Hunger Games

[GiantMonkeyMan]

The concept of there being any romance during a game where kids kill each other is absurd and not realistic.

Battle Royale did it well enough, even to the point of making it seem appropriately tragic. In the film version of the Hunger Games, however, it just seems forced and contrived. I literally thought that the most real emotional connection between Katniss and another character was with Lenny Kravitz.

If there's no message than why is the future like that? The entire point of the dystopian future genre is taking a problem in our society, multiplying it in scale, and then showing how it has created this horrific future. This is done for the purpose of social commentary. If there's no social commentary, than the whole setting is pointless.

There is some sort of social commentary in the film but it's so vague that you could basically apply your own predjudices to it to garner any sort of meaning that you could want from it.

I just realised another thing: this is a future world where they have hover trains and holograms yet they still force people to mine coal... wtf.

 

[Lord Raine]

There is no message in Hunger Games. If anything, the message is "shit is shit and will always be shit and you can't change shit for shit," because it's pretty clearly stated that after the normal people who get sent to the battle royale rise up and overthrow the wealthy elite, they turn around and start doing the exact same thing to the children of the elite. So all that's really happened is an exchange of hats. Oppression doesn't end. The Oppressors just become the Oppressed, and vice-versa.

The Hunger Games never end. There is no overarching message, beyond possibly "humans suck." The only thing that exists in the series is the tween romance angle, and from what I understand, it's terrible. Not Twilight terrible, no, but saying something isn't as bad as Twilight is like saying it's not like Skysaber wrote it. You've got to dig a hole to set the bar that low.

So yeah. Like I said. Get your goddamn tweenage romance out of my Orwellian dystopia.

 

[LightningHunter]

Let's not confuse the book medium with anime/manga here. A good anime/manga is simply supposed to be entertaining. A good book is supposed to be meaningful and serve a greater purpose.

Sorry, you've lost me. The idea that anime/manga cannot be meaningful or that a book cannot simply be entertainment is not one I'm willing to accept.

That's not what he meant.

He meant that's how the mediums are perceived and how most people will judge things in that medium.

Sure, you get books which are just entertaining but nothing more and deep anime/manga, but they don't speak for how the medium is thought of. Books have long been seen as a much more refined form of fiction than virtually any other medium. I'm not stating any opinion here, this is just how it works.

There is no message in Hunger Games. If anything, the message is "shit is shit and will always be shit and you can't change shit for shit," because it's pretty clearly stated that after the normal people who get sent to the battle royale rise up and overthrow the wealthy elite, they turn around and start doing the exact same thing to the children of the elite. So all that's really happened is an exchange of hats. Oppression doesn't end. The Oppressors just become the Oppressed, and vice-versa.

The Hunger Games never end. There is no overarching message, beyond possibly "humans suck." The only thing that exists in the series is the tween romance angle, and from what I understand, it's terrible. Not Twilight terrible, no, but saying something isn't as bad as Twilight is like saying it's not like Skysaber wrote it. You've got to dig a hole to set the bar that low.

So yeah. Like I said. Get your goddamn tweenage romance out of my Orwellian dystopia.

:rofl:

 

[Meinos Kaen]

Let's not confuse the book medium with anime/manga here. A good anime/manga is simply supposed to be entertaining. A good book is supposed to be meaningful and serve a greater purpose.

Sorry, you've lost me. The idea that anime/manga cannot be meaningful or that a book cannot simply be entertainment is not one I'm willing to accept.

That's not what he meant.

He meant that's how the mediums are perceived and how most people will judge things in that medium.

Sure, you get books which are just entertaining but nothing more and deep anime/manga, but they don't speak for how the medium is thought of. Books have long been seen as a much more refined form of fiction than virtually any other medium. I'm not stating any opinion here, this is just how it works.

There is no message in Hunger Games. If anything, the message is "shit is shit and will always be shit and you can't change shit for shit," because it's pretty clearly stated that after the normal people who get sent to the battle royale rise up and overthrow the wealthy elite, they turn around and start doing the exact same thing to the children of the elite. So all that's really happened is an exchange of hats. Oppression doesn't end. The Oppressors just become the Oppressed, and vice-versa.

The Hunger Games never end. There is no overarching message, beyond possibly "humans suck." The only thing that exists in the series is the tween romance angle, and from what I understand, it's terrible. Not Twilight terrible, no, but saying something isn't as bad as Twilight is like saying it's not like Skysaber wrote it. You've got to dig a hole to set the bar that low.

So yeah. Like I said. Get your goddamn tweenage romance out of my Orwellian dystopia.

:rofl:

Same thing with movie genres. There are hidden messages in comedies and some are pearls that deserved an oscar, but because they make people laugh, they're considered inferior. Sigh...

@Lord Raine: that's what I feared. An interesting premise, but that doesn't go nowhere because it's just the background for romance. Sigh...

 

[Shiakou]

He meant that's how the mediums are perceived and how most people will judge things in that medium.

Sure, you get books which are just entertaining but nothing more and deep anime/manga, but they don't speak for how the medium is thought of. Books have long been seen as a much more refined form of fiction than virtually any other medium. I'm not stating any opinion here, this is just how it works.

Hell, I know that. I just thought people on this forum, one dedicated mostly to anime/manga fanfiction (in other words, unofficial e-books written about anime/manga) would have more sense than that. We write short stories, novellas, and entire series of books here every day, based on anime/manga. I just hoped that people who just wanted to read the story for its own sake wouldn't be put off just because it doesn't have a political message.

There is no message in Hunger Games. If anything, the message is "shit is shit and will always be shit and you can't change shit for shit," because it's pretty clearly stated that after the normal people who get sent to the battle royale rise up and overthrow the wealthy elite, they turn around and start doing the exact same thing to the children of the elite. So all that's really happened is an exchange of hats. Oppression doesn't end. The Oppressors just become the Oppressed, and vice-versa.

The Hunger Games never end. There is no overarching message, beyond possibly "humans suck." The only thing that exists in the series is the tween romance angle, and from what I understand, it's terrible. Not Twilight terrible, no, but saying something isn't as bad as Twilight is like saying it's not like Skysaber wrote it. You've got to dig a hole to set the bar that low.

So yeah. Like I said. Get your goddamn tweenage romance out of my Orwellian dystopia.

. . . What is it about you, Lord Raine, that I find myself starting to nod in agreement with whatever you say before I can catch myself, even when I don't agree at all.

Twilight flashbacks aside, what with all the hate towards "tween romance"? Half the fanfics on this site involve pairing up two (or more) people, many of whom happen to be teens.

@Lord Raine: that's what I feared. An interesting premise, but that doesn't go nowhere because it's just the background for romance. Sigh...

More like other way around. The romance is a tool (one of many) used to show how bad their world is. It was like playing through the Heaven's Feel route on Fate/Stay Night, though Nasu did it better.

 

[shiki]

Hmm. I have revised my opinion with new information. Also, I want to say I read the books with no preconceived notions about it. As I stated in my original post, I only learned of the books and got interested in it by a superbowl commercial.

The movie isn't bad. I mean, I didn't like the books at all but the faster pace of the movie without any of the internal thought processes make it... pretty watchable. It isn't Oscar worthy, but it really isn't too bad.

Still doesn't mean I would recommend reading the book series.

Also this doesn't mean the movie is good. There are quite a few stupid scenes that stank of plot armor and plot induced idiocy (when looking at the material it is based on... it is somewhat understandable. The presence, not the usage.)

Edit: Lenny Kravitsz saved the movie. I was bored out of my skull until he came in. He made me stick around. Also the dude with the ridiculous name "Haymitch", that guy was gold. Too damn bad they didn't show up more.

 

[Shiakou]

Edit: Lenny Kravitsz saved the movie. I was bored out of my skull until he came in. He made me stick around. Also the dude with the ridiculous name "Haymitch", that guy was gold. Too damn bad they didn't show up more.

Haymitch is probably the coolest guy in the story. . . which is kinda sad, considering how screwed up he is. Still, he's awesome. He so awesome that even Katniss' "What would Haymitch do?" moments almost make up for the rest of her constant monologue.

 

[shiki]

Edit: Lenny Kravitsz saved the movie. I was bored out of my skull until he came in. He made me stick around. Also the dude with the ridiculous name "Haymitch", that guy was gold. Too damn bad they didn't show up more.

Haymitch is probably the coolest guy in the story. . . which is kinda sad, considering how screwed up he is. Still, he's awesome. He so awesome that even Katniss' "What would Haymitch do?" moments almost make up for the rest of her constant monologue.

Actually, I didn't like him in the book(s).

The actor made me revise my opinion.

 

[Lord Raine]

. . . What is it about you, Lord Raine, that I find myself starting to nod in agreement with whatever you say before I can catch myself, even when I don't agree at all.

A wizard. I am one.

@Lord Raine: that's what I feared. An interesting premise, but that doesn't go nowhere because it's just the background for romance. Sigh...

The sad part is that the Hunger Games could have been excellent. It's a classic Orwellian dystopia where the wealthy elite have essentially zero morals, and children from poor families are cheerfully rounded up and made to compete in reality-show style death matches that borrow equally from manga tournament arcs, competitive puzzle solving, and Thunderdome. Children literally live and die for the entertainment of a selective elite.

Even putting it from the perspective of one of the teenage participants of the Hunger Games wasn't a bad idea. You could show the corruption from inside the system, like with Fahrenheit 451 and Soylent Green, and you could show the journey of an abused child and Games contestant growing up into a leader and key player in the underground resistance.

Then the tween romance angle gets played, and it just shits all over everything. It's a series that almost got gold on a marathon, but then shot itself in the foot on the last hundred yards.

 

[Shiakou]

Actually, I didn't like him in the book(s).

The actor made me revise my opinion.

Gah, so close. I rather liked him as the jaded and skilled, but screwed up veteran.

Also LR? Three out of four isn't so bad. It might not be excellent, but its still better than average.

 

[shiki]

Oh, I forgot something else.

To people that want to give the movie a shot anyways:

I'm sure that it is unintentional, but the best parts of the movie usually have a person of African descent. Not sure why but the scenes where they are in, the ones longer than 30 seconds, are bright spots.

But be prepared to be bored as hell for the last 30 minutes. That is when the romance is emphasized and it really feels out of place. Also, they left out the part where:

Peeta finds out that the romance shit was all fake reality TV.

The movie would have ended on a better note, but they probably are going to import that to the next movie to have "umph" in the beginning.

 

[da_fox2279]

I meant that the book, "the Hunger Games", sounds a lot like the movie, "The Running Man".

Which was adapted from one of the Bachman books, yes.

"The Running Man"... is a surprising existence, because they dramatically changed the story for the movie adaption. The surprising part was the wisdom of doing so: if they has faithfully followed the book, it would have been a pretty crappy movie.

Yeah, I cottoned to what you meant. And you're right; a faithful adaptation would have been crap... as a movie. Maybe as a tv series...?

 

[The Eromancer]

Just stick with The Ranger's Apprentice. Good series.

 

[Draculthemad]

You know what they call "The Hunger Games" in France?

"Battle Royale with Cheese"

 

[da_fox2279]

You know what they call "The Hunger Games" in France?

"Battle Royale with Cheese"

... -_- :headbanger:

 

[Avider]

You know what they call "The Hunger Games" in France?

"Battle Royale with Cheese"

I admit, I laughed.