would be the Capitol’s doing: an evil force acting evilly which one cannot stop. One would have been preserved from sinking to doing/becoming evil.

  The other moral route, the more perfect route, would be the route of Jesus: to willfully become the sacrificial lamb for the sake of spiritual (and therefore) moral change. The martyrs of the Church have for ages followed this route, to the spiritual benefit of the whole Church, and the cultural benefit of all humanity. The spiritual benefit is quite and readily seen through the Communion of Saints, whereby these martyr’s love renews and creates the Church anew, greatly adding to the spiritual gifts of which the rest of us partake—gifts which slowly transform us for the better, over years and generations. And it is this transformation which over the centuries affects culture. Gradually better people live their lives out in gradually better communities. And Love wins out at the end of time. After all, very few societies nowadays would consider it acceptable to inflict the tortures which were inflicted to prisoners (especially Christians) in the ancient days of Rome: we are all repulsed by the Capitol’s Decree of Punishment. If we only partook more of those graces which Christ offers through His Church!

  One particular odd feature of the book (and the film) is the avoidance of any mention of God or religion whatsoever. Not even empty phrases deriving from religion appear (“My Gosh”, “God willing”, Christmas, Thanksgiving, etc.). Why is that, especially when the subject matter so clearly lends itself to a religious treatment? Why is that, when the least historically educated among us would have heard the stories of the Christians ushered into the Colosseum to be executed/sacrificed? The closest religious reference is when Katniss Everdeen improvises a type of tribute around a fallen friend and ally in the game by creating a bed of flowers for her: the very earliest expressions of the religious impulse, as some Anthropologists would tell us. Why has the author scrubbed her book from religion at all? Is she so antagonistic to religion that she will not abide it in her book, even when it seems quite apt? If so, the bed of flowers tell us that the most primitive of religious impulses remain with her still. Or is the author trying to appeal to everyone, thus removing religion from the surface of her story so as to not alienate people of different religion than the one she chose to portray, while at the same time infusing her work with religious themes at the substrate level, where they are more powerful? Or is her point that the despotic Capitol destroyed all hope quite successfully, even the Hope of God? Given the richness of the religious themes I see in this book/movie below the surface, I am very much inclined to believe that the last of these options is the correct one. But I may be seeing what I want to see, simply because I like the story.

  Now, turning to the more artistic features of the movie: The most impressive performance was done by the actor who played President Snow. His facial expressions were insuperable and spoke tons in the few lines he delivered throughout the film. His performance was astoundingly good, his face delivering contempt, skepticism, and hatred (sometimes all at once) along with the “weight of office” while speaking seemingly innocuous lines, or even while congratulating the winners (there were two winners from District 12, thanks to the cleverness of Katniss Everdeen in turning the television show against its organizers!) of the 74th Hunger Games. He single-handedly set up the next movie installment.

  But the casting of Peeta is all wrong. From the book it is clear that Peeta is not handsome at all, that Peeta is the boring guy who never had a chance when it came to women, and who doesn’t have a chance when it comes to Katniss Everdeen who clearly has feelings for another guy. Which makes it all the more poignant that he is desperately in love with her, and is willing to give up his life for her. In the movie he is played by a movie-star-handsome actor who clearly would have trouble keeping women away from him, and who would therefore be quite self-centered and clueless, rather than the thoughtful man he is in the book.

• Per Gunnar Jonsson: I had not really bothered to put this movie on my to-watch shelf since I felt it was not really my cup of tea but when my wife and oldest son wondered why we did not have it in our collection I thought, well, okay let us get it then. Actually I got the set with the two movies that have been released and yesterday we watched the first one.

  Well, as far as I am concerned, it is not a turkey, it is rather “okayish” but I certainly do not understand all the hype. It is really far from a great movie. But then, I am probably somewhat biased since, as I wrote above, I did not really think this movie was my cup of tea. Anyway, it starts of with a lot of scenes in “wobblycam”. I have not met any person outside of the movie industry and self-proclaimed so-called “critics” that actually likes it when the camera wobbles around, scenes are blurred and you generally get nauseous by watching. Bad start!

  The backbone of the story is ludicrous to say the least. Part of the world leaves in luxury when the rest is starving. Been there, seen that. Every year a seemingly random selection of kids, not adults but kids, are selected to fight to the death under some silly pretext of “preserving the peace”. As I said, ludicrous. The entire air of ludicrousness is enforced by the wacky costumes, makeup and hair styles of the people in the capitol. As I science fiction and fantasy fan I could easily live with this but, sadly, the movie made me only mildly interested in following the characters to the end.

  The acting in general is adequate but nothing special. Having said that it must be difficult to actually make anything out of some of the silly roles in this movie. I for sure would laugh my head off every time I entered a scene with all of those ludicrous (yes I know I have used that word a lot in this review, live with it) costumes. The main characters act like the children, with absolutely no clue what they are doing, that they indeed are. This is of course entirely in line with the story but still, the main character is spending a lot of the time running away and sitting around looking startled, sorry or depressed when the games start. I have to say that, at times, the movie felt a bit boring. I have liked several movies that are very slow but here it simply did not sit right.

  The games themselves with those dickheads in control and the changing rules, well they were mostly frustrating.

  This movie, to me, is a movie for a young adult audience. I have not read the books and I can see how this kind of story would work for a YA book. Personally I was not unhappy having seen the movie and now, having watched the first of the movies I will watch the rest as well but for me it was okay as a two-hour diversion, nothing more.

• Andres Gomez: I don’t really know what’s so special about this movie. I found “The Running Man” or “Total Recall” much more deep thought than this. Is it maybe that the main character is a female?

  Still, it is entertaining and, in this regard, it does its job.

• DoryDarko: The Hunger Games is a new concept in a long line of post-apocalyptic future fantasies. Where other stories of the same genre often deal with technology and artificial intelligence as the main threat to human existence, Hunger Games actually takes us back to Roman times, with a revitalised version of “Panem et Circenses” or “Bread and Circuses”. Simply put; human devastation as mass entertainment. Welcome to Panem: formally known as The United States of America, where every year, a young man and woman from each of the twelve districts are selected to fight each other to the death, with only one possible survivor. These Games are broadcasted on national television as a means to keep the people happy and submissive.

  Considering the fact that this film is based on a teen book series (written by Suzanne Collins), I can’t help but feel this concept is pretty far out there, and actually it’s kind of sick. It’s not a pretty idea to think that one day we might live in a world where watching young people, ranging from 12 to 18 years old, brutally murder each other is considered to be a form of mass entertainment. Thankfully, this is ‘just’ a story, and I must say, a very entertaining one at that (no pun intended).

  The story revolves around the two youngsters from District 12, where the people are dirt poor and life is utterly desolate. 16-year-old Katniss Everdeen volunteers as ‘tribute’ to fight in the Hunger Games, after her little sister is initially selected. Her male counterpart is Peeta Mellark, and together they set off to train for and participate in the Games.

  The character of Katniss is played by Jennifer Lawrence, and she is terrific. Actually, she is my biggest recommendation for watching this film. Before this, I had only seen her in X-Men: First Class and thought she was pretty good, but after seeing The Hunger Games, it’s not hard to see why this 21-year-old already has her first Oscar nomination under her belt. She has a very natural quality about her, which makes it very easy to make you empathise with her character. She’s not a superficial, happy-go-lucky kind of girl; she’s actually very sullen, not even particularly likable. And yet you just love her from the get go. I guess it’s charisma, and Jennifer Lawrence definitely has it.

  Actually, this film is full of great actors. One of the greatest is definitely Stanley Tucci, who plays his most flamboyant role yet. His character (Caesar Flickerman, the TV-host who emcees the Games) is ridiculously over-the-top, but brilliantly amusing. With blue hair, prosthetic teeth and a big horse’s smile which he flashes incessantly, he looks like a PG-13 version of the Joker. And if you’re at all familiar with Tucci’s work and talent, you know just what I mean when I say he’s making this character appear to be oh-so nice, yet subtly sadistic at the same time. He’s just great, period. Woody Harrelson also has a pretty interesting role as Haymitch Abernathy, a once-winner of the Hunger Games, who now mentors Katniss and Peeta in their training. He’s scruffy and gnarly, basically just typically another weird Woody character, which is always worth the watch. Wes Bentley plays Seneca Crane, a character most notable for his unusual facial hair: he sports a beard Lucifer himself would be proud of. However, the biggest surprise to me was Elizabeth Banks, whom I am well familiar with, but never really cared for because I only know her from superficial, comedic roles. I was pleasantly surprised to see that she can also play challenging roles like this one. She plays Effie Trinket, a bizarre, neo-Renaissance type from the richest District, big wig, crazy make-up and all. She’s pretty much the female version of Tucci’s character and she was a delight to watch, beautifully grotesque in all her decadence.

  Unfortunately, it can’t all be great. I had three major problems with this film. One: if you haven’t read the book, there’s a lot that doesn’t make sense. They really should have spent a little more time explaining everything, because more than once it simply wasn’t clear to me what was going on and why. And that’s a risk no filmmaker should take. Two: Peeta’s character. It could be just me of course, but he annoyed the crap out of me. He just comes across as such a sissy that it’s frustrating to watch. Katniss burns her leg and deals with it. Peeta cuts his leg and stays lying in a cave because he “can’t walk”. And then he lets her take care of him, at the risk of her own life. Give me a break. Three: totally disappointing climax. I was waiting for fireworks, for Katniss having to make brutal decisions, but this never happened. It just kind of faded out.

  And this is how you can clearly tell this story has a mainly teenage demographic, and they obviously wanted to keep it PG-13. Because despite the sometimes pretty brutal violence, nasty use of weaponry and tomato ketchup-a-plenty, overall the whole just lacked, well (pardon my French)…balls. You can tell they tried to spike things up a bit here and there, but the film failed to make things truly interesting at moments where it definitely should have been. In my opinion, had they decided to make this rated-R, it would have been infinitely better.

  Having said that, you can rest assured there is still plenty to enjoy. Visually it is absolutely awesome and simply beautiful. The costumes and make-up are great, as are the CGI effects. The characters (aside from Peeta…) are great, and the whole futuristic ‘universe’ that is created is pretty inventive.

  There is actually still a lot more I would like to say, but I’ve reached my word-limit, so I’ll just leave you with this: Thumbs up!
  _(April 2012)_

• CharlesTheBold: A powerful movie that crosses several genres. From various post-apocalyptic movies we are shown the world after a worldwide disaster that has destroyed our civilization and left a more brutal one. From Spartacus the idea of gladiator games, with the added horror that these “fighters” are children who are presumably too naive to put up any resistance to the regime. From 1984 we have futuristic technology which can monitor anything the victims do, giving them no privacy in their last moments.

  But the originality is in the heroine — a tomboy determined to stay alive without losing her integrity. How can she keep herself and her friends alive in a fight when only one victim will be allowed to leave the arena intact, and an entire decadent empire is arrayed against her? This part was given to Jennifer Lawrence, who impressed audiences so well that she inspired numerous later action heroines — Tris in DIVERGENT, Wonder Woman, Arya Stark, and others

• CinemaSerf: Evil “President Snow” (Donald Sutherland) has his own unique way of keeping order amongst his provinces. Once a year he draws a lottery of 12-18 year old boys and girls who must fight to the death for the entertainment of the viewing public on television. He doesn’t reckon on the calibre of those in District 12, though – the resourceful “Katniss” (Jennifer Lawrence) and her pretty, but weedy, pal “Peeta” (James Caan’s childlike stunt-double – Josh Hutcherson). Easily the highlights here are the contributions of television host “Flickerman” (an hugely over the top Stanley Tucci) and the equally flamboyant “Effie” (Elizabeth Banks) who both turn this murderous adventure into an “X-Factor” with bows and arrows, deadly wasps, landmines and plenty of life-saving sponsorship opportunities. Thought the story is not without jeopardy, the acting is by and large terrible. Lawrence and Hutcherson have not a jot of chemistry between them; Liam Hemsworth features all too sparingly and, well, there is just no passion! All these hormonal teenagers marauding around the forest, but where is the sex? They are all handsome and yet it’s got “Rated 12” all over it. There is no grit, there is no spice nor sense of peril. You just know what’s going to happen at the end. As a concept, though, it’s eminently suitable – perhaps we could substitute this format for election hustings? Think of the benefits to mankind! Otherwise, it’s a long old watch.