Catching Fire takes place in the aftermath of the first Hunger Games. The controversial joint-winners of the televised snuff-fest, Peeta and Katniss, are now being schlepped around the country on a state-sponsored victory tour as psychotic fascist President Snow attempts to co-opt them into the poster couple of the regime. But the people are not so easily fooled – nor are Katniss and Peeta so easily manipulated. So, to secretly assassinate them in full view of the adoring public, Snow and his new Gamemaker devise a cruel twist for the 75th Hunger Games; each district will nominate previous winners, male and female, to compete in the next tourney. Since Peeta, Katniss and Haymarch are the only ever victors from District 12, two of the three are thrust back into the arena….
I came away from Hunger Games; Catching Fire very, very impressed. It’s a huge step up even from the previous film (which was already very good indeed) – the sets, the costumes, the characters, the cinematography, the acting, are all first notch, with Jennifer Lawrence utterly deserving all the accolades she’s being showered with. This, seriously, is a game changing quadrilogy for the movie industry – a set of apocalyptic, sci-fi, action films headed up by a kickass woman who’s lost none of her vulnerability or femininity in the process. It’s not quite my movie of the year, but very nearly almost. It filmed in Georgia and Hawaii – and both spots have become tourism draws for eager fans.