By 
SNOW LANDS ON TOP
Released in 2012, Lionsgate Films released The Hunger Games, a film adaptation of Teen / YA dystopian novel by author Suzzane Collins, and introduced moviegoers to the world of Panem, a post-apocalyptic world where a tyrannical government rules the land and asks its various regions to offer up tributes every year in a violent and dangerous “live or die” tournament. Directed by Gary Ross, the film, which starred Jennifer Lawerence, Josh Hutchinson, Elizabeth Banks, Woody Harrelson, Lenny Kravitz, Stanley Tucci, and Donald Sutherland, follows Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, who are forced to compete in the Hunger Games, an elaborate televised spectator fight to the death consisting of adolescents’ contestants from the 12 Districts of Panem. The Hunger Games was met with generally positive reviews that, despite some minor criticism (shaky camera, editing, and some visual effects), still managed to come out on top with critics, moviegoers, and even fans of the novel, with many praising the film for its themes / messages, Lawerence’s performance, and a faithfulness to the literary source material. In addition, the movie went on to become a global juggernaut at the box office, raking in over $694 million worldwide against its $78 million production budget. Finding success with the first film, Lionsgate commissioned the rest of the series to follow, which was then followed by the subsequent releases of its sequel projects, continuing with The Hunger Games: Catching Fire in 2013, further expanding upon The Hunger Games: Mockingjay: Part 1 in 2014, and concluding the series with The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 in 2015. Each installment gaining positive reviews and ranking up high at the box office results. As it stands (from the time of writing this review), The Hunger Games film saga is the 21st highest-grossing film franchise of all time, having grossed over $2.97 billion worldwide. Now, almost eight years since Mockingjay: Part 2 ended, Lionsgate and director Francis Lawerence prepare to return to the dystopian world of Panem once again with the prequel tale of The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. Does “snow land on top” with this prequel endeavor or is it “the sound of snow…. falling” in this unnecessary return to Panem?
THE STORY
Long before he became President Snow, the leader of Panem, Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) is a young 18-year-old, who is eager and ready to restore the glory of his family name in the Capitol, working his way into the society of Panem. As it so happens, Coriolanus, along with several of his peers at his school, are to play a part in the 10th annual Hunger Games, with the high-marked elite youths instructed to become mentors for the selected tributes, assigned to Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler), a traveling musician singer from District 12. Sadistic gamemaker Dr. Volumnia Gaul (Viola Davis) is determined to “liven up” the games, turning the event into a bigger spectacle, looking to put on a show of “brute” force to downplay any plans of rebellion rumors from the districts, while Dean Casca Highbottom (Peter Dinklage), the creative mind behind the Games, enforcing strict rules of engagement for the mentors and tributes. Hoping to secure a sizeable wealth from the Hunger Games, Snow makes a connection with Lucy Gray, challenging his emotions for the young girl as their bond bleeds into the death match event, which begins with a sudden flurry of death and testing the tributes as they attempt to endure in a war-torn bombed-out arena. Giving her a fighting chance, Snow pays careful attention to Lucy Gray, working hard to keep her survival in the game, with his own loyalty to the Capital tested in the process.
THE GOOD / THE BAD
Happy Hunger Games….and may the odds be ever in your favor!” I have to admit that I love that line…. despite the gloomy meaning that it has within its statement. Like many out there, I saw the rise of popularity within the Teen / YA dystopian during the early / mid 2010s, especially since I worked at a bookstore back then and shelved many of them, including The Hunger Games trilogy (i.e. The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay). Given the fact their popularity swelled, the film adaptations of such bestselling literary tales were ripe for a cinematic treatment. I believe I actually did read the first book before seeing The Hunger Games and I actually really did enjoy it. For a film aspect, it looked like the movie didn’t have that much in the way of “blockbuster” budget, but the core themes and narrative story was still very much intact to make it entertainment and compelling. Plus, I did like actress Jennifer Lawerence and Josh Hutchson in the lead roles of Katniss and Peeta. For the other movies, I enjoyed them. I thought that Catching Fire was an improvement made on the first film (visuals, production, and characters), while Mockingjay: Part 1 introduced us (the viewers) to a large narrative, yet felt a bit of a “bridge” to the grand finale (a problem with a lot two-part film endeavors). As for Mockingjay: Part 2, I felt that it was a satisfying conclusion to this dystopian tale and to the film franchise. Always love the last line of Part 2….” Did you have a nightmare? I have nightmares, too. Someday I’ll explain it to you, why they came, why they won’t ever go away, but I’ll tell you how I survive it. I make a list in my head… of all the good things I’ve seen someone do. Every little thing I can remember. It’s like a game. I do it over and over. Gets a little tedious after all these years, but… there are much worse games to play. “Overall, I felt that The Hunger Games movies were pretty good, showcasing a dystopian narrative of tyrannical governments, a bleak and deconstructive society, and courageous young people brave enough to defy an evil organization rule.
This brings me back around to talking about The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, a 2023 sci-fi action dystopian film, the prequel to The Hunger Games movies, and the prequel narrative from Susan Collins of the book of the same name. With my previous years of working at bookstore, I do remember when Songbirds & Snakes came out during the COVID-19 pandemic. I didn’t initially think too much of it, especially since whole Hunger Games phenomenon was over as did much of the dystopian fandom that came with it during the rise of its popularity (both in the literary and film world). Still, despite a global pandemic, the book was well-received and was celebrated return to Collins’s world of Panem and showed a different time period within the fictional world of power and control. Of course, giving its popularity, there was no doubt that Hollywood would take an interest in adapting Collin’s prequel novel into another big screen blockbuster. I honestly can’t remember when it was officially announced, but my “first” notice of the movie was when Lionsgate released the “announcement” teaser trailer for the upcoming project, which didn’t show much, yet proved to be quite effective in teasing moviegoers of what is to come. It definitely gave me goosebumps when I saw it. From then on, I kept on hearing little other tidbit nuggets on the movie, including the cast that was attached to the film, as well as a few movie trailers from its marketing campaign. The previews alone showcased a narrative that looked quite promising and definitely got me intrigued to see the movie when it was scheduled to be released on November 17th, 2023.
A few months prior to its release, I actually decided to read the source material and picked up a copy of Collin’s prequel book, with the hopes of finishing it before the film came out. And yes, I did finish it a few weeks after picking it up. So, yes, I do know the story of The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes and have read it completely from beginning to end. Thus, I might make a few comparisons between page and screen presentations in the review. So, in the end, I was very excited to see The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes and went to see it during its opening day. I waited a few days after seeing it to collect my thoughts and began to write my review for it. And what did I think of it? Well, I actually liked it. Despite some problems within its translation and a few executions, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is an exciting and entertaining return to Panem, showcasing a rougher and more brutal dystopian vision of war, violence, and forbidden love. It’s hard to say if this movie would challenge the likes of the four Hunger Games movie collection, but it sure is a solid blockbuster prequel that’s worth seeing.
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is directed by Francis Lawerence, who has previously worked on three out of the four Hunger Games films (Catching Fire and Mockingjay Part 1 and Part 2) as well as Constantine and I Am Legend. Given his familiarity of working the Hunger Games movie series, Lawerence seems much the most suitable choice to helm such a prequel project endeavor, with the director approaching the source material with the same type of energy and cinematic pedigree as what he did with the three Hunger Games movies he did. To his credit, Lawerence definitely does succeed and makes this movie have that proper feeling of a prequel to the Hunger Games movies. It’s one of those things that you see when you watch a movie that’s part of a larger narrative. Lawrence’s previous knowledge and directorial extent in his adaptation of the previous installment is heightened boost and gives Songbirds & Snakes the same “ebb and flow” as the other Hunger Games, which gives the film enough of an extensive branch rather than a new director for a new vision of Panem, The Capitol, and the other Districts. It is for that matter that the movie does certainly “feel” like a proper extension off-shoot from the original four films…. rather than a new direction that clashes against what was previously established. And that’s always a good thing….in my book anyway.
Given that notion, Lawerence immediately delves into the source material, with the same type of vigor and intensity as he previously had done in the Hunger Games pictures, generating the same type of charisma energy and interaction as to be expected from an adaptation such as this. There’s a sense of gritty realism that he gives the movie, with many elements of the story showcasing the classic “human behavior”. This, of course, brings up the moniker of the social commentary / messages that the Hunger Games books and movies drum up some compelling and poignant meanings behind its narrative, with such aspects including tyrannical rule / oppressive government, freedom vs. security, the devolution of humanity (as seeing through the participation / viewing of the Hunger Games), and a few others. All of these emotions and complexities found within the “human condition” are quite the instrumental force behind Collins’s fictional dystopian world. Like before, one can easily see the parallelism from Panem bleeding into real-life (today’s world) and how humanity, without getting political on here, can be easily swayed by such ugly countenance and horrific circumstances that showcase a global scale of society breaking down. While humanity strives to be better than the previous generations, the movie gives an eerie feeling on how our world might not be far away from becoming Panem….and that’s a scary thing to imagine.
Looking beyond that, Lawerence knows how to stage action scenes, with the film boasting plenty of them that help build upon the Games themselves, which is highlighted during the middle portion of Songbirds & Snakes. It’s clever way to see the actual “Hunger Games” in a different time period and to see a bit more of a primitive way as well as seeing some of the key inceptions of ideas that would be implemented in future Games. There’s definitely a more “confident” approach to such action-oriented scenes, with Lawerence staging and executing sequences that are intense and cleverly purposed by showcasing the visceral “thrill of the kill” with the various tributes going up against each other. Plus, I do have mention that I love what Lawerence did with the final minute of the feature. I won’t spoil it, but I liked it as it was something that I would’ve personally done if I was a director and certainly echoes back to its connection to the four-film saga of The Hunger Games. Definitely gave me chills.
Of course, with the movie (as well as the whole “Hunger Games” brand in both its literary and cinematic form) being labeled as a teen / young adult, Lawerence still commits to the focus of Coriolanus and Lucy Gray relationship from first meeting to final appearance together, with utilization of “young love attraction” playing up to a similar fashion with Katniss and Peeta in the other movies. While the circumstances of their relationship are different from The Hunger Games saga, Coriolanus and Lucy Gray still manage to showcase a licit romance, a bond that if begins between “mentor” and “tribute”, but becomes something more entirely. Lawerence does know its target audiences and does play up the young budding romance throughout the movie, which does feel congenital and speaks to the source material. In addition, Collin’s novel also makes usage of the musical songs that some of the characters sing throughout the narrative, with Lawerence incorporating them into the feature. It may sound a bit awkward at first, but it definitely is a nice little addition to the story to help break up some of the more heavier action tones and thematic messages. In the end, I think that Lawerence did a pretty good job in presenting Songbirds & Snakes, helming a feature film that matches the same type of integrity, grittiness, and cinematically dramatic that the previous Hunger Games movies were able to emulate, with this movie feeling like a proper prequel extended branch of the franchise in which it is placed therein.
In its presentation, Songbirds & Snakes does indeed look incredible on-screen, with the production value displaying top-notch quality of today’s blockbuster stylish endeavors. Since it’s been several years since the last film, the usage of filmmaking techniques and technology have improved, and it clearly shows that in the differences between Mockingjay: Part 2 and this feature. That’s not to say that the movie doesn’t adhere to the overall “look and feel” of what was previously established in the Hunger Games films, which it certainly does, but, given how much the production budget was $100 million (not the highest budget in the franchise), Lawerence and his team gives this prequel project enough of a dazzling spectacle through its usage of background aesthetics and production sets locales and builds. Since this movie predates the previous film, we (the viewers) see the inception of certain nuances from The Capital’s cityscape, which displays some new locations as well as several classic staples from the series. Everything in this department looks quite elaborate (grounded in realism, of course) from various buildings (interior and exterior), the Games war-torn arena as well some of the more areas beyond the seat of Panem’s power, including nature shots from District 12. Thus, the film’s “behind the scenes” key players should be praised for their contributions such as Uli Hanisch (production design), and Trish Summerville (costume design), as well as the entire hair / make-up team and art direction department, for their efforts in bringing a familiar yet bold new vision to the cinematic look of Panem.
In addition, the film’s cinematography work by Jo Willems, who also worked with Lawerence from the previous installments, demonstrates some great shots for dramatic purpose, which builds up some of the more intense sequences as well as subtle facial expression and wide-angle shots via usage of dynamic camera angles and theatrical poise within his work. What’s perhaps the most interesting (as mentioned above) is how much “singing” and musical numbers that are featured in the Collin’s work, with the movie utilizing them through several sequences involving Lucy Gray. It doesn’t feel “out of place” or anything like that (i.e. not like a Disney movie where characters breakout into songs at random times), but it feels like a part of the character’s make-up and personality, with Lawerence utilizing Zegler correctly (more on that below) and never taking away from what was written in Collin’s novel. So, while it may seem odd to hear some characters singing songs in a movie about a government running a blood-sport event, Songbirds & Snakes does generate some lyrical and memorable songs, including the origins of the “The Hanging Tree”. Lastly, the film’s score, which was composed by James Newton Howard (who did the score for all the previous Hunger Games movies), returns to world of Panem once again and delivers another fantastic film soundtrack. It’s hard to say that if it is “the best” from Howard in the Hunger Games franchise, but what he was able to accomplish on Songbirds & Snakes is quite charged with dramatic energy within its action pieces and subtle within his character driven moments.
Unfortunately, this particular “ballad” does suffer from some problematic areas in the movie, with Songbirds & Snakes drawing criticisms within its execution and how it translated its narrative into a cinematic medium. How so? Well, for starters, is that the movie does cut a lot of material from the novel when it tries to adapt Collin’s work, which does leave some “ideas” rather wonky or left unsaid. Naturally, this is a common practice for film adaptions out there, with the writers and directors “trimming the fat” of the source material in how translate that story into a feature length presentation. So, naturally, certain details gets lost within that said translation and it certainly feels like that within this movie. Key ideas of scenes between characters, narrative structure bits, and world-building aspects gets reduced in the feature, which ends up making the story progression in the movie a bit clunky at times. It’s clear that some areas where such material was cut as the characters themselves are a bit flat in those moments and don’t exactly emote the same energy / passion / frustration that was describe in the book. Thus, the film’s script, which was penned by Michael Arndt and Michael Lesslie, does suffer from this particular criticisms with the unpacking / reworking of Collin’s novel not exactly come off the correct way in a few ways. It’s a bit hard to place a finger on it exactly, but the adaptation of Songbirds & Snakes seems lacking and could’ve been so much more if the feature was better handled from the storyboarding process.
Another important point of criticisms comes in the film’s runtime and how it stretches everything out in such a strenuous task. With a whopping length of 157 minutes (two hours and thirty-seven minutes), the movie is indeed quite long, especially in today’s filmscape of moviemaking. There’s definitely a lot of narrative to cover, so it does technically warrant it….yet only to some degree. To be honest, Songbirds & Snakes is indeed a paradox of sorts, with the movie needing the extra runtime to capture all the necessary detail of everything from Collin’s novel. However, at the same time, the movie really didn’t need to be that long…again, a paradox. Perhaps it is Lawerence’s direction suffers from trying to stretch everything out, which is mostly during the first two acts, and doesn’t know how to exactly “land of his plane” the correct way for this endeavor. It’s not terrible, but it is quite noticeable in making the film a bit longer and not exactly the most riveting. Perhaps a bit more focus is what was needed from the director. As they say…..if a movie is so engrossing and mesmerizing that a lengthy runtime won’t feel long at all. Sadly, Songbirds & Snakes can’t quite match that palatability.
Perhaps the biggest problem in the movie would have to be the third act of the narrative and how it doesn’t build to a rousing climax. To be fair, this was one of the main problems that Collin’s novel suffered, with the first two parts (The Mentor and The Prize) having more of the excitement and tense moments for its story and characters. The material found in “The Peacekeeper” is very interesting, but slows the narrative down a lot and becomes more of a character study of forbidden love, loyalties, and suspicion. To be even more honest, this portion of the narrative was (to me) the weakest part of the original literary source material and it demonstrates that point again within the movie. Lawerence has his team try to make this particular portion of the movie have some weigh and meaning behind it, but that said translation can’t fix the original material and how it meanders way too much. The movie does build to a point between Coriolanus and Lucy in their relationship, but not as much as intended, especially since the film slows down to deal with less rousing and action-oriented moving parts of its narrative. In truth, it almost feels like a condensed version of another movie with the first movie ending at the conclusion of the second act, while the third act feels like something different (same narrative, different film). It always felt a bit wonky with me when I read the book and it certainly feels that way in the movie. Furthermore, with the various editing down of the narrative, a lot of the supportive substance of a variety of players and storytelling bits during this portion are neither very rushed, edited down, or completely removed, which does take away from the importance of this section of the plot. It’s sort of a “catch 22” scenario. Nevertheless, the third act of Songbirds & Snakes doesn’t quite resonate as strongly as intended and ends up hindering the movie, which (again) sort is a “double edge sword” configuration in its translation from the jump to page to screen.
The cast in Songbirds & Snakes is actually really good, with the selected acting talent to play many of the players in the story (both major and minor ones) are up to the task to make their performances mostly endearing and competent respectfully. None shine more in this example than the film’s two primary lead characters of Coriolanus Snow and Lucy Gray Baird, who are played by actor Tom Blyth and actress Rachel Zegler. Blyth, who is known for his roles in Benediction, Billy the Kid, and The Gilded Age, is the lesser known of the movie’s two main leads, but, for his part, he actually does a good job in playing central focus of the feature. Of course, there is no denying that actor Donald Sutherland did a terrific job in playing Coriolanus Snow in the Hunger Games films, but he was pretty much a straightforward villain from beginning to end. In Songbirds & Snakes, the character’s backstory is explored, showcasing a young yet ambitious man, who certainly does shed a new “sympathetic” light on an individual who would later become the ruthless leader of Panem. Blyth does certainly know how to handle such a character and does quite an impressive job in making a very likeable iteration of Coriolanus as well as showing more “shades of gray” to his character as the story progresses further.
As for Zegler, who is known for her roles in West Side Story and Shazam! Fury of the Gods, does give a great performance as Lucy Gray, a very steadfast girl who is confident in her abilities in music and song, yet totally unprepared for participating in the 10th Hunger Games event. She definitely has those “big doughy eyes” to make for a convincing young woman, who gets thrown into an unfortunate circumstance and must learn to adapt to her situation and surroundings. Zegler demonstrates that notion quite well and does a compelling job in playing that part in her performance. Without spoiling the movie, her character Lucy Gray does go through a very interesting story throughout the course of Songbirds & Snakes and does make a good story arc for her character.
Of all the primary supporting characters in the movie, none shines better (and gives a memorable performance) that the character of Dr. Volumnia Gaul, the head gamemaker of the 10th Hunger Games and who implements more ideas into the games to make it more of a spectacle, and who is played by actress Viola Davis (Fences and The Woman King). Even from the book, the character of Dr. Gaul was indeed a “unhinged” individual, an opportunist “made scientist” archetype that is sadistic in seeing her experiments work their way on victims. Davis seems to relish the opportunity to play such a character and makes for a highly convincing portrayal of Dr. Gaul, with her performance being quite magnetic and terrifying at the same time. Of course, she won’t get nominated for this role in any of the award shows, but there is no doubt about it that Davis is perfectly casted in the role and makes Dr. Gaul the most memorable character in the entire feature. Behind her, actor Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones and Cyrano) does a solid job in playing the character of Casca “Cas” Highbottom, the Dean of the Capitol’s Academy and the creator of the Hunger Games. Unlike Dr. Gaul, Dean Highbottom is written to be more straightforward and more of pompous individual, who dislikes Coriolanus and gives the young man a downcast disapproval at every turn. So, Dinklage has to keep the character “even keel” for most of his screen time, but he still gives Highbottom a very memorable impact whenever on-screen and gives enough authority and snarky bravado that only Dinklage could give.
After Dinklage, actor Josh Andres Rivera (West Side Story and Sugar Baby) gives a very meaningful and sincere portrayal of the character of Sejanus Plinth, Snow’s classmate / friend and the mentor to a tribute from District 2. The character of Sejanus gets into more trouble than most of the characters in the movie, which does lead Snow into someone “sticky” situation, but he does give off some “good intentions” that can be misconstrued as something more “self-righteous” in the world of Panem’s totalitarianism. There is a humanity in the character that works and Rivera does certainly showcase that within his portrayal of Sejanus. Next is the character of Lucretius “Lucky” Flickerman, the first television host for the 10th Hunger Games and who is played by actor Jason Schwartzman (Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World). Schwartzman, who is known for playing various comedic roles with his quirky acting performances, definitely fits perfectly into the character of Lucky and easily channels a similar vibe that actor Stanley Tucci did with Cesar Flickerman in The Hunger Games movies. Interestingly, not the books nor the movie (or anyplace I could find online) states that Lucky is related to master of ceremony / TV personality in Ceasar Flickerman from The Hunger Games narrative. It’s assumed he’s an ancestor of Ceasar, but nothing concrete. So, I’m guessing Lucky is probably Caesar’s father or grandfather. Perhaps the only larger supporting character that really doesn’t make an impact in the film is the character of Tigris, Coriolanus’s older cousin and confidante and who is played by actress Hunter Schafer (Belle and Euphoria). The problem, much like the book, is that the character mostly gets push aside in the main narrative. Those familiar with Collin’s work will know her, but she comes off as an afterthought in the film. Plus, Schafer, try as she might, doesn’t really make a memorable performance in the role. She’s not a miscast, but she is a very plain portrayal of Tigris.
The rest of the cast is made up the supporting characters in the movie (some having larger roles than others), but still play at part in the tale of Snow and Gray. This includes the other tributes in the 10th Hunger Games, including actor Tim Torok (House of Rooms) as Facet (District 1), actress Varvara Kanellakopoulou (making her debut in the movie) as Velvereen (District 1), actor Jermone Lance (making his debut in the movie) as Marcus, actress Mackenzie Lansing (Mare of Easttown and The Creator) as Coral (District 4), actor Cooper Dillion (Neuland and Sarah Kohr) as Mizzen (District 4), actor Hiroki Berrecloth (making his debut in the movie) as Treech (District 7), actress Irene Bohm (Babylon Berlin and Der Masuren-Krimi) as Lamina (District 7), actor Knox Gibson (Project ARI and Forgive Us Our Trespasses) as Bobbin (District 8), actress Sofia Sanchez (For Paloma and Switched at Birth) as Wovey (District 8), actress Luna Kuse (Castle Einstein and Meme Girls) as Brandy (District 10), actor Kjell Brutscheidt (Ich bin Sophie Scholl and The Young Chief Winnetou) as Tanner (District 10), actor Dimitri Abold (Warrior Nun and Love Addicts) as Reaper (District 11), actress Luna Steeples (Overdue) as Dill (District 11), and actor Nick Benson (Big Shot and Boo, Bitch) as Jessup (District 12), Furthermore, members of Lucy Gray’s traveling musician group (the Covey), includes actor Dakota Shapiro (Eyes Without a Face and Valley of the Boom) as Lucy’s former love interest Billy Taupe, actress Vaughan Reilly (Tunes of Rockoons and Teenage Euthanasia) as Maude Ivory, actress Honor Gillies (Dirty Boy) as Barb Azure, actor Eike N.A. Onyambu (making his debut in the movie) as Tam Amber, actor Konstantin Taffet (making his debut in the movie) as Clerk Carmine.
Other supporting players in the film, including actress Fionnula Flanagan (Waking Ned Devine and The Others) as Coriolanus and Tigris’s grandmother Grandma’am, actor Burn Gorman (Game of Thrones and TURN: Washington’s Spies) as the leader of the Peacekeepers in District 12 Commander Hoff, actress Ashley Liao (Fuller House and Love in Taipei) as Snow’s classmate / district mentor Clemensia Dovecote, actor Max Raphel (Black Beauty and Slaugherhouse Rulez) as Snow’s classmate / mentor to the tribute from District 4 Festus Creed, actress Zoe Renee (Jinn and The Quad) as Snow’s classmate and mentor to the other District 12 tribute Lysistrata Vickers, actor Marc Aden Gray (The Matrix and Why We Fight) as the Mayor of District 12 Mayor Lipp, actress Isobel Jesper Jones (The Serpent Queen and The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself) as the daughter of District 12’s mayor / rival of Lucy Gray named Mayfair Lipp, actor George Somner (Sex Education and Crawl) as a citizen from District 12 named Spruce, actor Scott Folan (Blinded by the Light and Master of the Air) as Peacekeeper soldier Beanpole, actor Carl Spencer (Rocketman and Luther: The Fallen Sun) as Peacekeeper solider Smiley, actor Raphael Zari (Letzte Spur Berlin and Absolution) as Arlo Chance, and actor Michael Greco (EastEnders and Queen Cleoptra) and actress Daniela Grubert (Drifter) as Sejanus’s parents Strabo Plinth and Mrs. Plinth respectfully. All of these characters in these groupings (i.e. Hunger Games tributes, Covery members, and other side characters) play their parts well enough to make an impression of some kind, despite their limited screen time.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Torn between his own ambitions and a budding romance connection, Coriolanus Snow helps guide District 12 tribute Lucy Gray Baird through the trials that lay before her; a fated event that changes their lives forever in the movie The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. Director Francis Lawerence’s latest film sees the filmmaker return to movie world he helped create, restoring the same feeling and visual aesthetics of what he envisioned Collin’s Panem by telling a prequel setup narrative that speaks to the main story threads as well as presenting a new tale of young love and violence acts of the human condition. While the movie does struggle within its translation of “book to film” as well as clunky third act, the feature itself still manages to become a compelling story of war and love, especially thanks to Lawerence’s direction, thematic commentary themes, a visual stunning presentation, a great cast (most notable Blyth, Zegler, Davis, Dinklage, and Schwartzman). Personally, I actually liked this movie. Yes, it did have its flaws, some stuff could’ve be avoided due to the source material structure and the movie did run longer than needed to be, but, as a whole, I enjoyed the film. I always like story / projects that go beyond the main narrative / larger focus and show something a bit different (another time, another side) to the fictional world therein. The movie certainly does feel like an extension of the Hunger Games film saga and I do like it does present a narrative that showcases some of the template building blocks of several aspects that would become main staples in the Games themselves. The production was quality was top-notch and I thought that the cast was solid across the board (despite some being a bit shortchanged here and there). Still, for what it was worth, I really liked did like the movie and it was worth the hype and (for myself) to read the book before seeing the film. Thus, my recommendation for this movie would be “highly recommended” one for fans of the novels and of the past movies who are looking to return to the cinematic world of Panem. Given how the story wraps up by the time everything reaches its conclusion, I don’t think that Lionsgate would drum up another movie. Thus, this particular is a “one and done” endeavor, which (in hindsight) might be a good thing….at least in my opinion. In the end, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is a fascinating and entertaining way to return this dystopian world, showcasing the violence, madness, and pure spectacle subject matter of a tyrannical government and the dangerous game that plays with its populace.
4.2 Out of 5 (Highly Recommended)
Released On: November 17th, 2023
Reviewed On: November 26th, 2023
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is 157 minutes long and rated PG-13 for strong violent content and disturbing material
