“The Hunger Games” started as a book trilogy written by Suzanne Collins and caught fire in 2012 when the first movie adaptation was released and quickly became a box office smash. “The Hunger Games” film franchise has grossed over one billion dollars throughout four films and has just recently concluded with the final entry. Although the films have clearly been wildly successful in terms of revenue, one of the major conflicts that first had to be resolved when producing “The Hunger Games” movie was the character of Katniss. Film is a very different medium than literature, and where literature is more apt for detailing characters’ thoughts, one of film’s major philosophies is to show, rather than tell. The Hunger Games books were written in
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Katniss acts as both the food provider for her family and the mother figure to Primrose. Although Katniss is taking on the role of Prim’s mother, Katniss’ and Prim’s Mom is still physically present. Through a hallucination Katniss has after being stung with tracker jackers in the Hunger Games Arena, Katniss has visions of the past. We learn that her father died in a coal mining accident and after that her mother, Mrs. Everdeen, fell into a severe depression neglecting her daughters and the responsibilities that come along with having children. This hallucination provides a reason to why Katniss had to assume the role of caretaker in the Everdeen household. It also shows that the biggest fear underlying Katniss’ subconscious isn’t being victim at the Hunger Games, but rather not being there for her sister Primrose. Earlier in the film, on the night before the games take place, Katniss tells her fellow tribute Peeta “I need to survive, I need to be there for my sister.” This choice is what makes Katniss more likable and respectable in the actual games as opposed to the other opponents. There is no film time dedicated to giving any of the other 24 contestants a reason for survival besides the concept of not wanting to die, thus making Katniss’ motivation for survival more commendable. This gives an extra incentive for an audience to root for Katniss to live as now her survival is correlated with survival of her sister, making the Katniss the carrier of two
Katniss acts as both the food provider for her family and the mother figure to Primrose. Although Katniss is taking on the role of Prim’s mother, Katniss’ and Prim’s Mom is still physically present. Through a hallucination Katniss has after being stung with tracker jackers in the Hunger Games Arena, Katniss has visions of the past. We learn that her father died in a coal mining accident and after that her mother, Mrs. Everdeen, fell into a severe depression neglecting her daughters and the responsibilities that come along with having children. This hallucination provides a reason to why Katniss had to assume the role of caretaker in the Everdeen household. It also shows that the biggest fear underlying Katniss’ subconscious isn’t being victim at the Hunger Games, but rather not being there for her sister Primrose. Earlier in the film, on the night before the games take place, Katniss tells her fellow tribute Peeta “I need to survive, I need to be there for my sister.” This choice is what makes Katniss more likable and respectable in the actual games as opposed to the other opponents. There is no film time dedicated to giving any of the other 24 contestants a reason for survival besides the concept of not wanting to die, thus making Katniss’ motivation for survival more commendable. This gives an extra incentive for an audience to root for Katniss to live as now her survival is correlated with survival of her sister, making the Katniss the carrier of two