While The Hunger Games features a lot of inspiration based on classic culture, Collins cites the modern phenomenon of the reality show as another huge influence. In fact, it was watching reality TV that kick-started an idea in Collins’s brain that would eventually transform into the much-loved novel. She said: ‘The Games are televised across the country of Panem and it is mandatory to watch them, because they are not only supposed to be entertainment, but of course they are a reminder that the Districts are punished for having the audacity to rebel against the Capitol.’
When asked why reality TV is such a phenomenon at the moment, Collins replied: ‘Well, they’re often set up as games and, like sporting events, there’s an interest in seeing who wins. The contestants are usually unknown, which makes them relatable. Sometimes they have very talented people performing. Then there’s the voyeuristic thrill – watching people being humiliated, or brought to tears, or suffering physically – which I find very disturbing. There’s also the potential for desensitizing the audience, so that when they see real tragedy playing out on, say, the news, it doesn’t have the impact it should.’
Jennifer Lawrence said: ‘I love that The Hunger Games is kind of this sick look at our world that’s obsessed with reality TV and brutality. We’ve become so numb to the shock factor. We see people die on TV now, we see dead bodies and blood on the nightly news. I mean, the things people can find on YouTube are crazy! We’re so desperate to it all now. Also, there’s the message of history repeating itself. There are these scenes where it honestly looks like Gladiators fighting. Roman history, with people murdering other people for nothing more than entertainment, I just think all of that is hard-hitting and fascinating.’
Yes, the series isn’t real and there isn’t really a society where they kill youngsters. But one school in Niagara, Ontario, in the US, saw 700 students participate in their own week-long version.
Cheryl Caldwell, a literacy consultant for the District School Board of Niagara, told The Standard: ‘We wanted to make it living literature. Even kids who have given up on reading are getting right into these books. A lot of the kids were saying: “Lord of the Flies, my parents read that.” We thought that maybe it was time to look at something else, something they read.’
Students teamed up to build shelters, while some hunted for food and supplies. If they were caught by another student, they can surrender their supplies, negotiate or fight, which consisted of rock, paper, scissors.
‘There is an emphasis on compromise, which is very similar to the novel. You have to deal with people that you don’t know. Alliances are a big thing in the books and we’re kind of doing that, we’re working with people we don’t know at all,’ she said.
The Hunger Games fans and budding chefs have come together to make a series of recipes, which are based on food in the movies, including District 11’s Crescent Moon rolls. Here is the recipe for Katniss’s favourite lamb stew with dried plums, as published on FictionalFood.net:
• 3 lbs lamb meat, cubed
• 2-3 tbsp cooking oil
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 3 tbsp flour
• 2 cans beef broth
• 1 cup tomato pulp or 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 sprig rosemary, leaves snipped
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 3 large carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 16-18 pearl onions, peeled and halved
• 1 cup frozen or fresh peas
• 1 handful dried plums cut in half
1. Heat oven to 475 degrees.
2. Heat oil in a skillet and brown lamb meat. Transfer to ovenproof dish as pieces cook.
3. Sprinkle sugar on browned meat. Cook meat for several minutes on medium high heat to caramelize sugar.
4. Toss meat with flour until well coated. Place pot in oven uncovered for 5 minutes. Toss meat around and cook for another 5 minutes. Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees.
5. Add 1 1/2 cans of beef broth, tomato pulp, and rosemary. Cover and cook on bottom third of the oven for 1 hour.
6. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Add carrots, onions, and potatoes and more broth if needed.
7. Cover and return pot to oven for another hour. After 30 minutes, add dried plums. Once done, taste and season as needed.
8. On the stovetop, boil peas for 1-2 minutes. Drain and add to stew just before serving.
9. Serve on wild rice. Eat by the bucketful.
Other recipes can be found in Emily Ansara Baines’s book The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook: From Lamb Stew to Groosling – More than 150 recipes inspired by The Hunger Games trilogy.
The Wall Street Journal wrote: ‘In the post-apocalyptic fantasy series The Hunger Games, starving characters eat whatever they can kill or forage: wild dog, horse, tree bark, mouse meat… fans have become obsessed with the food in the books, trying home preparation of dishes such as fire-roasted rabbit and seaweed bread. This month, The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook was published, with 150 recipes for rustic, gamy fare including fried squirrel and raccoon in bacon drippings, though none for dog. Food, and the lack of it, is a recurring theme in the dystopian trilogy.’
Red Dawn is based on the 1984 cult hit, and tells of a group of teenagers trying to fend off a foreign invasion on American soil. The invaders were Russian in the original, with the remake using Chinese soldiers, before being edited to make it look like a North Korean invaders in post production.
The reason for the remake was simple, according to the film’s screenwriter: ‘The tone is going to be very intense, very much keeping in mind the post-9/11 world that we’re in. As Red Dawn scared the heck out of people in 1984, we feel that the world is kind of already filled with a lot of paranoia and unease, so why not scare the hell out of people again?’
However, the film’s original director and writer, John Milius, disagreed, ranting: ‘I think it’s a stupid thing to do. The movie is not very old.’ Milius, who wasn’t involved in the new film, but was given a chance to read the script, said: ‘It was terrible. There was a strange feeling to the whole thing. They were fans of the movie, so they put in stuff they thought was neat. It’s all about neat action scenes and has nothing to do with the story. There’s only one example in 4,000 years of Chinese territorial adventurism, and that was in 1979, when they invaded Vietnam, and to put it mildly they got their butts handed to them. Would China want us? They sell us stuff. We’re a market. I would have done it about Mexico.’
It wasn’t just Milius who disagreed about the invaders, and despite post-production costs equalling a reported million dollars, they were changed to North Koreans.
Starring Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth’s brother, Chris, filming began in 2009. Chris Hemsworth said about the changes: ‘It was always pretty vague, even when we were shooting. They kind of never mentioned who the invaders were anyway. It wasn’t heavily suggested, so I think it was an easy technical fix for them whether they do it with a little CGI or the occasional voiceover line. It wasn’t really a political take on anything. It could’ve been the Australians for all we cared. I guess MGM have their reasons for doing it, but we as the actors were never really involved with it.’
Producer Tripp Vinson added: ‘This movie has been rebooted because the filmmakers all love the original movie. The experience of seeing Red Dawn as a young boy in the middle of a Cold War, was life changing for me, and a whole generation. I assure you that everyone involved with the reboot is keenly aware of the responsibility of delivering a movie that can stand eye to eye with the original.
‘The changes made to Red Dawn were made in consultation with military think-tanks and people that specialise in game theory. Really smart people who spend their days constructing doomsday scenarios for our military and government. The type of people who can project a series of events that could lead to some very scary things happening to our country. I can assure you, we listened a lot to those people, especially with regards to the capability of the North Korean military.’
He added: ‘Red Dawn isn’t for everyone. So, if you are interested in seeing a movie filled with preachy political discussions, Red Dawn ain’t for you. If you love movies in which Americans are the bad guys, Red Dawn ain’t for you. If you get emotional watching daytime television, Red Dawn ain’t for you. If you’re a
vegetarian, Red Dawn probably ain’t for you. But, if you like meat with your potatoes, muscle cars that roar, tanks, guns and things blowing the f**kup by Americans kicking some Commie ass – then we have something special coming your way.’
There were high hopes for the movie, but those were initially dashed in 2010 because of the financial problems surrounding its studio, MGM. However, the film is expected to be released later in 2012.
Josh Hutcherson said ‘Red Dawn was great. It’s like playing pretend, being a little kid doing these movies. When I was a little kid I’d play army… so I was just playing army, as far as I was concerned. They gave me real guns, which was scary and exciting. But I’m really excited for it to come out finally.’
He added: ‘My character’s name is Robert and he kind of starts off as this sort of quieter, almost borderline nerd guy, and then by the end, after the invasion, he just sort of loses it and starts really kicking butt. So it’s pretty awesome. One of my favourite things to do in a film is take a character from A to B.’