As I write this, I am officially ashamed to admit that I have become one of "THEM".
You know who they are, the crazy die hard, hard core, fanboys/girls who live for their book series'. The Twi-hards. The Quidditch playing fools. And no, if I ever go there---down the dark road that leads me to answer the question Team Edward or Team Jacob? That leads me to wear a Hogwarts uniform and perfectly round spectacles, then I have gone too far and I deserve all of the mocking and ridicule you can give. The series to which I am referring though is The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.
I read the series in November and I was completely addicted. I wondered how I had never heard of this series sooner? In fact, I had actually just obtained a set of book for my classroom library when I heard about them at NCTE. I decided to go home and read them. And read them I did. I stayed in bed reading, all day and all night! I delayed preparing Thanksgiving dinner because I couldn't put them down.
I have never been one to read sci-fi/fantasy novels but this one, this one is amazing. I don't know, maybe it's the kick-ass heroine Katniss, or her partner in crime, the oh-so-tough Gale, or the sweetest.boy.ever. Peeta, but these characters had me entranced. The novel is so disturbing on so many accounts. The entire premise of children fighting to the death on reality TV so that the citizens of Panem never forget who is in charge. How messed up is that? Yet the parallels to reality tv, hollywood glamour, plastic surgery, and "Big Brother" are even more unsettling. The allusions to Greek mythology lend the book literary merit. And that is why The Hunger Games could never be compared with Twilight. Suzanne Collins is a hundred times more talented than Stephenie Meyer. And THG has mass appeal. Boys love it. Girls love it. Teens love it. Adults love it. Even my Mom loves it. How many books can say that? Twilight most definitely can't.
Today, Lionsgate announced that Jennifer Lawrence, the critically acclaimed star of Winter's Bone, would play the part of Katniss Everdeen in the film version of the books. The first film is set to come out on March 23, 2012. I am not so dorky as to count down the days, but I am so dorky as to have been reading blogs and fanpages for the last FOUR HOURS!
Yes, you read that right. I have been reading this stuff for the last FOUR HOURS. Fans complaining that JL (their nickname for Jennifer Lawrence) could never be Katniss. Their disappointment over the fact that their top choices weren't cast. They are already vowing protests and boycotts of the yet-to-be-filmed flick. And yet I couldn't stop reading. It was like a drug. I couldn't stop myself and before I knew it... I broke down...and...I...COMMENTED ON THE POSTS! I know! I know! I am sitting here with my head hanging low. How could I get all worked up and caught up in the frenzy? Why was I typing feverishly about the actress set to play Katniss? Why do I even care? I am a grown woman, soon to turn 34, and I am writing about THG with THEM? It's all too embarassing for words.
Katniss is...well, she's an inspiration. She triumphs in the face of evil. She's a scrawny nobody who goes on to be the symbol of freedom for an entire people. She is humble and she's a survivor. And I guess those are awe-inspiring qualities no matter where they come from. I'd like to imagine myself to have a few Katniss qualities of my own. Maybe the Fightergirl in me relates to the fightergirl in Katniss. She's the kind of girl that every girl aspires to be in a lot of ways.
Would JL have been my first choice? Most certainly not, but do I think that she will be amazing? I most certainly do. For all intents and purposes, she has already played the role of Katniss. Her character in Winter's Bone lived in the Appalachians, hunted, and skinned dead animals---that's Katniss. But does she have the physique to play Katniss? She currently does not. In fact, she is refreshingly curvaceous in a town filled with twigs. But I am certain that she will transform her body just like all the greats before her have done on so many occasions. Think Tom Hanks in Castaway, Christian Bale in The Machinest, Charlize Theron in Monster, Natalie Portman in The Black Swan. With so much at stake, I am certain she will transform into Katniss and win over many of the fans. She's already won me over.
But if you see me spouting about Team Gale or Team Peeta, then run for your life, because I'll have truly lost my mind and there'd be no saving me.
May the odds be ever in your favor. ~B
