A sequel should increase the stakes, devolp the characters from the previous illiteraton more, and attempt to fix the problems of the original while still feeling fresh and original. That may be hard to do in the case of an adaptation sequel but The Hunger Games : Catching Fire does all of this and more. The social and political commentary/satire is stronger making the themes stronger and the main problems of the original are fixed.
The Hunger Games : Catching Fire starts a few months after the 74th Annual Hunger Games. Katniss (Jennifer Lawerence) is out hunting when Gale (Liam Hemsworth) meets up with her. They talk about running away but they can’t as the Victory Tour is upcoming. Effie (Elizabeth Banks) arrives and Katniss, Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) , and Haymitch (Woody Harrelson) leave for the Tour. They go on the tour and while on the tour, they start to see signs of rebellion throughout in each of the districts. When they get back, the security is increased due to the unrest of people. To help combat this, President Snow (Donald Sutherland) and new gamemaker Plutarch Heavensbee (Philip Seymour Hoffman) decide that the new Hunger Games will be a Quarter Quell in which 1 male and female victor to help show the victors. Katniss is chosen and Haymitch is chosen as well but Peeta volunteers. So for the second time, Katniss and Peeta must go back into the Hunger Games facing even more dangerous opponents.
The Hunger Games : Catching Fire is a fantastic sequel. I actually really enjoyed the original. It may have deviated from the original source material strongly but it did have some cool additons like cutting to the outside and management center of the Captial which continues in this one but not as much as the original did.
The sequel is also improved in several other ways. The themes and commentary/satire are a lot stronger. This is stronger due to the large amount of time spent on the rebellion. This larger amount of time spent just makes the themes stronger and the commentary. The themes of government overpower, rebellion and freedom. It is also a commentary on how far reality shows could go and a cautionary warning which also plays into the satire.
The satire is also improved with how much it shows of the Capitol celebrating these games and the Victory Tour. Another aspect is the pre game hosted by Ceaser Flickerman who interviews each of the Tributes prior to the games. It is so over the top but satrical at how far reality shows could go and how people would still be into it. These satrical commentary elements seperate Catching Fire and the Hunger Games franchise from the rest of these teen young adult romance triangle stories. There is also something besides the love triangle with the games and rebellion with the satire/commentary.
Another thing that did damage the original was the overuse of shaky cam. It may have been due to the quick cuts which were necessary for the MPAA rating.It was very very shaky and made the action much harder to see.Luckily, this one has no shaky cam. The action and arena secnes are much smoother directed and are much better then the original. You can see clearly what is happening with the action and who is fighting who and it’s a lot better.
The sequel is also well-acted. The returning cast and new all do a great job and it is overall better acted than the original in yet another improvement. Overall, The Hunger Games : Catching Fire is a fantastic sequel that massively improves upon the original.
The Hunger Games : Catching Fire is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some frightening images, thematic elements, a suggestive situation and language. I give The Hunger Games : Catching Fire a firey A.
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