The Hunger Games: The Next Harry Potter or Twilight?

On the heels of this weekend's huge opening of The Hunger Games (it earned $214 million worldwide!), I have to stop and think:  Is this our replacement for Harry Potter and the beloved Twilight series?   Now that Harry Potter is over and Twilight will eventually end, at least the book-turned-movie fan population who's been coping with the loss of HP has something new to focus their attention on. 

I've never been one for sorcery or glittering vampires, and I admit, I've only seen the first HP movie and somewhat boycotted Twilight, but The Hunger Games really caught my attention.  Although the whole idea of America turning into Panem and the Capitol hosting a fight to the death seems somewhat far fetched, I think the idea of survival of the fittest speaks to all of us at a core level, myself included.  Just like any good junkie, I read the book and was immediately sucked into the characters and the story line, staying up late and ditching friends to read, over going out for the night.  My Amazon basket right now includes the next two books in the Suzanne Collins series:  Catching Fire and Mockingjay, which will also be made into movies in the coming years. 

You know how any time we read a book and then see the movie, we always walk away from the theatre somewhat disappointed that the film didn't meet our expectations?  Or maybe that the writers and directors of the film left out pieces of the book that you felt were important?  Well, I have to say, of all the movies I've seen as interpretations of a book, The Hunger Games stayed more true to the written version than most.  Granted, little bits and pieces were removed, but overall, the folks behind the scenes made some right decisions.  I will say, I did enjoy the book more, but I think that's for one very specific reason that we don't always consider.  When a reader is following along in a novel, he or she is reading every thought, every feeling, every observation of the narrator.  Whereas, in a film, it would be silly to vocalize all of those things.  Instead, the actor has to emote all of those thoughts and feelings, leaving it up to the audience's  interpretation.  We don't become as connected to the individual narrating the story through a film as we do in a book.  We simply have to be accepting of that and open our minds to the movie version.

Now, in order to keep up with the "Team Edward" t-shirts, I've gotta get to the screen printing store to have my jersey made.  Number 12 with "Everdeen" across the shoulder blades.  Oh yeah.  The odds are ever in my favor.

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