Susan Collins 'The Hunger Games': Book And Movie

The Hunger Games book and movie analysis

The Hunger Games by Susan Collins (2008) from The Hunger Games trilogy is a dystopian novel set in Panem, a post-apocalyptical nation of the future. Panem consists of one rich Capitol and 12 districts in varying states of poverty. The despotic Capitol keep everyone under control by initiating an annual event known as the hunger games. Two tributes (children from 12-18 years of age) from each district are sent to fight to the death in an arena with all the other tributes, until a lone victor remains. Four years following the initial release of the novel, The Hunger Games movie directed by Gary Ross (2012) was released. Concluding whether the book of movie exceeds the other is a debatable matter. However,

Characterisation is the process in which the writer or director reveals the personality of a character. Firstly, Peeta, one of the main characters, had a significant change in personality from book to movie. The novel presented a complex and more in-depth Peeta while the movie had a shallow Peeta, this is shown through the actions and dialogue of specific scenes. An example for Peeta is the difference of personality in the novel and movie during the cave scene. It shows he's funny, caring and would protect and sacrifice anything for Katniss: "We both know they have to have a victor. It can only be one of us. Please, take it. For me." (Peeta Mellark, p. 344). In the movie he is like a victim and has a lack of depth in character. A complex and more detailed character is superior to a shallow character here as it has less meaning and less depth and not an effective presentation for the specific scene. Another character whom was superior in the novel is Katniss. She was underdeveloped in the movie while the novel had a developed character with meaning to everything she did and a solid built personality. In the movie the audience is given no reason for some actions and lack of detail to her life is presented. This makes it harder to understand what the movie is about, until it unfolds further. Therefore, having a developed character is for the benefits of producing an understandable story.

In this aspect, Movies have an advantage due to elements of film. Firstly, the movie has superior setting because of the use of cinematography to show a scene. District 12 was an effective example for cinematography. The novel plainly describes district 12 as "usually crawling with coal miners" (p.4) and surrounded by a "high chain-link fence topped with barbed wire loops" (p.5) and the rest of the scene is left to be imagined. The movie however, uses cinematography to show images with description and detail. A few words were unable to describe the scene in as much detail as use of cinematography produces and this shows that the movie was superior. Cinematography is a more positive effect then the use of figurative language because it is able to provide more and make the story much clearer because everything is simply seen by the audience. Another reason why the setting in the movie exceeds that of the novel is the use of colour to provide a more engaging setting. A suitable example is the use of colour in the Capitol. It is described to be very colourful and having artificial looking colours. The use of colour brings out the scene in a realistic way and creates a superior setting compared to that of the novel. The use of colour is more effective then imagination simply because everything is clear and in uttermost description. Lastly, the use of sound in the movie was