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- The Hunger Games (2012), a dystopian post-apocalyptic fantasy whose derivation from a young-adult novel might explain its appeal to teenagers,
- The Five-Year Engagement (2012), a loose, overly earnest romantic comedy from the producer of Bridesmaids (2011), which my wife and I and our daughter and son-in-law enjoyed very much, and
- Shame (2011), a tedious NC-17-rated film of sexual addiction.
My wife has read most of Mankell's Wallander novels, and she says that Kenneth Branagh's Wallander in the British adaptations is closer to the Wallander she finds in the novels, and she enjoys them more than the Swedish series. We've watched all three of the Brits' three 3-episode seasons so far, and while I've enjoyed them too, I'm enjoying Krister Henriksson's Wallander more. He's not so inwardly tormented as Branagh's character (or the character of the books apparently). He communicates with his colleagues better and doesn't hesitate to tell a junior to focus if he notices that the junior's mind seems to be wandering. But much of his communication (and of the communication of other characters) is by way of facial expression. The acting, and direction, are superb.
In the British series, Wallander's daughter Linda has a sizable role. In Season 2 of the Swedish series, she seems to have been replaced by two cadets from the police academy, Pontus (Sverrir Gudnason) and Isabelle (Nina Zanjani). At any rate, my wife sees aspects of Wallander's relationship with Linda in his respective relationships with the cadets. They are interesting characters in their own right.
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| Sverrir Gudnason |
You can find detailed synopses of all the current three seasons on the Internet Movie Database. Unfortunately, the synopses don't touch on theme, but the good side of that is that you can watch the programs to find out.
Point of Information:
ReplyDeleteThe Hunger Games was based on a young adult novel, not a graphic novel.
Thanks for the correction. I didn't fact-check what my wife told me because she is never wrong, except rarely. [By the way, I thought I'd thanked you hours ago—last night, in fact—but the comment seems not to have taken.]
DeleteRegarding The Hunger Games: My stepdaughter tells me the idea of the poor being forced to fight to the death for the entertainment of the ruling class seems a very possible real-life future for kids her age, depending on how much power corporations and the rich seize in upcoming elections. In their social studies class where she and her friends had to list career possibilities, some of her classmates only half-jokingly put "future Hunger Games contestant" on their list when they feared Romney might win the election.
ReplyDeleteWhen adults tell blatant lies and use fear-mongering tactics in political campaigns, they do not realize the emotional damage they are doing to teens who are actually paying attention. Since those teens are studying history that tells of gladiators having to kill each other for the amusement of rich Romans, the fears of 'The Hunger Games' becoming reality in America have roots. Especially since most teens know that many boxers have fought their way out of poverty in this country, and they see kids today putting their health and lives on the line trying to find a way out of ghettos via football, basketball and MMA.
My stepdaughter also raised the question "why do so many adults think 'The Lottery' is such a great short story but they think the idea behind 'The Hunger Games' book is stupid?"
To her question I will add one of my own. Why did so many adults flock to see Arnold Schwarzenegger's 'The Running Man' and praise Russell Crowe's 'Gladiator' and many other similar movies, yet pan 'The Hunger Games' - when they are all the same ilk? I'm not defending 'The Hunger Games' and I will not be wasting my time going to see it, as I did not waste my time going to see 'The Running Man' or 'Gladiator' (the YouTube clips offer more than enough enlightenment) but the railing against 'The Hunger Games' by many adult critics does smack of age prejudice.
A bright note for teen movies today is the 'Twilight' series. Instead of the "slasher" horror movies that were maniacally popular with this generation's parents, many of today's 'tweens and teens have formed an equal addiction to the much more positive 'Twilight' movies. I am not much of a movie goer and have only been to one movie at a theater in the past six years that was of my own choosing, but I have escorted my stepdaughter to all the 'Twilight' movies. In fact, I am a "Twi-hard" and have the documentation to prove it. For the uninformed, that means I watched all five of the 'Twilight' movies in one night. Yes, in the time I could have flown from RDU to Nairobi, I instead sat through five movies at a local theater with my stepdaughter and many of her friends - and we all actually enjoyed the experience, regardless our age difference.
Yes, the concept behind The Hunger Games is plausible, and the Donald Sutherland character (the arch manipulator of all) is effectively drawn with a fine, economical brush.
DeleteYour discussion of the thinking of teens who are paying attention helps me better understand the movie's popularity among them. I suspect that the sequel is going to have the fictional young people rise up against "the manipulator" and, no doubt, be successful in overthrowing him?
Has your stepdaughter expressed an opinion as to the possibility that a teenage rebellion against America's establishment might have any chance of getting off the ground? Let alone have a chance of succeeding?
My stepdaughter has mercifully been distracted from The Hunger Games and its sequel(s) by the last of, so far as we know, the Twilight movies, so I have not had heard the latest about "the manipulator" or his fate.
ReplyDeleteAs for a successful teenage rebellion, my stepdaughter probably hears too many opinions of a stepfather who remembers how the children of the 60s were going to change the world, and instead mostly underachieved and sold out. So she is constantly encouraged to chart her own course and do her small part to change the world, rather than counting on others her age to join her in accomplishing anything epic. Her mother and I hope she will be inspiration enough that others will hopefully follow her lead, but if they don't we advise her to keep forging her own path without them.