You can call it an oversight if you like, but I have never reviewed a singled film from The Hunger Games franchise.  I have not read any of the books, either, but I have seen one of the movies.  Since they are a bit of a cultural phenomenon, I figured I might as well get them started.  Because I blocked out much of my memory of my viewing of the first installment, also called The Hunger Games (2012), I had to go back and endure it all over again.  That sentence should give an accurate picture of my feelings going into this project.  I will grant that it is not the most Catholic of attitudes, but we are talking about a story that imagines a dystopian future in which teenagers are called upon to kill one another for the entertainment of an autocratic government.  And no, I am not talking about the “Patriot Games,” though when Trump announced them it drew comparisons to The Hunger Games.  Let us pray we are not entering that kind of future.

The future in which The Hunger Games is set is a vaguely post-apocalyptic one.  There was a war at some unseen point in the past, and as “penance” (their word, not this Catholic’s) for the rebellion of the various districts of this difficult to define super state, every year they must submit two youths to compete in a literal sudden death competition.  They must be between twelve and eighteen years old, one female and one male.  Despite its poverty, District 12 must also submit a pair from among its struggling coal mining population.  This is where we find the Everdeen family: mom (Paula Malcomson), youngest daughter Primrose Everdeen (Willow Shields), and older sister Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence).  Mom does not seem to do much, and Katniss largely takes care of Primrose.  At the same time, Katniss often sneaks off to spend time with her sweetheart, Gale Hawthorne (Liam Hemsworth).  As they hunt in the woods, they share their discontent with the state of affairs, their primary target being the upcoming eponymous competition.  She is worried that Primrose will be selected, but the odds are not in favor of this happening.  This theory is about to be tested for soon the district’s young are ordered to present themselves for the random drawings.  Would you believe it if I told you that Primrose’s name is announced?  Not wanting to let Primrose go, Katniss puts herself forward to take her younger sister’s place.  The arrangement is accepted and Katniss, as well as the male District 12 tribute, Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson), are sent to the capital.  On the way, they meet Haymitch Abernathy (Woody Harrelson), who is supposed to be their coach for the games.  Their first impression is not a good one.  He is drunk and not giving them much of a chance to survive.  However, once he is sober, he praises Peeta for the kind of attitude that wins crowds, and criticizes Katniss for being the opposite.  Getting the public behind you, Haymitch warns, can lead to viewers investing in your survival by sending beneficial packages.  This message of needing to adjust Katniss’ countenance is backed by her image coach, Cinna (Lenny Kravitz), who dressed her and Peeta in eye-catching apparel for their first official appearance before the show’s host, Caesar Flickerman (Stanley Tucci).  The effect works, as does Haymitch’s suggestion to be herself.  What follows is two weeks of training to prepare them for the rigors of the coming life-or-death struggle.  It is here that we encounter the other competitors, and they will be introduced as is necessary.  On the eve of the start day, all the tributes are brought back to Caesar for a candid interview to gauge their personalities and their readiness.  During Peeta’s tête-à-tête, he admits to having a crush on Katniss, much to Gale’s chagrin watching back home.  Though Katniss is angered by the revelation, Haymitch tells her that it is good because it earned her greater sympathy with the audience.  With that, it is time to go into the wooded arena.  When the bell rings to commence the games, Katniss follows Haymitch’s advice to not immediately run for all the supplies piled between all the competitors.  Instead, she grabs a backpack and heads for the trees.  What follows is a gradual thinning of the herd that need not be enumerated.  The important bit is that an alliance forms between the more sadistic bunch, and Peeta falls in with them because they want him to help them find Katniss.  For her part, she is trying to find the edges of their area, but is pushed back by artificially created pyrotechnics.  In the process of running from the flames, she runs into the cadre of baddies, led by Cato (Alexander Ludwig).  She manages to evade them by climbing a tree.  She also receives some help from the reclusive Rue (Amandla Stenberg), who gives Katniss the idea of dropping a deadly wasp nest on them.  It manages to kill one of their attackers, and this is how Katniss gets her famous bow.  Sadly, Rue dies shortly thereafter, but Katniss finds Peeta, who had been betrayed by the others.  Peeta is wounded, but she manages to find medicine for him.  Wanting to build their romance, the people behind the competition announce that if there are any two left alive from a certain district and they manage to triumph, they will both live.  It comes down to Katniss and Peeta being chased by genetically engineered dogs.  While they manage to avoid being maimed, they have to take on Cato.  When they emerge victorious, a voice from above rescinds the offer of two survivors.  However, they are prevented from dual suicide when the previous new rule is hastily reinstated.  As they head for home, Haymitch warns that their behavior upset their leader, President Coriolanus Snow (Donald Sutherland).

I, for one, was not upset when The Hunger Games ended, though I realize I have four more of these turkeys to view.  Admittedly, my distaste is more of the mechanical variety.  I do not understand the specifics of what is happening in this world.  Some would argue with this point, saying that it would make more sense if I read the book.  However, that is just an excuse for bad cinema.  Forgive me if this sounds at all hopeless, which is an apropos word to bring up when talking about this story.  In discussing the way the title games work with its producer, Seneca Crane (Wes Bentley), President Snow muses aloud as to why they would have a winner.  If the point is to make the districts pay for their long-ago rebellion, why not simply intimidate them by arbitrarily killing twenty-four kids?  The answer President Snow gives is hope.  For him, it is a more effective means of controlling a potentially unruly population than intimidation.  This Catholic has a slightly different definition of hope.  It is not some kind of opioid designed to dull the violent urges of a populace.  It is what God instills in us to inspire us to do better.  We who believe hope in a better future, either in this life or the next.  We achieve it in this life by helping our fellow man, and the next comes when we do that and try to live a morally upright life.  What is moral about having teenagers murdering one another?  Nothing, of course, and I suppose one could make the argument that President Snow does not understand the true nature of hope.  Like all despots, including today, they think they are reading the people correctly when they are actually surrounded by people who tell them what they want to hear.  A people with hope is one that prays because they know something good lies ahead for them.  What we see here is the opposite of hope.

I hope that my judgement of The Hunger Games did not sound too harsh.  Simply put, there are better forms of entertainment.  If there is anything to take from the film, it is as a warning against what society could become if we let it happen.