Director: Francis Lawrence
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson, Liam Hemsworth, Willow Shields, Donald Sutherland, Stanley Tucci, Elizabeth Banks, Jeffrey Wright, Sam Clafin, Lenny Kravitz, Phillips Seymour Hoffman, Jena Malone, Lynn Cohen, Toby Jones, Paula Malcomson
The first adaptation of The Hunger Games novel trilogy was good but wasn’t great. Gary Ross’ unnecessary shaky cam and low key filming style coupled with struggling to capture any of Katniss’ inner conflict made it fall a little flat. The best thing about it was the brutality but that, as well as the shaky cam, have all been ditched by I am Legend director Francis Lawrence in this vastly superior sequel.
District 12’s Katniss Everdeen (Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark (Hutcherson) return to their home after a shocking and murderous Hunger Games victory. Katniss falls back into the arms of Gale (Hemsworth) and expects to be able to settle in back into family life but threats from the menacing President Snow (Sutherland) send Katniss back around the Districts and the Capitol to try and extinguish the spark that could flow into a full revolution. If she is unconvincing, then she must risk the death of all those close to her. Thankfully Peeta, Effie Trinket (Banks) and Haymitch Abernathy (Harrelson) are determined not to let that happen as the revamped 75th Hunger Games approach.
Catching Fire is a confident and towering sequel, arguably the best of the year. (Francis) Lawrence gives the film a much needed elimination of Ross’ annoying elements while (Jennifer) Lawrence is much more engaging than she was in the first film. The other highlights are stunning visual effects, revamped political satire and some truly terrifying moments in the second half, the mist and the baboons in particular.
The only setbacks are the wooden performances of some of the male cast and the aspects of the excellent book that are missing. District 13 is barely referenced thanks to the removing of Bonnie and Twill. Haymitch doesn’t quite have the slice of happiness within him revealed through Katniss not watching his Hunger Games in this adaptation. Onto the weak male acting, Hutcherson, Hemsworth and Sam Clafin just aren’t winning me over and Finnick isn’t as warrior like and hostile as he is in the Catching Fire novel.
The excellence of some of the other performances elevate the film dramatically. Of coarse, there’s the now Oscar winning Jennifer Lawrence but Woody Harrelson really does stand out as Haymitch. The two time Oscar nominee has found a perfect match with Haymitch bringing in enough sarcasm and comical pessimism to make him oddly charming. Elizabeth Banks, Donald Sutherland and Stanley Tucci have also given brilliant portrayals of the some of the book’s icons. Tucci is quite spectacular in a limited role and adds an much needed and creepy metaphor about modern media as well as throwing in some cheap but effective gags.
Overall, it’s the most effective and stunning young adult adaptation yet. Confident but still a little less brutal than it’s predecessor, Catching Fire delivers some stunning performances and has enough action, scares and dark humour to carry the greatest sequel of this year, Thor: The Dark World being perhaps the only challenger as both Iron Man 3 and Star Trek: Into Darkness fell a little flat. Tucci, Banks, Sutherland, Lenny Kravitz, Jena Malone, Jeffrey Wright, both Lawrence’s and especially Woody Harrelson are in fine form in a supreme, but faulted, action thriller.
9/10
“So it’s you and a syringe against the Capitol? See, this is why no one lets you make the plans.”
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