The Hunger Games

My friends and I have a book club, and our book for March was The Hunger Games. I've posted about it before, and since I was reading Whitney Finalists I thought I would just go to the discussion without re-reading it. But, as the date got closer I decided to listen to the audio book (great while doing dishes, folding laundry, doing yard work or driving). The more I listen to the series, or re-read it, the more I LOVE the characters.

Our discussion was good (but really, how can getting together with friends to talk and eat not be fun?).

Anyway, we also planned to go see the movie together.

Unfortunately the plan to go to a Saturday matinee pushed the date back quite far since there is a lot on everyone's calendars for a few weeks. Being super excited to see the movie, I went with my husband on Friday night (I still plan on going with my friends, I'm just not that patient and my sister offered to watch my kids).

I was pretty nervous that it would be totally gruesome at times, but I was happy with how the killing was handled. You definitely knew that people died, but the way it was shot didn't get viewers too close and it didn't linger.

Overall, I'm not really sure how I felt about the movie though. I was pretty happy with how it was cast, and the parts that were included were good. Some swearing was thrown in (too bad-one awesome thing about the books is that they don't have swearing), and some of the camera work (especially near the beginning) was nauseating.

But, the sad thing was that I didn't feel like enough was done to get connected to the characters. The "star crossed lovers" angle was definitely a part of the movie, but nowhere near what it was in the book. *SPOILER IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK* At the end of the book I am heart broken for Peeta when he finds out that Katniss was pretending to love him for the game. That wasn't really addressed in the movie.

But, I think I might like it more when I see it a second time. The crowd at the theater was one of the loud commenting, clapping kind that tends to make a movie experience not as enjoyable for me. Going later might eliminate that.

Oh, and is it weird that while I listened to the book this time, I was picturing the characters as the actors I'd seen in the trailer (that I watched one or ten times)? Funny how I don't even remember how I pictured them in my mind before.