Happy Hunger Games, everybody! What a night! Where to start...
First off, let’s just say that you can never spend enough time getting ready for a Hollywood premiere. The hair, makeup, accessories, and clothes; we felt so glamorous getting ready for the premiere! Our driver picked us up at 5:00 and we made our way across town to the Nokia Theater — we couldn’t get there fast enough! As we pulled up to the theater, we were absolutely floored by the crowd of screaming fans awaiting the arrival of the stars. As we stepped out of the car, we thought, "They must be really disappointed that we’re not Josh Hutcherson!" It was so surreal to be walking outside the theater amongst the sea of hardcore Hunger Games fans.
As we proceeded to pick up our tickets from will call, we were star struck when so many celebrities passed by. Cody Simpson, Blake Shelton, and Leven Rambin (Glimmer) walked within a few feet of us in a matter of minutes. Johanna even met Ryan Tedder, the frontman of one of her favorite bands, OneRepublic! He even stopped for a picture! However, we were disappointed that we were unable to go on the black carpet to meet with the ReelzChannel crew.
Shortly thereafter we made our way to the theater where we picked up some free Hunger Games-themed refreshments! As we entered the theater, we were amazed at how big it was — so many empty seats waiting to be filled by the stars. After finding our seats, we enjoyed live coverage of the black carpet on the big screen. It was so weird to think this was happening right outside! After some time, the moviegoers really started filing in. We spotted Leven Rambin (again!), Isabelle Fuhrman (Clove), and Miley Cyrus (who was there supporting her beau Liam Hemsworth).
Before the movie finally started, Joe Drake of Lionsgate and director Gary Ross took the stage to thank all of the hardworking people who helped with the production of the movie. Ultimately, they welcomed the three big stars to the stage: Liam Hemsworth, Josh Hutcherson, and Jennifer Lawrence (who looked AMAZING in her gold gown). Going to an event such as this really made us aware of how many people it takes to put together a huge movie like The Hunger Games.
And now what you’re all wondering... How was the movie? We absolutely loved it! It stayed true to Suzanne Collin’s novel, while still adding changes that we felt enhanced the movie experience. Since much of the book takes place in Katniss’s mind, the director had to find ways to creatively convey Katniss’s thoughts. In the film, we also get a closer look at President Snow’s role in the games, as well as Seneca Crane and the other Gamemakers. Additionally, we felt that the casting was perfect. A couple of our favorites were Jennifer Lawrence, who exceeded our expectations as the story’s heroine, and Woody Harrelson, who embodied Haymitch’s demeanor as the drunken mentor to the tributes of District 12. The movie was packed with action and emotion; we were entranced the entire time. Also, the filmmakers did an outstanding job capturing the dismal atmosphere of District 12 as well the lavish gaudiness of the Capitol. Long story short, GO SEE THE HUNGER GAMES!
Thanks again to ReelzChannel for providing us with this amazing, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! We can’t wait to go home and tell all our friends and family about our adventure! Now we can’t wait for the future release of Catching Fire!
– Caitlin and Johanna