Movie review: Let the games begin (again) in 'Catching Fire'

The sequel to the 2012 hit “Hunger Games” has arrived, complete with all the marketing pomp and glitz one can expect from a blockbuster with a built-in audience. Based on Suzanne Collins's books of the same name, about a world built on annual juvenile death matches in the name of maintaining social order, “Catching Fire” picks up where the last film left off.

When we last saw Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson), they emerged as the unlikely champions of the state-sponsored “Hunger Games.” The movie opens with the duo on a victory tour of the nation of Panem, seeing and hearing firsthand the consequences of their suicide pact, which forced the organizers to declare them joint winners of what had previously been a fight to the death. That simple act of survival was seen as an act of defiance and is in turn inspiring civil disobedience in Panem’s 12 Districts—and it is making the government, headed by the scheming President Snow (a delightfully malevolent Donald Sutherland), apprehensive.

As a result, Katniss and Peeta must spend the rest of their lives under the pretense of being a couple, or as their mentor Haymitch Abernathy (played by “Zombieland’s” suitably cynical Woody Harrelson) warns them, risk the execution of their families.

As if that weren’t enough of a burden—only in a work of fiction would being married to Jennifer Lawrence be considered a burden—President Snow announces the commencement of the Quarter Quell, a “Hunger Games” all-stars variant occurring once every 25 years, with participants selected from former champions. With the board and pieces set, courtesy of nefarious gamemaker Plutarch Heavensbee (Phillip Seymour Hoffman of “M:I3” and “Capote”), Katniss is once again forced to take up her bow to fight for the lives of those she loves.

Jennifer Lawrence, who won an Academy Award since the last go-around, once again delivers an unassailable performance, bringing the audience right along with her as her character is faced with one impossible decision after another: be it selling her sham relationship with Peeta or explaining the circumstances to her childhood friend and love Gale (the newly-Miley-free Liam Hemsworth of “The Expendables 2”). Indeed, it is difficult to imagine another actress of her generation credibly depicting the inherent stubbornness and strength of character demanded by the role.

Even the normally wooden Josh Hutcherson (“Journey to the Center of the Earth”) steps up his performance as Peeta, and is thankfully given more to do this time around than pine after Katniss and practice his uncanny makeup ability. He best showcases his acting chops in a sequence that sees him take Haymitch’s place in the Quarter Quell.

As for the returning supporting cast, Harrelson, Sutherland, Elizabeth Banks (“Zack and Miri Make a Porno,” “Pitch Perfect”), Lenny Kravitz, and Stanley Tucci (“The Devil Wears Prada”, “Julie & Julia”) are excellent, adding the right amount of gravitas and/or levity to the proceedings while never overshadowing the main stars. New-to-the-series Hoffman fits right in as the gamemaster, while Jena Malone (“Sucker Punch”) makes an indelible first impression as former champion Johanna Mason.

Right off the bat, one gets the feeling that “Catching Fire” is a decidedly more confident endeavor than its preceding film, no small thanks to the sure hand of director Francis Lawrence (“Constantine,” “Water for Elephants”). While the last film was a solid feature, it seemed to display some unease in tackling some of the more mature implications of its plot, substituting wobbly camerawork and blockbuster visuals for the original book’s subtlety.

Also working in the movie's favor is the change in screenwriters, with Michael Arndt ("Little Miss Sunshine") and Simon Beaufoy ("Slumdog Millionaire") delving deeper into the machinations behind the Hunger Games with gusto, making for not only a more well rounded narrative, but an altogether more faithful adaptation.

Also working in “Catching Fire’s” favor is being free of the first film’s burden to distinguish itself from the cinematic glut caused by the young-adult literary boom (“Percy Jackson”, anyone? “I Am Number Four” perhaps?). Indeed, “Catching Fire” is able to well and truly be its own animal, and on that front, succeeds magnificently.

As Francis Lawrence is still holding the directorial reins in the two-part finale “Mockingjay”—following the footsteps of the final installments of “Harry Potter” and “Twilight”—it would seem that the saga of Katniss Everdeen is in very good hands indeed, and this writer can’t wait to see where this tribute takes us. — VC, GMA News


Mikhail Lecaros is a professional magazine editor and freelance writer. The views expressed in this article are solely his own.