Just like every other child/tween/teen/adult, I went to see The Hunger Games this weekend. While the movie was fantastic and a true rendition of the book, I didn’t walk out of the theater gushing about the movie. Instead, I was in awe over the audience.
Don’t get me wrong—I know The Hunger Games is a young adult series; I wasn’t surprised to see melodramatic preteens going all Twilight over the two male characters (are you Team Gale or Team Peeta?). I was definitely expecting the awkward giggles when Katniss and Peeta kiss for the first time, and the emotional sigh of despair when they show Gale, heartbroken over this PDA. But I was surprised to see these same lovestruck teens giggling when characters were bludgeoned to death (PG-13 style). I found this kid-on-kid brutality more than a little disturbing. (The movie isn’t gory, and I’m not a wimp, but I couldn’t watch at times). It got me wondering who this story was truly intended for: kids or adults?
Twelve- and eight-year-old girls in the theater were laughing when Katniss found Peeta on the brink of death near the river. I guess Rue being stabbed by a spear could be funny—I must have missed the punch line. But it’s more likely that these preteens are a little too young to understand the true premise of the story. True, there is a love triangle, but that is a subplot in a much bigger story about survival and “sticking it to the man.” Whether or not Katniss loves Peeta is irrelevant—whether she lives or dies isn’t. Those eight-year-old girls (how did they get in the theater, btw?) don’t know how to respond to this violence, so they just decide to laugh it off. Obviously they are not emotionally prepared for this kind of storyline, even though it isn’t really that big of a blood bath.
Or maybe the violence just doesn’t bother them. This isn’t the first book, movie, or video game to portray death, though kids killing kids is an uncommon twist. Blood, guts, and gore are almost a necessity for a big blockbuster movie, and who wants to play a video game where you can’t kill people? Preteens and teens might laugh during The Hunger Games because it’s a watered-down version of what they’ve already seen.
While I was reading the books, I (like many others) questioned how this could possibly be a series for young adults; for me, though, it wasn’t just the violence. The 1984 “big brother” mentality is surely lost on its young readers and viewers, who primarily see the movie to swoon over the newest hunks. The death scenes should be heartbreaking, not hilarious, and the fact that they don’t see that proves they just don’t get it.
What do you think: Is The Hunger Games appropriate for kids? How young is too young for this “young adult” series? And do you think these teens and preteens are truly unaffected by the violence, or do they just not understand what’s taking place?
Photo Source: Time
