Netflix Losing The Biggest Sci-Fi Action Series Blockbuster In Years, Stream Before It’s Gone

Suzanne Collins wrote The Hunger Games series in 2008, 2009, and 2010, back to back, and the books were a huge success, not least of all because they brought us, finally, a badass female hero to love in the form of Katniss Everdeen.

Long before The Hunger Games hit Netflix, production for the films began almost as soon as the first book realized its success. So if you didn’t know about the books by 2012, when the first movie came out, you certainly did then. 

The Hunger Games, on Netflix, is set in a dystopian future seemingly hundreds of years from our time, but presumably still on Earth. The world is now called Panem, and it is broken up into 12 districts.

Each district produces something of use to the Capitol, where the President, Coriolanus Snow, and all of his favorites reside. District 1 produces luxury goods, so it is the most favored of the districts and the only one that has any semblance of wealth. 

All other districts suffer from hunger and poverty and are kept intentionally separate so as to prevent uprisings.

To keep the fear alive, Hunger Games are held each year, where a male and female tribute are selected from each district to enter an artificial arena and compete to the death. While there, tributes are subjected to all sorts of atrocities, from murderous wasps to poisonous plants. Watching The Hunger Games on Netflix hammers this home.

At the beginning of The Hunger Games, the first film, the tributes are announced, and the younger sister, Primrose, of Katniss (Lawrence), our main character, is selected. Katniss, ever the protector, volunteers to take her place.

The male tribute, Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), is a boy the same age as Katniss, who she often sees at his local bakery in town, but the two don’t really know each other. But before she leaves for the games, we learn that Katniss has a deep and abiding love for Gale (Liam Hemsworth), her hunting companion and best friend. 

Katniss and Peeta head via train into the Capitol to compete in the Hunger Games with their mentor, Haymitch (Woody Harrelson), District 12’s resident drunk and the only member of the district to have survived previous games.

They also ride with their chaperone, Effie (Elizabeth Banks). In an interview before the games begin, Peeta reveals he has long-held feelings for Katniss. Katniss believes Peeta is trying to gain the upper hand in the games. 

Streaming The Hunger games on Netflix is a tension-filled ride. As the Hunger Games begin, the scenes move from one violent death to another. Katniss fights physical and psychological battles with her competitors, and the entire thing is televised via strategically placed cameras around this jungle of sorts.

She finds allies, must kill enemies, and is torn between trusting and saving herself. Meanwhile, the politicians and the media play with her life and those of her competitors. It’s a wild ride worth taking. 

Jennifer Lawrence kills as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games, truly embodying this young girl desperate to save her sister and survive to be there for her. We feel everything she feels, and it is heartening to know that Suzanne Collins had a hand in developing this screenplay. Perhaps that is why it feels so true to the books. 

I give this movie 5 stars out of 5 and strongly urge you to stream The Hunger Games on Netflix before it’s gone. Then, maybe you’ll consider reading the books.