The Hunger Games Movie And Book Comparison Essay
Introduction
The topic of my research assignment is book versus movie and the book that I have chosen is The Hunger Games. The reason for choosing this book was that it is one of the popular young adult fiction novels and the movie was well received by the viewers. Most readers believe that the books are always better than the movies, however movies based on books remain a major earning means for the film industry. Although the main plot of the book remains intact in the movie, some differences are apparent in the movie which will be discussed in detail.The book was written by Suzanne Collins in 2008 and became an instant best seller, the first movie was made in 2012.
The Similarities;
Even though many believe that the movie differed quite a bit, there are unquestionable similarities between the book and the movie version.
The Phrase: …show more content…
“May the odds be ever in your favor.” (In-Text Citation here) This famous phrase coined by the author, Suzanne Collins appears throughout the movie and is an integral part of the message the movie intends to deliver. As in the book this phrase was merely meant as a joke shared among the people but its gravity is not lost on them. This idea was handled quite delicately by the author when Gale told Katniss that his name had been in the reaping 42 times. That is a disturbingly high number and it came to be because he volunteered in place of his family members so as to spare their lives.
Cinna’s Character:
The character of Cinna was carefully depicted in the movie exactly as he was described by the author. In the book, Katniss observed, “I’m taken aback by how normal he looks. Most of the stylists they interview on television are so dyed, stenciled, and surgically altered they’re grotesque. But Cinna’s close-cropped hair appears to be its natural shade of brown. He’s in a simple black shirt and pants. The only concession to self-alteration seems to be metallic gold eyeliner that has been applied with a light hand.” (In-text Citation here)The movie producer did an exceptional job portraying Cinna. In the movie, all the other characters from the city were ridiculously overdone however Cinna dressed casually, meaning no over the top wardrobes or insane hair, simply just a layer of metallic gold eyeliner. He was depicted exactly like this in both the movie and the book.
The Seam on Reaping Day:
The movie producer illustrated the seam environment on reaping day exactly how it was imagined by the author in the book. Collins wrote from Katniss’ perspective saying, “But today the black cinder streets are empty. Shutters on the squat gray houses are closed. Our house is almost at the edge of the seam. I only have to pass a few gates to reach the scruffy field called the Meadow. Separating, the Meadow from the woods, in fact enclosing all of District 12, is a high chain-link fence topped with barbed-wire loops.” The reaping scenes being the essence of the story, it needed to be emulated exactly the way it was described in the book. The reaping is like a literal death sentence for an entire district as they know they will be losing the chosen ones. The devastation and depression that surrounded this day was aptly captured by the movie producer. The visual impact these scenes created was one of the best in the entire film.
There are several other similarities between the two genres because the intention of the film producer was to bring the world of ‘The Hunger Games’ to life in a way that leaves the viewers with a sense of familiarity and emotional attachment.
The Differences;
There are several differences between the movie and the book however only those significant enough to affect somewhat the narrative of the book would be mentioned.
President Coriolanus Snow’s Character;
This character’s presence in the book was not as significant as was depicted in the movie. He gives a speech to the tributes which is heard in the movie, he is shown in conversation with Seneca Crane more than once and is seen in the control room keeping a vigilant eye on Katniss and Peeta’s victorious return to District 12 at the conclusion of the film. This decision that the director took to increase Snow’s role in the movie came about after the distinguished actor playing the role of President Coriolanus wrote him a detailed letter discussing the character which was originally intended as only a cameo appearance. This meant additional narration in the movie which was not in the
book.
The Narrative Style;
Collins’ novel is a first person narrative and the point of view for Katniss works well for the book, in fact it is one of its greatest strengths. The movie however goes with the more astute third person narrative which naturally presents a wider view of things and becomes a huge advantage. It allows more opportunities for the world building that the movie intends and presents a more complete and less subjective view of the Hunger Games world. Though the premise is still grotesque but the viewers are given the choice to formulate their own conclusions without Katniss having to project it on them. This is the one difference, the movie benefits from the most.
The Love Story;
Although the book describes a grim dystopian world and the misery as well as oppression shown in the form of the games is the major theme, Collins’ love story is surprisingly multifaceted and advanced for a young adult novel. It is an integral part of the story line and its progression, and this is where the film failed. The movie with the change in narrative style may not have been able to capture the complexity of the relationship but it seems like there was no attempt made at all. It is utterly apparent to everyone in the book other than Katniss that Peeta would die for her and is desperately in love with her, that all of it was never a game for him. This is completely missing from the movie. Some people who have only watched the movie and not read the books are of the opinion that Peeta had no real feelings for Katniss in the beginning and only came to care for her because of the circumstances. These people lost a huge aspect of the book in the film translation.
In the book there is a crucial emotion inducing moment in particular when Katniss is all alone and screams Peeta’s name almost against her will but the film toned it down dramatically because it would not have made any sense with the way they altered the love story. It is a significant moment for Katniss as a character when readers get to see that she may care much more for him than she thinks she does and it is lost in the movie.
Conclusion;
In the book the narration is obviously much more descriptive with precise character development whereas the movie takes liberties with certain aspects in order to deliver the viewers their money’s worth. The similarities work well for the movie and enable it to create somewhat the dystopia so grandly portrayed in the book with the characters getting to have their day in the sun. The differences however do not all work in the movie’s favor and viewers not familiar with the book are left in the dark about certain important features of the story line. The time constraint which the movie genre faces may have led to some of the minor changes but the major alterations could have been avoided in order to stay true to the author’s ideology. A true fan of the novels may find the movie version dishonest to an extent and certainly lacking in some way but a general viewer without a preformed opinion would find it quite entertaining and engaging. When all is said and done, both the genres did an amazing job of bringing a Suzanne Collins’ vision to life for everyone to enjoy according to their own interpretations.
The topic of my research assignment is book versus movie and the book that I have chosen is The Hunger Games. The reason for choosing this book was that it is one of the popular young adult fiction novels and the movie was well received by the viewers. Most readers believe that the books are always better than the movies, however movies based on books remain a major earning means for the film industry. Although the main plot of the book remains intact in the movie, some differences are apparent in the movie which will be discussed in detail.The book was written by Suzanne Collins in 2008 and became an instant best seller, the first movie was made in 2012.
The Similarities;
Even though many believe that the movie differed quite a bit, there are unquestionable similarities between the book and the movie version.
The Phrase: …show more content…
“May the odds be ever in your favor.” (In-Text Citation here) This famous phrase coined by the author, Suzanne Collins appears throughout the movie and is an integral part of the message the movie intends to deliver. As in the book this phrase was merely meant as a joke shared among the people but its gravity is not lost on them. This idea was handled quite delicately by the author when Gale told Katniss that his name had been in the reaping 42 times. That is a disturbingly high number and it came to be because he volunteered in place of his family members so as to spare their lives.
Cinna’s Character:
The character of Cinna was carefully depicted in the movie exactly as he was described by the author. In the book, Katniss observed, “I’m taken aback by how normal he looks. Most of the stylists they interview on television are so dyed, stenciled, and surgically altered they’re grotesque. But Cinna’s close-cropped hair appears to be its natural shade of brown. He’s in a simple black shirt and pants. The only concession to self-alteration seems to be metallic gold eyeliner that has been applied with a light hand.” (In-text Citation here)The movie producer did an exceptional job portraying Cinna. In the movie, all the other characters from the city were ridiculously overdone however Cinna dressed casually, meaning no over the top wardrobes or insane hair, simply just a layer of metallic gold eyeliner. He was depicted exactly like this in both the movie and the book.
The Seam on Reaping Day:
The movie producer illustrated the seam environment on reaping day exactly how it was imagined by the author in the book. Collins wrote from Katniss’ perspective saying, “But today the black cinder streets are empty. Shutters on the squat gray houses are closed. Our house is almost at the edge of the seam. I only have to pass a few gates to reach the scruffy field called the Meadow. Separating, the Meadow from the woods, in fact enclosing all of District 12, is a high chain-link fence topped with barbed-wire loops.” The reaping scenes being the essence of the story, it needed to be emulated exactly the way it was described in the book. The reaping is like a literal death sentence for an entire district as they know they will be losing the chosen ones. The devastation and depression that surrounded this day was aptly captured by the movie producer. The visual impact these scenes created was one of the best in the entire film.
There are several other similarities between the two genres because the intention of the film producer was to bring the world of ‘The Hunger Games’ to life in a way that leaves the viewers with a sense of familiarity and emotional attachment.
The Differences;
There are several differences between the movie and the book however only those significant enough to affect somewhat the narrative of the book would be mentioned.
President Coriolanus Snow’s Character;
This character’s presence in the book was not as significant as was depicted in the movie. He gives a speech to the tributes which is heard in the movie, he is shown in conversation with Seneca Crane more than once and is seen in the control room keeping a vigilant eye on Katniss and Peeta’s victorious return to District 12 at the conclusion of the film. This decision that the director took to increase Snow’s role in the movie came about after the distinguished actor playing the role of President Coriolanus wrote him a detailed letter discussing the character which was originally intended as only a cameo appearance. This meant additional narration in the movie which was not in the
book.
The Narrative Style;
Collins’ novel is a first person narrative and the point of view for Katniss works well for the book, in fact it is one of its greatest strengths. The movie however goes with the more astute third person narrative which naturally presents a wider view of things and becomes a huge advantage. It allows more opportunities for the world building that the movie intends and presents a more complete and less subjective view of the Hunger Games world. Though the premise is still grotesque but the viewers are given the choice to formulate their own conclusions without Katniss having to project it on them. This is the one difference, the movie benefits from the most.
The Love Story;
Although the book describes a grim dystopian world and the misery as well as oppression shown in the form of the games is the major theme, Collins’ love story is surprisingly multifaceted and advanced for a young adult novel. It is an integral part of the story line and its progression, and this is where the film failed. The movie with the change in narrative style may not have been able to capture the complexity of the relationship but it seems like there was no attempt made at all. It is utterly apparent to everyone in the book other than Katniss that Peeta would die for her and is desperately in love with her, that all of it was never a game for him. This is completely missing from the movie. Some people who have only watched the movie and not read the books are of the opinion that Peeta had no real feelings for Katniss in the beginning and only came to care for her because of the circumstances. These people lost a huge aspect of the book in the film translation.
In the book there is a crucial emotion inducing moment in particular when Katniss is all alone and screams Peeta’s name almost against her will but the film toned it down dramatically because it would not have made any sense with the way they altered the love story. It is a significant moment for Katniss as a character when readers get to see that she may care much more for him than she thinks she does and it is lost in the movie.
Conclusion;
In the book the narration is obviously much more descriptive with precise character development whereas the movie takes liberties with certain aspects in order to deliver the viewers their money’s worth. The similarities work well for the movie and enable it to create somewhat the dystopia so grandly portrayed in the book with the characters getting to have their day in the sun. The differences however do not all work in the movie’s favor and viewers not familiar with the book are left in the dark about certain important features of the story line. The time constraint which the movie genre faces may have led to some of the minor changes but the major alterations could have been avoided in order to stay true to the author’s ideology. A true fan of the novels may find the movie version dishonest to an extent and certainly lacking in some way but a general viewer without a preformed opinion would find it quite entertaining and engaging. When all is said and done, both the genres did an amazing job of bringing a Suzanne Collins’ vision to life for everyone to enjoy according to their own interpretations.