Truthfully, I can’t even remember the obsessions I had in 2012 that could excuse me not having a Hunger Games phase. I watched all the movies when they came out, but that’s the extent of my relationship with the trilogy. Because I missed out on this pivotal point of adolescence, my experience of watching The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes was without the nostalgia of witnessing the continuation of my favorite movie franchise. I’m definitely not as invested in The Hunger Games universe as some, so take my opinions with a grain of salt (although, spoiler alert, I have good things to say). Also, here’s an obligatory warning that there will be minor spoilers.
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is a prequel to the original trilogy, following a young Coriolanus Snow, who would eventually become the evil President Snow witnessed 64 years later in the first Hunger Games movie. First of all, I think the film avoids many of the cliches associated with prequels that make die-hard fans wary. It doesn’t seem like an obvious cash grab or attempt to change the series—it’s a prequel that fits into the context of the trilogy while providing a new perspective. I can’t wait to marathon all four movies to make connections between the trilogy and the prequel.
Although at first glance Coriolanus appears as a likable character falling victim to a corrupt system, it is clear under further inspection that he was always a narcissist that would only help others when it benefitted him. However, as the movie progresses, Coriolanus’ ruthless nature becomes more obvious as his taste for power intensifies. The prequel doesn’t at any point attempt to redeem his qualities, it just portrays his villain origin story from the beginning, when he had slightly more morality. Some of my favorite pieces of media feature morally gray characters, so I loved watching his transformation into a true villain.
I appreciated that the plot wasn’t predictable, particularly in the third part of the film. Despite my knowledge of Coriolanus prior to watching, there were many moments that shocked me. I kept thinking “There’s no way he would actually do that”, but alas, yes he would. I knew the love story between Coriolanus and Lucy Gray Baird was too good to be true when they were living it up in District 12, but I enjoyed it while it lasted. I’m a sucker for a good love story and a happy, fairytale ending, so I might pretend that the film ends after my new comfort scene, Coriolanus and Lucy swimming in the lake with the Covey.
I have seen mixed opinions of the random singing throughout the film, but I think it was done well and maintained Lucy’s depiction as the ‘songbird’ to Coriolanus’ ‘snake.’ There’s nothing worse than watching a character sing on screen when they’re very clearly lip syncing, so Rachel Zegler (Lucy) singing live on set was not only impressive, but necessary. Throughout time, music has been a form of rebellion and comfort in the face of crisis, so the symbolism of Lucy’s songs should not be negated. My favorites of the movie’s soundtrack are the powerful, recurring “Nothing You Can Take From Me” and Zegler’s rendition of the haunting “The Hanging Tree,” originally featured in Mockingjay.
The film is nearly three hours long and split into three parts, but many viewers argued that it should have been split into two movies to fix pacing issues in the final part. I only noticed how long the movie started to feel after the rush of watching the 10th Hunger Games in the second part wore off, so I can’t imagine watching an entire movie dedicated to only the third part. This final part is far more character-driven so it makes sense that Coriolanus’s moral demise happens relatively quickly now that he is free from the eyes of the Capitol. The film’s conclusion may feel rushed and abrupt, but in my opinion, that’s to be expected with an open ending. Overall, I appreciated how much was happening narratively—my attention span would’ve seriously suffered otherwise.
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is in line with many of my film preferences and might just land itself at the top of my favorite films from The Hunger Games franchise. It isn’t as action-packed as the original trilogy but focuses on many political and philosophical themes that come together to form an entertaining story. It’s definitely not an essential background to the original trilogy but serves as an interesting addition and new perspective to the story that fans already know and love.