"Tick, Tock"
Thursday, November 21, 2013 | 5:22 PM
I am having a hangover. No, I didn’t drink. I just caught the movie “Catching Fire” with Amy. (The photo was taken with Rio in town de other day and the Mocking Jay in the background of this photo is very apt for this post. Anyways,) Why do I feel like I am having a hangover? Because while watching Catching Fire, it was good, I shed tears, I was impressed, I got caught up with the show, I jumped, I cringed (a good cringe btw), I was amused but the ending was Such. A. Disappointment. I did not get the breathlessness, the: “Woah that was such a good movie, I was totally swept away into another world such that I am doubting the world that I am currently in.” I was overwhelmed by the movie BUT the ending just RUINS it. The endingleft the viewer hanging alright. But geez, I think that we, Le Viewers are “hung” a bit too high uh.
I am just having a very bad headache right now. But other than the horrible ending, I think the kissing was just bad... I could feel NOTHING from the kiss between Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence, beautiful woman by the way) and Gale Hawthorne (Liam Hemsworth). I was so unmoved by the kiss that I even noticed, the saliva hanging there between them after the kiss which amuses me a lot. LOL. Sigh. And the kiss betwee her and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) only starts to be passionate towards the end. I can never figure out who she really loves even up till now.
I know I complain a lot about the kissing. (There was this scene in Les Miserables where Éponine have a kissing scene with Marius. She was dying and finally confessed to him and the atmosphere was so good and so romantic. BUT it was ruin because their nose kind of got in the way. I’m not being mean okays? It was noticeable and, the kissing scene is just ruin somehow) I think a good on-screen kiss will let the viewers feel: “Awwwww. They’re in love!” Instead of: “Okay... they are kissing now… Because kissing is probably easier than saying goodbye” or letting the viewers feel: “Oh oh oh, now look who’s horny”. I think the worst is letting the viewers feel that the actors are kissing because the script calls for it.
The way her voice quivered when she said that they (those who came together from District 12) are a “team” (It would probably be too cheesy to say the word family even though when she say team, it felt like she way saying “family”. The feels is there.) I think in the show, she is actually the most powerless one. In my opinion, even Katniss’s little sister has more control over things and more ability to change things than her. But Effie tried to help in her own way. Her “gold symbols” thing (Read the book/Watch the movie if you are lost already) and the way she bring them around (I am sure that they from District 12 will not be able to adapt to the capital quickly if not for her) Confession: Most of my tears for this movie was actually triggered by her. LOL.
I guess if I read the books before watching the movie, I will be tremendously unsatisfied as to how this turn out. I’m pretty sure that the story has more potential than this. (Like the later sequels of Harry Potter, which have too many details that were left out and overlooked. Boos.) And the issue was not really touched on by the director. I mean, there is so much about HOPE about the injustice of the system and politics in the story. And Love. I’m sure that the whole “love is when you are willing to die for someone” concept can be brought out better. TYVM.
“For none of us would have anything to live for, if we did not find something worth dying for.”
This quote should have been the ONE of the moral in the movie. (I actually found this quote from the Comprehension given as holiday homework. Good job RV.) The movie touched too much on the theme of “survival” and “revolution”. I mean, they only talk about the injustice of the system at the start, where Katniss and Peeta were attending the “Party of the Year”. In the capital, people were puking out the food they just ate, so that they can try the other food in the party but back in their home, District 12, the people hardly have any food to pass the day.
Actually movies are a reflection of our lives, our society. They are just discreetly masked, and sometimes too exaggerated, but the underlying ideas are there. It is always there in every movie. A party always have a theme right? Then everything revolves around the theme, what the people wear, the settings, the food, the music, the shows etc. Same for movies, they all have a theme, a message, and usually these messages are in line with things in our lives. (Like how in Harry Potter, we have the idea of courage. Are you going to stand up and fight? Or run away? People are spreading false rumors about you, so are you going to confront it or back down and let others judge you for something that you did not do?) Some viewers crossed that line and made the connection, while the rest just treat the movie as entertainment.
I always believe that in every movie, every director has a message to bring across. Which is what made them start the project and film this movie anyway. But… you may say that the directors film the movie just to make money (and there are no messages that they want to convey) but hey, look at how far they are willing to go to make those bucks. What can you tell from this? (Another issue to go figure yourself, no spoon-feeding here. :p I might spoon feed the wrong stuffs anyways)
So what is it about the Hunger Games? ... Have you heard about Marina Abramović?
Quote this from another source because I am too lazy to phrase it in my own words (okays maybe not lazy but too little brain cells):
“In her infamous Rhythm 0 piece from 1974, she set up a table with 72 random objects on it in a gallery. These included a gun, a bullet, a whip, lipstick, a scalpel, a coat, shoes, and olive oil. She then stood from 8 PM until 2 AM and allowed spectators to do whatever they wished to her using the objects from the table. By the end, she was topless, crying, wearing a rosemary branch over her shoulder and rose petals over her nipples. People picked her up, carried her around, dressed and undressed her, and generally treated her like a doll. BUT by towards the end of the 6 hours, everyone ran away to avoid confrontation.” (Read More)
Hunger Games reminded me of what she was trying to show from her art piece. At the end of the day, if you let people do whatever they want, they will just try to harm each other (Probably our animal instinct) and they will run away when it is time to solve the problem face-to-face (So Thank God for social networking site nowadays right?) In The Hunger Games, ... I lost track of many times Katniss was told: “Remember who the real enemy is!” as she almost shot one of her ally.
This picture is not random okays? It has something to do with the movie too, where the tributes crosses borders and boundaries. Anyways, the title of this post, is a quote from Catching Fire. And I think this particular quote is very relateable to our lives in many aspects. "Tick, tock" Time is ticking, we have so much to do but so little time. And in the Games, the time that the tributes have with their love ones are slipping away. In reality, ... for us next year, the Class of 2014 will be graduating and I really wonder where each of us are heading from there. Yeah there will be meet up and stuffs but ... It just won't be the same anymore.
The last words that I have to say about Catching Fire, is that I really like Jena Malone (Who plays Johanna Mason from District 7) too. But what made me really enjoy the movie and really really happy are all the outfits and hairdo (Especially Katniss's braids) in the movie. :D
P.S. Have I mentioned that Effie Trinket sounds like a absolute bimbo and I love it?! "ATTITUDE"
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