Hunger Games Essay

LALA
Mrs. LALA
Period 4 English
28 October 2013
The Hunger Games Book and Movie Compare and Contrast When a director films a movie based on a book, the director does everything possible to keep the movie as similar as possible to the book, because many of its details are necessary to the plot and flow of the movie. Sometimes, there are things the director will take out or change because it is not an important part of the plot, it is difficult to film, or it simply takes up too much screen time. In The Hunger Games there were many things that were changed or taken out. But one important change was the involvement of the character Gale Hawthorne and his love life with Katniss Everdeen in the movie. The director decided to involve Gale more in Katniss’ love life because he wanted to create more drama, to show that Gale is in a close relationship with Katniss, and to allow viewers choose a side for Gale or Peeta. Incorporating Gale into the movie more helped create more drama. Gale, Katniss, and Peeta create something almost like a love triangle. Katniss says that she likes Gale in the book. “Finally, Gale is here and maybe there is nothing romantic between us, but when he opens his arms I don’t hesitate to go into them. His body is familiar to me — the way it moves, the smell of wood smoke, even the sound of his heart beating I know from quiet moments on a hunt — but this is the first time I really feel it, lean and hard-muscled against my own” (Collins 55). In the movie, Gale also suggests a life together. He tells Katniss that they should run off and live in the forbidden forest where they hunt animals (Ross 0:06:37). Katniss is willing to but she knows she cannot leave her family. This means that their relationship is strong enough that they trust each other enough to live together. Even though Katniss has Gale back home, Peeta also likes Katniss, and tells Caesar Flickerman that the girl he likes was brought to the games with him (Ross 0:56:36). It surprises the viewers and helps to incorporate the love drama effect, but it is also keeping some of the same details from the book, because the book emphasizes Peeta’s love for Katniss greatly, and shows Katniss developing a love for him as well. In the end not everything was changed to add more drama to the movie.
Along with creating more drama, the director involved Gale more in the movie to show that he cares for Katniss. They start off showing that Gale cares for her family. Gale promises to keep the Everdeen family alive by bringing them food even if it means his name is entered more times into the reaping (Ross 0:17:47). Gale also promises in the book. “‘Don’t let them starve!’ I cry out, clinging to his hand. ‘I won’t! You know I won’t!’” (Collins 58).This shows Katniss that Gale is a dependable person and Gale is In the book, Gale and Katniss meet when they are fourteen years old after their fathers die in the same mining accident, this shows they have a long history. After the mining accident, they became close as kids. “There’s never been anything romantic between Gale and me. When we met, I was a skinny twelve-year-old, and although he was only two years older, he already looked like a man. It took a long time for us to even become friends, to stop haggling over every trade and begin helping each other out” (Collins 15). Again although Katniss denies any love, it’s hard to not think that Katniss does have feelings for Gale. The director wanted to show the audience Gale was close to Katniss, after all the years they’ve spent together Gale has proven to be a reliable person and he was the only person that Katniss could truly be herself with. “In the woods waits the only person with whom I can be myself. Gale” (Collins 10). Emphasizing Gale’s relationship was a major change of the movie but not the only one. The director involved Gale more into Katniss’ love life, so that viewers could take a stance, whether to take the side of Gale or Peeta. In the book,

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