Collider - Catching Fire

10 Must-See Female-Led Action Movies of the Modern Era

Ana Isis Cisneros — Wed, 31 May 2023 23:01:18 GMT

Classic mainstream action movies usually have men at the forefront as badass heroes and gun-slinging vigilantes, showing off muscles and martial art skills to defeat the big baddies. Meanwhile, most of the time in those same films women tend to be relegated to femme fatales or damsels in distress, if they even appear. But now thanks to the tide of social change, the doors have opened up even more for women to take on the role of the action hero too.

THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE and THOR: THE DARK WORLD Deleted Scenes

Matt Goldberg — Tue, 04 Mar 2014 18:44:15 GMT

A deleted scene has been released from the upcoming Blu-ray/DVD for The Hunger Games: Catching Fire as well as another deleted scene from Thor: The Dark World. The Catching Fire scene has Sam Claflin explaining how his learning to tie a noose in less than ten seconds ultimately went to waste, and while this scene does show more of his character Finnick Odair being charming, I can understand why it was left on the cutting room floor. As for the scene from Thor, it's a brief fight between Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and some Asgardian guards, and that's about it.

THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE Review. CATCHING FIRE Stars Jennifer Lawrence

Matt Goldberg — Thu, 21 Nov 2013 21:51:35 GMT

Early in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, the villainous President Snow (Donald Sutherland) reminds Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) that the Hunger Games were just a game. Her real fear should be a war that will rain down hell on all of the districts if she continues to be a symbol to the downtrodden. To both its credit and its detriment, Francis Lawrence's sequel shares those values. The fear and excitement has left the arena and spread to the streets, and returning to a different arena almost feels safe by comparison. The adaptation is a slight improvement on the book (mostly by avoiding author Suzanne Collins' poor prose and stilted dialogue), but also has the same structural weakness of taking the characters to familiar confines albeit with different players and hazards. Nevertheless, the central core of the story remains strong and skillfully eschews the traditional heroine in favor of a scared puppet who can only summon her strength in certain situations. It's a confined character that can't take full advantage of its actress' immense talent, but as the movie reminds us, sometimes sacrifice is necessary for the greater good.

Atlanta Readers: Win Passes to See THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE

Matt Goldberg — Tue, 12 Nov 2013 18:50:55 GMT

A few weeks ago, I was at a screening, and the person behind me tapped me on the shoulder to ask if we were going to give away passes to The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. I said, “Maybe,”; now I can say “Definitely”, and I’m willing to bet that gentleman isn’t the only one excited for this movie. I really enjoyed Gary Ross’ The Hunger Games, but now the franchise faces a new challenge by having to work with a different director (I Am Legend’s Francis Lawrence) and a weaker novel (it’s widely agreed that it peaks halfway through). Still, the trailers have been encouraging, the plot is solid, and I have high expectations for this sequel.

THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE IMAX Poster

Adam Chitwood — Wed, 30 Oct 2013 19:01:26 GMT

Lionsgate has released a new IMAX poster for director Francis Lawrence’s upcoming sequel The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, and it’s pretty fantastic. The adaptation of the second novel in author Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games trilogy centers on President Snow (Donald Sutherland) trying to crush a budding rebellion that was ignited by Katniss’ (Jennifer Lawrence) actions in the previous film, as the 75th Hunger Games (aka Quarter Quell) finds past victors competing against each other. While IMAX posters are normally a bit more artistically ambitious than theatrical posters, this Catching Fire one is the best I’ve seen in a long while. Drawing on the work of Kris Kuksi, the one-sheet does an excellent job of capturing the socio-political themes of the story.

Francis Lawrence Says HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE Will Ditch Shaky Cam and Focus on Romance

Adam Chitwood — Tue, 08 Oct 2013 16:47:19 GMT

When the YA adaptation The Hunger Games opened in theaters last March to record-breaking box office, Lionsgate understandably was ready to movie quickly on feature film adaptations of Suzanne Collins’ two book sequels, Catching Fire and Mockingjay. Director Gary Ross deserves a sizable amount of the credit for the first film’s success, but he wasn’t keen on rushing right into the next film without ample time to work on the script. As such, Ross opted not to return as director, and Lionsgate quickly started the search for a replacement. The studio subsequently settled on Water for Elephants and I Am Legend filmmaker Francis Lawrence, who signed on and got to work prepping The Hunger Games: Catching Fire straight away.

THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE Images Featuring Jennifer Lawrence and Jena Malone

Adam Chitwood — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 18:46:18 GMT

Fresh off yesterday’s EW cover unveiling, a trio of new images from The Hunger Games: Catching Fire has landed online. Directed by Francis Lawrence, the film centers on President Snow (Donald Sutherland) trying to crush a budding rebellion that was ignited by Katniss’ (Jennifer Lawrence) actions in the previous film, as the 75th Hunger Games (aka Quarter Quell) finds past victors competing against each other. One of these new images gives us a good look at Jena Malone as Johanna, while the other two focus on Jennifer Lawrence’s Katniss in precarious situations. The marketing campaign for Catching Fire has been going on for so long that I almost forgot the film opens next month, but I’m eager to see what Francis Lawrence brings to the material.

THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE IMAX Featurette and EW Covers

Matt Goldberg — Tue, 01 Oct 2013 17:01:40 GMT

Lionsgate has released a new featurette for The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. The story finds President Snow (Donald Sutherland) trying to crush a budding rebellion that was ignited by Katniss’ (Jennifer Lawrence) actions in the previous film, as the 75th Hunger Games (aka Quarter Quell) finds past victors competing against each other. The featurette highlights how director Francis Lawrence will be using IMAX in the film, and it’s impressive. The movie will go to IMAX as Katniss goes into the new arena, and I’m interested to see how Lawerence will utilize it at other points in the story.

THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE Soundtrack Revealed; Includes Christina Aguilera, Coldplay, and The Lumineers

Adam Chitwood — Thu, 26 Sep 2013 15:33:02 GMT

Lionsgate and Republic Records have unveiled the full soundtrack for the Francis Lawrence-directed sequel The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. While the first film’s soundtrack took a very stripped-down approach thanks to uber producer T Bone Burnett, the follow-up has a bit of everything. Burnett was not involved in the Catching Fire music this time around, but the soundtrack features tracks by Coldplay, Christina Aguilera, Of Monsters and Men, The National, Sia, Ellie Goulding, Santigold, Imagine Dragons, and more. The soundtrack will be available for purchase on November 19th ahead of the film’s release on November 22nd.

THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE Images Featuring Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson

Adam Chitwood — Thu, 19 Sep 2013 19:42:07 GMT

A batch of new images from director Francis Lawrence’s sequel The Hunger Games: Catching Fire has landed online, giving us a closer look at the film’s large ensemble cast. The story finds President Snow (Donald Sutherland) trying to crush a budding rebellion that was ignited by Katniss’ (Jennifer Lawrence) actions in the previous film, as the 75th Hunger Games (aka Quarter Quell) finds past victors competing against each other. I’m eager to see what Lawrence brings to the table as the new overseer of the franchise (he’s also directing Mockingjay Parts 1 & 2), and the previous trailers have been promising.