Directed By Francis Lawrence; Screenplay By Michael Lesslie & Michael Arndt; Starring Tom Blyth, Rachel Zegler, Peter Dinklage, Jason Schwartzman, Hunter Schafer, Josh Andrés Rivera, and Viola Davis.
Based on Suzanne Collins’ 2020 novel of the same name, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes follows a young Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) years before he became the tyrannical president of Panem. He remains the last hope for his fading lineage. With the 10th annual Hunger Games fast approaching, the young Snow becomes alarmed when he's assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler) from District 12. Uniting their instincts for showmanship and political savvy, they race against time to ultimately reveal who's a songbird and who's a snake.
I’m not a big book reader. There’s only a few novels I’ve actually read. In fact, there’s several others I started, but never got around to finishing. Among the books I actually have read from beginning to end is Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games trilogy. I remember all the hype surrounding the first movie during my junior year of high school from when the trailer dropped. So I decided to give the original novel a read while listening to the audiobook to prepare myself for the film. I was glad I did because I was so drawn into the characters and the world. Plus, the end of each chapter really had me on edge to find out what was going to happen next. When I first saw the movie opening weekend back in March of 2012, I was very impressed with how the filmmakers reimagined the story cinematically. After that, I read and listened to both sequels, Catching Fire and Mockingjay, within the next month and a half. Looking back, it’s kind of remarkable I managed to read all three of them given my reading habits (especially nowadays).
To prepare myself for The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, I listened to the audio book, but probably wasn't able to give it my full attention. However, I did rewatch each of the four previous films. The first two I think are exceptional, especially Catching Fire. The last two weren't as good, but I still really liked them for the most part. Although I do agree with the consensus that splitting Mockingjay into two parts wasn't necessary. In fact, director Francis Lawrence (who's back at the helm of this installment) recently admitted publicly what a mistake that was upon retrospect. Thus, this latest installment is just one long movie. Are the odds ever in its favor?
Right from an emotionally effective opening sequence, I was immediately hooked. Francis Lawrence keeps the tension going throughout the plot from start to finish. This installment probably has the most violent action sequences out of the entire saga. Luckily, they’re successfully staged and edited in a way that keeps this rated PG-13. For a movie that is over two and a half hours long, Mark Yoshikawa’s editing manages to have everything move at such a great pace.
Having caught this in IMAX, Jo Willems’ stunning cinematography shines brightly on the big screen. Production designer Uli Hanisch did a splendid job with imagining the world of Panem many years before Katniss Everdeen came along. Trish Summerville’s costumes look so unique. The hair and makeup work continues to be very imaginative as it was in previous movies. The overall soundscape is pretty phenomenal. The musical score James Newton Howard composed this time around is hauntingly epic.
Tom Blyth gives an excellent performance as Coriolanus Snow. He perfectly nails his character arc as he goes from wanting to restore prosperity for him and his family to how he eventually becomes the villain we all know from the original trilogy. Rachel Zegler is very charismatic as Lucy Gray Baird. She provides quite a spunky personality while also having moments where she gets to show off her skillful talent for singing. Viola Davis is a ton of fun as head gamemaker Dr. Volumnia Gaul. It’s especially refreshing to see her in a role like that compared to the more serious work she usually does. Jason Schwartzman is an absolute highlight as Lucretius "Lucky" Flickerman, the first television host of the Hunger Games. I thought his performance fit right in with Stanley Tucci’s work as his presumed descendant, Caesar Flickerman, in the original trilogy. I also did enjoy Peter Dinklage as Cas Highbottom, the intellectual author of the Hunger Games.
If you’re a Hunger Games fan, you’ll definitely notice a few easter eggs sprinkled throughout this film. Although if you watch the original trilogy (yes, I'm still referring to it as a trilogy despite officially having four movies) after watching The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, you’ll be amazed to see how the world of Panem evolved from the past into the future. Sadly, the themes of this particular story feel relevant to what’s currently going on in the world, (which may also be a blessing in disguise. Nonetheless, hopefully fans of the saga should leave feeling satisfied.
Rating: 4/5
Based on Suzanne Collins’ 2020 novel of the same name, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes follows a young Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) years before he became the tyrannical president of Panem. He remains the last hope for his fading lineage. With the 10th annual Hunger Games fast approaching, the young Snow becomes alarmed when he's assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler) from District 12. Uniting their instincts for showmanship and political savvy, they race against time to ultimately reveal who's a songbird and who's a snake.
I’m not a big book reader. There’s only a few novels I’ve actually read. In fact, there’s several others I started, but never got around to finishing. Among the books I actually have read from beginning to end is Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games trilogy. I remember all the hype surrounding the first movie during my junior year of high school from when the trailer dropped. So I decided to give the original novel a read while listening to the audiobook to prepare myself for the film. I was glad I did because I was so drawn into the characters and the world. Plus, the end of each chapter really had me on edge to find out what was going to happen next. When I first saw the movie opening weekend back in March of 2012, I was very impressed with how the filmmakers reimagined the story cinematically. After that, I read and listened to both sequels, Catching Fire and Mockingjay, within the next month and a half. Looking back, it’s kind of remarkable I managed to read all three of them given my reading habits (especially nowadays).
To prepare myself for The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, I listened to the audio book, but probably wasn't able to give it my full attention. However, I did rewatch each of the four previous films. The first two I think are exceptional, especially Catching Fire. The last two weren't as good, but I still really liked them for the most part. Although I do agree with the consensus that splitting Mockingjay into two parts wasn't necessary. In fact, director Francis Lawrence (who's back at the helm of this installment) recently admitted publicly what a mistake that was upon retrospect. Thus, this latest installment is just one long movie. Are the odds ever in its favor?
Right from an emotionally effective opening sequence, I was immediately hooked. Francis Lawrence keeps the tension going throughout the plot from start to finish. This installment probably has the most violent action sequences out of the entire saga. Luckily, they’re successfully staged and edited in a way that keeps this rated PG-13. For a movie that is over two and a half hours long, Mark Yoshikawa’s editing manages to have everything move at such a great pace.
Having caught this in IMAX, Jo Willems’ stunning cinematography shines brightly on the big screen. Production designer Uli Hanisch did a splendid job with imagining the world of Panem many years before Katniss Everdeen came along. Trish Summerville’s costumes look so unique. The hair and makeup work continues to be very imaginative as it was in previous movies. The overall soundscape is pretty phenomenal. The musical score James Newton Howard composed this time around is hauntingly epic.
Tom Blyth gives an excellent performance as Coriolanus Snow. He perfectly nails his character arc as he goes from wanting to restore prosperity for him and his family to how he eventually becomes the villain we all know from the original trilogy. Rachel Zegler is very charismatic as Lucy Gray Baird. She provides quite a spunky personality while also having moments where she gets to show off her skillful talent for singing. Viola Davis is a ton of fun as head gamemaker Dr. Volumnia Gaul. It’s especially refreshing to see her in a role like that compared to the more serious work she usually does. Jason Schwartzman is an absolute highlight as Lucretius "Lucky" Flickerman, the first television host of the Hunger Games. I thought his performance fit right in with Stanley Tucci’s work as his presumed descendant, Caesar Flickerman, in the original trilogy. I also did enjoy Peter Dinklage as Cas Highbottom, the intellectual author of the Hunger Games.
If you’re a Hunger Games fan, you’ll definitely notice a few easter eggs sprinkled throughout this film. Although if you watch the original trilogy (yes, I'm still referring to it as a trilogy despite officially having four movies) after watching The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, you’ll be amazed to see how the world of Panem evolved from the past into the future. Sadly, the themes of this particular story feel relevant to what’s currently going on in the world, (which may also be a blessing in disguise. Nonetheless, hopefully fans of the saga should leave feeling satisfied.
Rating: 4/5