A Film Ignited: A Movie Review of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

The second installment of the The Hunger Games is quite like its predecessor; except it has double the chemistry, double the spectacles, and double the raw drama.  Catching Fire is as its title suggests: the film blazes as an adaptation to the thrilling and provocative novel that millions of fans have come to love.

Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) smoothly transitions from "The Girl on Fire" to the "Mockingjay" in this sequel.  She stands as the root of the revolution and becomes an enemy to the tyrannical party that governs over the twelve districts of future America, or as it is referred to in the film, Panem.  Katniss is, metaphorically and literally, on fire throughout the film.  Each outfit she wears is designed to be ignited, and in comparison with the last film, these graphics alone have far surpassed the expectations of fans who may still be reeling from how hokey her outfits looked in the first film.

President Snow (Donald Sutherland), the nefarious dictator of Panem, wishes to crush the hope of, not only Katniss and her loved ones, but of all of the resistors that reside in each District.  He indelicately warns Katniss at the start of the film that she and Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), her fellow District 12 victor, must keep up their fake relationship in order to stray far away from impending war.  He asks Katniss to not only convince the Districts of their love; she must also convince him.

However, as Katniss and Peeta go on their Victory Tour, it is apparent that the revolution has already begun.  President Snow wishes to destroy Katniss, but must do so in a discreet way.

This leads to the 75th Hunger Games, where Snow and the new Gamemaker, Plutarch Heavensbee (Philip Seymour Hoffman), plan to have former victors from each District enter the arena once again.  Thus, Katniss and Peeta, surrounded by experienced killers, find themselves on a tropical island full of nightmares that far exceed the horrors from the first film.

Ever since I first saw Jennifer Lawrence in Winter's Bone, I have been an adamant fan of hers.  I firmly believe she can do no wrong.  She allows herself to entirely become her character in each film she is in, and the same goes for her performances in both films of The Hunger Games.

One can never forget that Katniss is a victor: her stature suggests hardship, her face rarely reveals any emotion, and her hand is constantly steady on her bow.  Yet, at the same time, one can never forget that she loves without restraint: she makes sacrifices for her family and friends, she still sheds tears over allies from the last Games, and she fears nothing more than losing a loved one.  Lawrence combines both victor and lover flawlessly in this film.

Lawrence's counterpart, Josh Hutcherson, vastly improves in this second installment.  His performance is very much real in Catching Fire.  He is present throughout, and he perfectly matches Lawrence's charisma and emotional depth; whereas in the last film, it was easy to forget that Peeta was even there.

Together, the chemistry between Lawrence and Hutcherson is 100% stronger in this film than it was in the first.  Their relationship is believable, and there are moments where one can discern between what is an act put on for President Snow's benefit and what is a genuine connection shared between the two characters.

Catching Fire is a nearly perfect cliffhanger before the epic, two-part conclusion, Mockingjay.  Everything about this film far exceeds those from the first film, from the graphics, to the plot, the character relationships, and most importantly, to the actors' performances.  The director, Francis Lawrence, combines the penetrating storyline with his fantastic aesthetics to create an explosive film worth seeing.