From NetFlix:

In a dystopian future ruled by a totalitarian regime, resourceful Katniss and her partner, Peeta, represent their district in the lethal Hunger Games — a televised survival competition in which teenage contestants fight each other to the death.

After having read all three books in the trilogy, I am pleased with the film adaptation. Part of the fun is all the multi-colored eye candy realized by the Capital fops. Characters from the book really come alive. Never does the abject feeling of doom abate. Jennifer Lawrence (age 22) captures Katniss Everdeen to perfection. Woody Harrelson makes a wonderful Haymitch. Donald Sutherland is just right as the thoughtfully evil President Snow. Stanley Tucci as TV moderator couldn’t be any more of a superficial fake if he tried. Controlling effects from the Capital (sponsor gifts, induced forest fires, images of the dead in the sky, the cannons announcing yet another kill, tracker jackers) are done well.

What amazes me is that the author Suzanne Collins is a 50 year old woman who captures the constantly meditating persona of a 16 year old girl. In this film adaptation you do not hear the voice of Katniss constantly ruminating as you do in the book. As a result you have to infer her state of mind from what you see.

So you think this is just unrealistic science fiction?

• What government would purposely starve its citizens? But that is precisely how North Korea (nominated by the Economist as the worst country on the planet) keeps its enslaved population in line.
• What kind of people would cheer contesting combatants until one kills another? Consider the book Are We Rome? by Cullen Murphy. So far cage fighting has not yet reached this ultimate goal.
• Could there possibly be in a country an ever growing separation of the impoverished from the upper One Percent?
• Could such young people really be killers? Right now the psychotic African Joseph Kony is training his Lord’s Resistance Army of child killers.

Be aware that in the book, there is very little if any physical romance. No kissing!

Enjoy this first episode and expect further installments.