The Hunger Games

I liked The Hunger Games movie. Like LOVED IT. Judge me all you want, but that's the truth. I've always loved the books, and did love them before they were popular and I really wanted to love the movie, and I was not disipointed. The characters were either as I imagined them, or close enough, the plot was very close to the book and the production value was AM-AZ-ING. You know what one of my favorite parts of The Hunger Games movie was? Katniss’s arena outfit. No, I’m not really the camo pants type, and I’m not huge into windbreaker jackets. But that’s just my point, nothing about her outfit was what you’d call “fashionable” or even “attractive” in fact, it wasn’t all that flattering on Jennifer Lawrence. Shockingly enough even she can’t look particularly good in a drawstring shapeless piece of plastic and baggy camos. And you know what? I LOVE THAT.

I’m sick of every single adventure or action moving requiring the lead female to strip down to a low tank top for most of the movie. I have to ask… WHY?!? That isn’t at all realistic, believe me, I’ve gone on hikes through the woods, the last thing you want to be swinging around is your own bare arms, has no one ever heard of POISON IVY?!? Apparently these characters would rather look “sexy” than actually wear sufficient clothing during their adventure.

Not Katniss Everdeen.

I realized after viewing the film that at no point during the actual Games did I ever become distracted by, or even really notice, Katniss’s clothing. Which is exactly what I believe Katniss (as a character) would have wanted. She’s all about practicality, she never wanted attention drawn to herself, and if it took wearing a plastic bag and pants the color of dead moss, she’d do it.

In a movie with a female protagonist this is a rarity. Yes, Katniss is beautiful, and somehow she gets two great guys to fall in love with her, despite her having the people skills of a turtle. But she never flaunts anything, she’d rather hide in the woods any day then show off her face, or her chest, or her anything. Because that’s not what Katniss is about. Exploiting Katniss’s body was never a point of the film or the books, and I love and support that.

I'll admit that the vast popularity of the books and movie is a little annoying to me. Most of time popularity is an automatic sign to me that I must dislike whatever it is, but with The Hunger Games I'm wondering if this popularity isn't all that bad, if maybe, just this once, it's teaching good things.

All I know is I’d rather let my daughter be a fan of a book and movie series that shows the consequences of violence with a strong female protagonist who wears a wind breaker, than a movie where a sullen teenage girl wearing a low-cut shirt falls in love with two shirtless guys.