The newest ‘Hunger Games’ movie was released on November 17 and neared $100 million after just three days in the theaters. ‘The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’ has received mixed reviews from critics.
The movie occurs six decades before Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mallark enter the arena. The prequel is based on Suzanne Collins’ novel that was released in 2020.
While it is not necessary to read the novel, those who are interested in watching The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes should definitely watch The Hunger Games series as there are multiple references made in the new movie that could be confusing to new viewers.
One must also have the basic context of what The Hunger Games are.
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes centers around teenager Coriolanus Snow. Young Snow is an orphan and is stumbling on the line of poverty.
Although Snow has excelled at the Academy, (equivalent to high school), The 10th Annual Hunger Games has made new adjustments. Snow, along with the top peers at the Academy, are assigned a tribute from a district that they must mentor. This new rule begins the cycle of mentoring.
Coriolanus Snow is assigned the fierce Lucy Gray Baird from District 12. Lucy is the early equal of Katniss Everdeen. Lucy is incredibly musically gifted, which adds a new twist to the prequel.
As the future President of Panem, this bloody tournament carves the way for Coriolanus Snow’s tyrannical reign.
Going into the theater, I did not know what to expect. The trailer was not exactly clear on what this new movie would entail.
However, I truly loved this film. It had me on the edge of my seat the entire time as there were multiple plot twists.
After seeing the series with high special effects and new weapons, I gained a deeper appreciation for the old-school style arena, weapons, and reality TV showing.
While I loved this new movie, I still would place the original series before it, as nothing can top the original Hunger Games.
Yet, this movie is still incredible.