The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Review

The second installment in the Hunger Games franchise has hit theaters. I was highly anticipating Catching Fire, it being my personal favorite book of the trilogy. I expected it to be great. Not really hoped; more expected. It met my expectations, and surpassed them.

Catching Fire took everything that was good about the first movie, and built upon it. It contained deeper political and emotional themes than the first. This is something that is true for the book as well. The farther you go into the series, the more political it gets. That was an aspect about the books that I enjoyed, so I was glad to see it present in the film. With that, we see the character of Katniss Everdeen start to transform into the symbol of the rebellion against the Capitol.

Jennifer Lawrence plays Katniss again, and she is still very good in the role. Same goes for Josh Hutcherson. After seeing the first movie, I thought they got the casting of Gale and Peeta mixed up. I believed Liam Hemsworth should have been Peeta, and Josh Hutcherson should have been Gale. However, Hutcherson's performance in Catching Fire has convinced me otherwise. He proved to me that he really is Peeta. I also liked Woody Harrelson, who reprised the role of Katniss and Peeta's mentor and friend Haymitch Abernathy. He has done well in these first two movies. There are a number of other notable performances, namely from Stanley Tucci, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Sam Claflin, and Jeffrey Wright. They all did good jobs.

The 3rd Quarter Quell is brought to life on the big screen in thrilling fashion. The time we spend in the arena in Catching Fire is briefer than in the previous film, but it still manages to be more impactful. I'll be sensitive to those who haven't seen this movie or read the books, so I'll just say that the arena in this movie is great.

This is the second part of a three-part story (or in the case of the films, a four-part story), so it is guaranteed to feel incomplete. I did think they ended it better than Suzanne Collins ended the book Catching Fire. It has me eagerly anticipating the next installments.

Francis Lawrence has taken over directing in place of Gary Ross. I thought Ross did a nice job with the first one for the most part, however I thought there was way too much shaky cam. Lawrence has done away with the shaky cam. The film is smoothly directed.

Conclusion 

Catching Fire is a thrilling, compelling second installment to the Hunger Games franchise that stays faithful to the book, and offers more emotional and political depth to its story. A must see for fans of the series, or those just getting into it. A truly great movie that stands as one of the best of the year. 

Rating: 9/10