'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay 鈥� Part 2': The legacy of the hit movie series
'Hunger Games' stars Jennifer Lawrence as protagonist Katniss Everdeen, who lives in a dystopian society and battles a repressive government. The final movie in the series will be released later this month.
'Hunger Games' stars Jennifer Lawrence as protagonist Katniss Everdeen, who lives in a dystopian society and battles a repressive government. The final movie in the series will be released later this month.
The newest 鈥淗unger Games鈥� film, 鈥淭he Hunger Games: Mockingjay 鈥� Part 2,鈥� opens on Nov. 20, bringing to a close the lucrative movie series based on the books by Suzanne Collins.
What effect did the popularity of the film series have on Hollywood's production of teen-aimed films?聽
We are seeing the 鈥淗unger Games鈥� effect in the form of several dystopian stories aimed at young adults being brought to the big screen. The 鈥淒ivergent鈥� series, which is based on the book series of the same name by Veronica Roth, is still being released in theaters, with the third, 鈥淭he Divergent Series: Allegiant,鈥� due next March.
The 鈥淢aze Runner鈥� series, which is based on the books by James Dashner, continues as well, with the second movie having been released this past September, and a third, 鈥淭he Maze Runner: The Death Cure,鈥� due in 2017.
The movie 鈥淭he 5th Wave,鈥� which is based on the series of the same name by Rick Yancey, will be released this January. There are multiple books planned in Yancey鈥檚 series and more movies will presumably arrive if 鈥淲ave鈥� is a hit.
As for what themes these films are presenting to the young moviegoers who go to them (52 percent of those who went to the opening weekend for 鈥淢ockingjay 鈥撀燩art 1鈥� were under 25), almost all of these stories center around a teenager who becomes important in a fight against an evil government or group trying to control them.
Why do these themes resonate with teens?聽
Telegraph writer Amanda Craig says her daughter told her, "All your generation want to do is go and see comedies like 'Noises Off.' At least we鈥檙e thinking about politics and the future." Many of these stories show a dark future for the world, one that must be defeated. Despite the dystopian setting, the struggles of the protagonists are ones teens can relate to, one female teenager told the Guardian. "It's the way the characters are oppressed and have to fight to get their voices heard," she said of the appeal of dystopian young adult titles. "That's how you can feel as a teenager, silenced and unable to really express yourself."
And don't underestimate the appeal of a heroine like Katniss. "Katniss is the kind of strong teenage heroine we were all waiting for," a teenager told the Telegraph.
What about other movies aimed at a teen audience 鈥� even more specifically, young adult book adaptations coming to the screen?
Book adaptations continue to be big business in Hollywood, and the success of the "Hunger" series isn't likely to change that practice. But two upcoming projects will present something a bit different.
The planned movie 鈥淟ooking for Alaska鈥� will be the newest to be based on a book by John Green, with previous films based on his books including 鈥淭he Fault in Our Stars鈥� and 鈥淧aper Towns.鈥� Green鈥檚 stories take place in our own world. And the movie based on Ransom Riggs鈥� book 鈥淢iss Peregrine鈥檚 Home for Peculiar Children,鈥� which will be released in 2016, bears more of a resemblance to a Marvel superhero tale than the dystopian struggles of 鈥淗unger鈥� and 鈥淒ivergent.鈥� It centers on a school for children with special powers and has the children fight strange creatures.