The original Hunger Games movies came out 11 years ago, with Jennifer Lawrence alongside Josh Hutcherson delivering an amazing performance. My expectations to this prequel where sky high- and it did not disappoint. The story followed the early life or Coriolanus Snow and his rise to power.
The amazing perforce of Tom Blyth as Snow captured the joy, anger and pain in such a way that as a viewer you felt as though you are in his shoes. This Sci-fi, almost psychological movie may not be for everyone; however, it captures you in a way that not many movies do. Even though it is part of the hunger games universe, it is not crucial to have watched the other movies before seeing this one. This movie has the power to stand on its own and still move you to tears. In summary it’s a story about people, betrayal, growth, change and love.
The main protagonist of the movie, Snow,who portrayed the character with such emotion and raw talent, capturing the essence of Snow perfectly. Some say that his performance was inconsistent fail to realise that Snow was not emotionally the same person throughout, and this “inconsistent” acting was a way to imply the change of Snows character. The movie shows Capitol rising star Coriolanus falling for Lucy Gray Baird, played by Rachel Zegler, the female tribute he must mentor during the 10th annual Hunger Games, the performance by Zegler felt a bit flat, with her singing throughout making her seem like a one trick pony. Zegler played Maria in the film adaptation of the musical ‘west side story’ where her portrayal of a naïve, young Puerto Rican women was captured flawlessly, yet in ‘The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’ her attempt to showcase a confident, charming women came across as unnatural. Despite this the movies story line and overall acting was terrific!
One thing I must praise is the use of clothing and costumes to show the progress and development of the characters. Going into the movie, my expectations for the costumes were, again high, with the previous films having collaborated with Alexander McQueen. Although they were not as extravagant and flamboyant as I expected, they did show the story of Snow capturing the emotions felt by both the audience and the characters. In the previous movies, the division between rich and poor was made blatantly obvious through the clothing. The lack of this suggests that the difference between the capitol and the districts was not as obvious and significant as is has become. The glorious array of costumes especially, Viola Davis’s ensemble as Dr. Volumnia Gual, showcasing scarlet patent leather gloves and a robe that looks like it has been dipped in the blood of underlings, was a particularly high point and portrayed the character exquisitely.
The importance of cinemas was truly highlighted this year with the popularity of the ‘Barbie’ movie, ‘Oppenheimer’ and now ‘The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbird and Snake’ being added to the list, with the cinema being full on all occasions. This especially surprised me with ‘the hunger games’ because it was a Wednesday evening, but the greatness of the movie is shown in its popularity.