4 Aspects “The Hunger Games” In the film “The Hunger Games” directed by Gary Ross, and adapted from the novel of the same name by Suzanne Collins, I studied four different aspects of the film that help to improve the effects the film has on its audience. The first aspect of the film I studied was the contrast -created by both Collins and Ross- between the districts and the Capitol. Some examples of these contrasts include people feasting every night in the Capitol, while everyone starves in the districts. Katniss has to hunt illegally every day just to get barely enough food to keep herself, her mother, and her sister Primrose alive.
The very first time she experiences an abundance of food available to her is the same moment she steps on the train to the Capitol, and to her supposed death! People in the Capitol have made their appearance the most important thing in their lives, having surgeries, getting tattoos and dying their hair and skin to appear younger and thinner, while in the districts, it is a rarity to see an older person as so many die young of disease or starvation. The lighting in the districts is very neutral, almost dirty, which reflects the people.
The Capitol also reflects its people- very brightly coloured and unnatural, lacking any personality or feeling. Most of the tributes are in constant fear of their lives the second they are picked at the reaping, while the Gamemakers are extremely calm and collected, very okay with torturing children for entertainment. One resounding example of this occurs during the countdown to the Games. It begins in the arena: the tributes glance around quickly at each other and at the weapons in the Cornucopia. The scene then cuts to the Gamemakers in the control room, where a man begins counting down from 50.
Everyone in the room is working calmly at their desks, preparing to watch the killings. It then cuts to the Capitol citizens, dressed head to toe in brightly coloured feathers and fur. They yell, cheer and clap with excitement, placing their final bets. Because they are extremely rich, they don’t work, which means they usually have nothing to do all day. This would mean that the Games are even more anticipated, adding to the tension between the Capitol and districts. We then see the people of District 12 as they stand in the square, dressed in dirty white or brown, unmoving as they watch the huge screen.
No one seems upset or has their arm around each other. This shows that they have grown used to their tributes being slaughtered immediately in other years, and didn’t expect Katniss or Peeta to survive more than 5 minutes. The effects these contrasts have on the film’s audience are interesting because you can see just how much power the Capitol has over the districts, even based on simple things we often take for granted like food and clothing. The second aspect of “The Hunger Games” | studied was the realism of the special effects Ross used in the film.
These were helped hugely by the unusual amount of time, effort and dedication put into the production by the cast and crew. For example, the camera men used handheld cameras behind Katniss as she ran. This gives the audience an intense “you-arethere” feeling – you see it through her eyes. They used real 20 foot high flames to add realism to the scene where the Gamemakers attack Katniss with fire. Computer generated flames probably would have been a lot cheaper and less timeconsuming, but Ross insisted on real flames, allowing them to shoot the scene in daylight.
The fireballs that attacked Katniss were steel, corkscrew shaped designs, which were wrapped in a flammable material and attached to a 16 inch long cable. These were fired down a wire with a device that resembled a slingshot, and any signs of the setup were removed in post-production. One of the most dramatic parts of this scene was the beginning, when one of the Gamemakers noticed Katniss was near the outer edge of the arena, and 2 kilometres away from the closest tribute. He informed the Head Gamemaker, Seneca Crane, and he instructed him to “turn her around”.
They waited until Katniss fell asleep up a tall tree, and she was then woken by the huge, crackling flames surrounding her. This also link to my contrast aspect; as Katniss runs for her life, the Gamemakers sit there and throw fireballs at her, and drop burning trees in her path as if it’s nothing. The third aspect of the film I studied were the sound effects that were used by Ross to add emotion or suspense to the film. Different music styles and tempos were used throughout the film to show tension or emotion.
There are many different examples of these, including the plucky music played in the background as Katniss hunts in the woods outside District 12 at the beginning of the film. It is very intriguing, pulls the audience in right from the beginning, and leaves you wondering what will happen next. The background noise of the Gamemakers laughing and chatting after Katniss misses her first arrow in her individual training session shows just how much they underestimate her entirely based on where she is from.
The volume and tempo of the suspenseful music increases, then there is sudden silence as she shoots the apple perfectly out of the pig’s mouth, and the Gamemakers are shocked that she actually did something for them to notice her. Only the final 8 seconds of the tension-filled 50 second countdown to the Games were shown in the arena, and were purposefully created to replicate the sound of a heart beating or blood rushing in your ears. There is normally a cannon set off to mark the death of a tribute, but there was not one for Rue.
This could signify a more important and emotional death, considering Katniss’ following actions caused people to riot in Rue’s home of District 11. It could also have been that a cannon did go off, but because Katniss was so completely overwhelmed in that moment, she didn’t hear it, so neither did the audience. Another possible reason could have been that it was a stylistic choice made by Ross to leave the cannon out- it would have disrupted and lessened the anguish and emotion of the scene.
The fourth and final aspect of “The Hunger Games” | studied were the closeups. These were used countless times throughout the film to show significant objects and events. Some important examples of these include the Mockingjay pin when Katniss first discovers it in the Hob, showing that it will be a significant symbol throughout the film. Katniss’ bow is shown close up in her individual training session, clarifying the fact that it is her specialty, and foreshadowing her use of it in the arena.
There is a close up of Caesar holding Katniss’ hand as they talk about how she volunteered for her sister Primrose, showing that he really sympathises and can actually be serious albeit being from the Capitol. Closeups on Katniss’ arm as the woman inserts her tracker in the hovercraft before the Games emphasises just how much control the Capitol has at all times. In conclusion, Ross used a combination of contrast, realistic special effects, sound and camera closeups in “The Hunger Games” to drastically improve the reactions and effects the film has on its audience.