Film Review - The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Who doesn't love Jennifer Lawrence? Even the keyboard warriors who obliviously place The Hunger Games in the same category as the mopey vamp Twilight saga can’t deny that she is one of the Hollywood’s most down-to-earth actresses. And if the amusing gifs and memes are to be believed, the Silver Linings Playbook Oscar winner seems to be very much enjoying her moment in the spotlight.

The same can’t be said for her on-screen alter ego, Katniss Everdeen, who seems to be struggling with the moral consequences of her victory over the 74th annual Hunger Games. Having defied the totalitarian power that rules her world through media manipulation and fear-mongering, she has become the poster girl for a proletariat on the verge of uprising.

Despite her best efforts to fulfil her duties as a media puppet for the ruthless President Snow (Donald Sutherland), in order to appease the disgruntled lower classes in the twelve districts, she is eventually forced to participate in a rather suspect anniversary edition of the Capital’s favourite blood sport in order to save her loved ones and maintain the peace.

Naturally, the second act once again is reminiscent of Fukasaku’s Battle Royale, or even futuristic eighties frolic The Running Man. But whereas the first film reserved its use of violence until the Hunger Games began, Catching Fire surprisingly uses the high strung political atmosphere to allow blood to spill in some of its rather shocking and brutal opening scenes.

If there is one criticism to be had, it’s that history may be repeating itself as the over encumbered running time and formulaic structure of Catching Fire almost syncs up perfectly with the first film. As for the Twilight comparison, it lives only in this saga’s romantic subplot. 

Whilst love triangles are becoming the done thing for teenage fiction, it very much thumps away in the background of The Hunger Games. In fact it’s the male characters who are given somewhat upturned gender roles in this franchise. As they dwell upon winning Katniss’ heart, she gets her priorities straight and fights for the lives of her people. It’s a much larger cross to bear than the love torn woes of Bella Swann.

Adapted from the second novel in the Suzanne Collins’ penned series, the film puts society’s obsession with reality TV, garish fashion and the cult of celebrity firmly in the firing line. By expanding on many of the poignant issues that were touched upon in its predecessor, and giving teenage fans a morally sound, emotionally rounded heroine for inspiration, it may come as a shock to hear that Catching Fire is one of the more intelligent 12A certificate blockbusters to arrive this year.

Reviewed for The Big List NI

Itchy Fingers #11 - This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race

There’s one last score to settle before the world gets its first taste of next-gen gaming. In a conflict that has lasted for more than a decade and cost the gaming community billions, two superpowers will collide one final time on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 this November. As the hoo-rah US Marine of first person shooters, will Battlefield 4 be able to outgun the SAS disciplined Call of Duty: Ghosts before this generation of consoles becomes an empty no man’s land?

The war began back in 2002 when Swedish developer Digital Illusions CE (or DICE for short) teamed up with EA to bring PC gamers Battlefield 1942. Of course, World War II games were nothing new, especially if you consider Wolfenstein 3D as not only kick-starting the trend but indeed the FPS genre entirely. EA themselves had piggybacked off the success of the Oscar-winning Saving Private Ryan to inject WWII games with a much needed dose of Hollywood pizazz, resulting in the memorable Medal of Honour series.

Battlefield 1942 was praised for its addictive multiplayer, but that wasn’t enough to hold off the oncoming blitzkrieg at the hands of Activision. Developed by Infinity Ward, Call of Duty was released in 2003 and was showered with praise for being a much grittier experience, highlighting the perils of war at a time when the genre was succumbing to trench foot. 

After a barrage of sequels from the COD camp, the tides of war eventually entered a new theatre of conflict. At this point, 2005’s Battlefield 2 took the upper hand by upgrading its armoury to accommodate the familiar post 9/11 war on terror that the world was exposed to on a daily basis. Armed to the teeth with a hanger full of military vehicles, the PC exclusive title appeared to have enough firepower to ward off incoming strikes from other FPS titles. However, EA grossly underestimated the console market and with online gaming becoming an integral part of the console artillery, they left the back door open for Call of Duty to make a critical strike.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare may not have shattered sales records, but Activision managed to establish their flagship shooter as the number one online game throughout 2007 and 2008. By giving players the opportunity to earn their rank, customise their load out and achieve the hugely coveted “prestige” title, COD4 redefined not only the FPS genre but multiplayer games in general.

Even after many of Infinity Ward’s key players were discharged from duty back in 2010, Battlefield 3 wasn’t strong enough to hold off the might of the Modern Warfare sequels, or the various other COD spin offs that would be released during the interim years. The bill was paid for by consumers thanks to the emergence of new “war economy” that included downloadable content, state of the art headsets and even video capture equipment, all designed to give players the upper hand against their rivals in brutally addictive online battles.

As the tenth instalment in the series, Call of Duty: Ghosts managed to make $1 billion in revenue in just one day, but not all’s fair in love and war. The game has been described as the weakest entry yet, particularly for not adding anything ground-breaking to the series.  The battle for FPS glory is far from over but will Ghosts be one to deter even the most hardened Call of Duty veterans? Semper Fidelis - as long as brand loyalty is top priority for gamers, the war will only grow hotter as it rages on into the next generation. 

Originally featured in The Big List #241

Film Review - Gravity

During the 1960’s mankind looked to the stars as both a way of hope and escapism from the the very real threat of nuclear annihilation, at the behest of two politically opposing superpowers. From the launch of Sputnik to the moon landings, the space race seemed like a more peaceful competition between the USA and the USSR.

Cinema naturally mimicked this trend and in the years that followed, iconic sci-fi films such as Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, Andrei Tarkovsky’s Solaris and even Ridley Scott’s Alien explored both the sense of wonder and the perilous fear that came with space travel. 

When Gravity opened to US audiences back in October, renowned astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson took to Twitter to highlight some of the film’s scientific inaccuracies. However, any creative liberties taken are immediately forgiven as Gravity, a film that contain plenty of nods to the pioneers of space cinema, still stands tall as a technical, visual and operatic masterpiece all in its own right

In a plot brilliant in its simplicity – a routine maintenance mission to service the Hubble telescope – the crew of the Explorer space shuttle find themselves caught in a mid-orbit collision with the space debris caused by the destruction of an orbiting satellite.

As the two remaining survivors, Dr Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) and Lieutenant Matt Kowalski (George Clooney) find themselves adrift, cut off from mission control, their oxygen levels critically low and their transport left in tatters. Survival instincts kick in as the pair must use what limited resources they have at their disposal in order to make it back to Earth. 

Gravity has a self-contained story that doesn’t require a degree in astrophysics to enjoy. In fact, the plot is one rooted in the primal instincts of humanity. Directed and co-written by Alfonso Caurón (Children of Men, Y Tu Mamá También), Gravity is an emotionally tense space thriller that isn’t held back by the gravitational pull of unnecessary backstory, complex mythology or even lengthy scientific jargon. 

Kowalski tells Stone to set her watch for ninety minutes, and given that that roughly matches the film’s running time, most of the film unfolds almost in real time. From one heart-racing set piece to the next, the audience are rarely given a moment to take a few precious sips of oxygen before being thrust into another pulse-exhilarating peril.

Any hint of Sandra Bullock’s recent rom-com escapades are immediately forgotten, as she gives one of the most honest performances of her career. Taking the prominent role in the film, she deservedly is the only character to give any glimpse of backstory, a plot point used only to illustrate her emotional state as the rookie astronaut, struggling between accepting her fate or fighting for survival.

Clooney brings his usual suave chatty banter to his supporting role as the veteran space jock. Keeping his cool throughout, his heroics and ability to keep calm in what is one of the most distressing situations imaginable serves to really highlight Bullock’s performance at the emotional centre of the film. 

The final player in the story is the soundtrack. In space, no one can hear you scream so thankfully Steven Price succeeds in creating a dark, brooding electro-symphonic masterwork that fills the silent vacuum of space with foreboding dread, in one of the finest film scores of the year. 

Despite being filmed in studios firmly grounded on planet Earth, Gravity is one of the most convincing sci-fi dramas to appear on the silver screen, save for the glaringly obvious CGI accessories. The juxtaposition of the Earth’s inviting warmth and the cold deep abyss of space may put the characters between a rock and a hard place, but for audiences it's a gorgeous visual feast. 

Even film critics and cinephiles (including this one) who have a fevered distaste for 3D cinema can’t deny the spectacular use of the medium to really emphasise the awe-inspiring cinematography from Emmanuel Lubezki. Not since James Cameron’s Avatar or Ang Lee’s Life of Pi has 3D film been used as such a key selling point in a film, and thankfully Gravity is much more convincing champion of 3D toolkit than they are. 

Whilst deGrasse admits that his scientific nitpicking was meant as a compliment, Buzz Aldrin has a much more optimistic view on the film, stating that Gravity “couldn't have come at a better time to really stimulate the public.” From a cinematic standpoint, I for one hope he is right.

Reviewed for The Big List NI