I don't know if they'd be considered great literature or not, but the Hunger Games novels were fucking
awesome. I read all three in less than a week and part 2 in pretty much one
sitting. I couldn't put it down!
The story is set in a future post-America North American country called Panem
(yes, it's based on "
bread and circuses"). The country is divided into twelve districts (Thirteen was destroyed as an
example against rebellion).
Here's a rundown of the districts, but let's just save time and say One is the Capital and where all the
politicians and ultra-rich live and the other districts are less fortunate.
District Twelve, where our young hero Katniss lives, is a dirt poor mining area.
She lives in The Seam which is pretty much just shacks surrounded by an electric
fence that doesn't work. After her father was killed in a mining accident, her
mother mentally checked out and Katniss becomes the sole breadwinner and
responsible for raising her little sister, Prim. To do so, she hunts in the
woods which are off limits.
Each year, as a soul-crushing reminder, the Capital puts on The Hunger Games. I
won't go into all
the rules, but two children (one male, one female) from each district are chosen at
random to go into a massive arena and fight to the death. Yes, that sounds a lot
like
BATTLE ROYALE, but BATTLE ROYALE was underwhelming, so who cares? Anyway, shit happens and
Katniss ends up in The Hunger Games and it's...alright. The book was great, but
the film lacked that emotional element that really made the novel so addictive.
Also...the lack of Gale (and other stuff back in The Seam), the relocation of
the rooftop scene, the Cinna character was weakened, the changed origin of the
mockingjay pin, the pussification of the wolf mutts, the altering of the Rue
scene and the reduction of violence hurt the film. I enjoyed it and time flew
by, but it wasn't as awesome as it could have been.
My recommendation: devour the first two books, read the third and tolerate that
weak ass ending
then watch the movie. Here's hoping the second movie is
rated R and awesome as fuck. That novel was so action-pack and rad I was twerking
around my crib while reading it.
Part 2 - The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)
Part 3 - The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (2014)
Part 4 - The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2 (2015)
Prequel - The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023)
Not to be confused with the world's least-watched porno "Edgar Winter's Boner", WINTER'S BONE, tells the story of Ree (Jennifer Lawrence), a 17-year-old girl born and raised in the hillbilly outbacks of Missouri. Her
mother is a vegetable who sits and stares the wall all day. So, it's up to
Ree to raise her two younger siblings by herself. Her worthless
father is a crankster and a snitch who's on the run. To make matters even worse,
her pa put their shitty house and the 100 acres surrounding it up for his bail! So now Ree
has one week to prove to the bondsman that her father is dead or they're gonna
be out on the street, well, more like out on the dirt road.
