The movie that the world has been anxiously salivating over will be released in theaters within a matter of hours. Tributes, “Catching Fire”-the second installment of The Hunger Games trilogy- finally hits the big screens tomorrow. The Girl on Fire is back in action! This next installment has been repeatedly named the most highly anticipated movie of the year. Hot stuff! After several months of suspense, numerous fans are blazing with enthusiasm at this very moment. “The Hunger Games” films have received at least as much praise as the books have from their fan base. The franchise not only fused media frenzy, but also became a major phenomenon after the first film debuted last year, scoring $152 million domestically in its opening weekend. Furthermore, “Catching Fire” has received so much hype that any Hunger Games fanatic might gladly volunteer to fight in the aisles for the best seat in the theater. At the end of the day, a massive fan base begins with a spark. In Katniss Everdeen’s case, a revolution is on the horizon.
To prepare yourself for the to-be-epic two-hour long experience, here are key things you will need to know this time around before entering the world of Panem and watching the grueling 75th annual Hunger Games (a.k.a The Quarter Quell).
To recap, the first movie ended with a vague cliffhanger. Peeta clenched Katniss’ hand, while she stared into the hearts and minds of District Twelve’s citizens after she had taken a long look at her mother, her sister Prim, and her close friend Gale (Liam Hemsworth). Following that scene, we saw President Snow walk away from his podium, pondering his takedown actions for his new target Katniss Everdeen, the so-called game changer. Now that Peeta and Katniss have become victors of the Hunger Games, their lives will never be the same. As you may recall, this all came to be when a Capitol leader decided to deem the pair winners of the 74th annual Hunger Games just as the two were about to die together by eating poisonous berries known as Nightlock. And that was only the beginning of their teamwork.
In “Catching Fire”, Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) and Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) will have to make the Capitol believe that they are star-crossed lovers, keep each other sane, and watch one another’s backs in order to survive these Games. Yes, unfortunately the precious duo will be returning to the arena once again. The cunning President Snow will take full responsibility for the decision to devise another set of games. Only this time, previous Hunger Games victors will be selected as the players rather than random individuals from the 12 districts. The heated competition makes the outcome of this year’s Games much more unpredictable.
The great competition is one aspect that separates last year’s Games from this year’s. After clicking one “Catching Fire” trailer after the next on YouTube, you probably noticed some fresh faces, flamboyant clothing, and new surprises in the arena. Moreover, this second movie differentiates from the first one in three ways: fashion upgrades, new characters, and high-definition special effects.
1. Costume Design
The standout clothing designs of The Hunger Games gear and the Capitol fashion grab one’s attention immediately. The tributes’ armor will not consist of baggy pants and an oversized jacket. These Games are bigger and better so that can mean only one thing: serious makeovers. The players will wear sleek, black and silver latex one-piece jumpsuits (how cool). Before the contest commences, the annual Games ceremonies will take place at the Capitol and everyone will need to dress up for the occasion. In general, the Capitol fashion dominates the society, but the new season’s shoes, dresses, and accessories will be twice as decorative and colorful. Prepare to be amazed. Effie Trinket, Ms. Katniss Everdeen, and Mr. Peeta Mellark will be astonishingly unrecognizable.
2. Special Effects
In “The Hunger Games”, there were not as many intrinsic arena special effects, except for the gift parachutes, the trackerjacker hallucinations, and the man-eating dog monsters. (Although to be perfectly fair to the producers, this was due in large part to the film’s limited budget rather than to a lack of creativity). However, there will be extensive special effects in this holiday movie. This time the Capitol Game controllers will boost the amount of terror and they will plan to pit the tributes against devilish monkeys, toxic fog, and other deadly obstacles. According to the latest trailer, the rabid monkeys look freakishly realistic, the fog is as terrifying as it is described in the book, and the swarming mockingjays get the heart racing. You are certainly in for a show.
3. Tenacious Tributes
The Capitol will spare the lives of the District citizens this year. President Snow has proposed a new reaping process in which the names chosen are those of Hunger Games Victors: Beetee, Brutus, Cashmere, Finnick, Enobaria, Gloss, Johanna, Mags, and Wiress. Their names sound sweet, but these people are ruthless killers. As you might have seen from one or two movie promos, the training center clips display a few of the tributes showing off their particular skills, including knife throwing, body slamming, and axe thrashing. The characteristics of these tributes majorly outweigh those of the past twenty-four tributes combined. Peeta and Katniss seem the most fragile of the whole lineup, yet the District 12 tributes have improved their skills and have reshaped their physique, especially Peeta. Furthermore, Catnip (Katniss) will know how to handle the bow and arrow better than ever and Lover Boy (Peeta) will bring his A-game and muscles to the playing field…. It’s Game Time.
Let the final countdown begin! Tick-Tock…Tick-Tock.