The Hunger Games: the book VS the film

Seeing as Catching Fire is now only months away I’m going to share with you my opinion on how I thought Lionsgate did (or did not) do justice to the world wide best seller books that is the Hunger Games trilogy. The film was released in March 2012 after much anticipation from fans and critics alike; the books benefited greatly and saw a massive increase in sales and you literally couldn't turn anywhere without being reminded that something big: something that could reach Harry Potter big was about to land on our doorsteps. As a huge fan of the books I too could hardly bare the excitement of one of my favourite books being made into a film with an all-star cast and a very promising trailer: I was not disappointed when release day came around.

Jennifer Lawrence was flawless as Katniss Everdeen the heroine in the book and really captured the character well: she was mesmerising to watch; and if her recent success is anything to go by she will be around for a very long time and Lionsgate were lucky to grab her whilst they could because I don't think that anyone could have fitted the role just as well. Josh Hutcherson who plays the smitten Peeta Melark from District 12 was fairly decent but did not have the same scene grabbing effect as Lawrence. 

In the books the relationship between Katniss and Peeta is poignant and it is clear that Peeta is in love with Katniss. However, Katniss is just playing along for the Games so that she can play off the 'star-crossed lovers' that the Capitol love and gain sponsors during the Games; this aspect of the film was disappointing. There was very little build up and almost no emotion, if you hadn't of read the book, you certainly wouldn't be hoping that Katniss would realise how much of an idiot she is being by faking her love for Peeta.

Another let down was Katniss' relationship with Rue, the small girl who reminded Katniss of her little sister Prim and who was the District 11 tribute; this was hardly developed at all, in the book their relationship and allegiance to each other goes on for several chapters and shows the vulnerable side to Everdeen which is lacking in this film. When Rue got killed, I think that in the film, it was the longest period of time that the two characters spent with each other: this should have been developed more thoroughly to get more of a reaction from the audience over the death of character that impacted Katniss’ life a lot when she was in the arena. It could have highlighted the severity and impact that these games had on normal people; it should have showed you that your innocence could be taken away from you at any moment during the Games and a child you befriended could die so very easily in your arms had the relationship been more developed.

However, apart from those two points, Gary Ross (the director) has done a pretty good job in bringing the text to life. I am somewhat curious to how Catching Fire will turn out seeing as Ross is no longer the mastermind behind it all; I do hope that the new director has taken some notes down from him so that he doesn't lose the integrity of the books that we have all grown to love. In all honesty I don't think that you can get a much better adaptation of a book than this film and if that doesn't convince you: the awards speak for themselves. 

Favourite actors, actresses, films, TV shows and books.

Favourite actors: 

• Daniel Radcliffe

He brought to life my all time favourite fictional character and therefore he will always be a very special part in my heart. I also admire that although Harry Potter is over, he has continued to work and branch away from the franchise but still completely smashing everything that he does. 

• Colin Morgan

The way that he puts so much emotion into every single thing that he does is incredible. I also really love his personality and I think he is just genuinely a nice guy. I don't think I could say enough good things about Colin. I would give anything to meet him face to face.

Favourite actresses:

• Dame Maggie Smith

I simply cannot put into words how much I love Maggie Smith; not only is she Professor McGonagall another of my favourite literacy characters but her part as the Dowager Countess in Downton Abbey is brilliant, she takes such a brilliant part in the show and completely steals the lime light from every other character in the shot. I also seriously admire her so much, the fact that she carried on filming the Harry Potter films despite the fact that she had breast cancer, is something you really must tip your hat off to.

• Jennifer Lawrence

Seriously though when have you ever seen a bad film that Jennifer Lawrence has been in? Never.

• Emma Watson

She completely is Hermione Granger and she flies the flag high for all of the nerds. I love how much she loves acting and not only was she brilliant in Perks but it just shows that actually, yes, she can be a diverse and brilliant actress, who is such an incredible role model for young girls.

Favourite books:

(I am excluding Harry Potter from this one, but if you want to read why it is my favourite of all time click here)

• The Hunger Games (series)

Its a crazy popular book for a reason: It has some truly brilliant writing and anything that has such a big franchise as The Hunger Games; deserves to be credited. This series is the type where I can see myself re-reading them for years and years to come. 

• The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Totally cliché of me I know: However, this book seriously captures the crappy and the good parts of being a teenager and shows the vulnerable experiences of 'teenhood' that we find so hard to describe brilliantly.

• The Woman in Black

How a book can scare me so very much I will never know however, this book captures your heart in your mouth so brilliantly that you can literally envision the Woman In Black creeping up behind you. (argh, it still sends shivers down my spine) Definitely don't read before bed!

• Here Come the Girls

A completely harmless, obvious but such a feel good book that whenever I am cheesed off  is one of the first books I pick up off my shelf. If you have been on a cruise before then you will love this book as it is all described so well you can just imagine yourself on the boat with the girls in the story.

Favourite films:

(again excluding Harry Potter)

• Any and all Disney films

I couldn't name all of my favourites because to be honest I just love them all and so if you put a Disney movie on I will quite happily sit there and watch it. Although my absolute favourites include Tangled, The Lion King, Finding Nemo and Monsters INC.

• Just Go With It

Yes, its a chick flick and obviously the two main characters fall in love at the end; but with Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler in it then you really cant go wrong. It's light hearted and funny and is just a generally good film to watch with anyone.

• The Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror

Another Disney film, but an old one. In fact the ride at Disney is based on this film and I do believe that they used the very same ride as a set (although I could be making that up, I'm not too sure). Anyway, its not scary at all (it is a Disney film after all) but its a film I never tire of watching, my only problem is that I cant find it on DVD anywhere! *sad face*

Although I have only listed three, I am a major movie junkie and will watch probably anything that you sit me down in front of, just hand me some food and I'm set!

Favourite TV shows:

• Merlin

Possibly and this is a very bold statement but I think Merlin could be my favourite TV show of all time *gasp*. It will come as no surprise to you all of course, but I just simply love it and my love for the characters, plot, actors and the clear affection between the cast both on and off screen is getting slightly ridiculous. (read more about why I like it here in a five series review)

• Downton Abbey

I simply cannot stress to you how much I love Downton, its one of those shows that should be boring but is so exciting and just amazing that you simply cannot stop watching. I am craving series four extremely badly right now after the cliffhanger on the Christmas episode (which I reviewed here). It is a program for everyone and is only going from strength to strength.

• Doctor Who

More so the older ones from series one to about series 5, but I am still enjoying the show a lot despite some dodgier ones in the most recent series'. I don't really need to go too much into detail because I'm pretty sure every human in the world has at least seen one episode of it!

• Call the Midwife

Again, very much the same as with Downton but I really just cant seem to get enough of this kind of show. It really warms my heart and again here is review I have done of the show previously.

So thats it for now, but I will be doing another post shortly on more things that are my favourites (link to follow).

A lesson in Tumblr: OTPs and BROTPs

Today, I'm going to go all Tumblr on your ass. For those of you that (have a life) don't have a Tumblr, OTP stands for "one true pairing" and basically means that you ship (want two people/characters to be together more than is considered normal) and Brotp is exactly the same thing, only minus the romance and you just love the friendship of the two characters/people. Being as big of a fangirl as I am I have developed many OTPs and Brotps over time. If you are reading this post and thinking I'm crazy, I'm pretty sure that if you really thought about it you 'ship' people exactly the same as me, you just haven't really thought about it and lead a normal life, where things like this don't really affect your day to day activities....

So to present this to you in the most organised way possible I am going to show you my otps/brotps from each of the fandoms that I am in.

Harry Potter

OTPs 

Romione- Ron and Hermione

Hinny- Harry and Ginny 

(only in the book, the film pairing is just awkward and makes me cringe)

Remus and Tonks

Neville and Luna

Doesn't happen in the books but I love that it does in the film

BROTPs

Ron and Harry

Luna and Harry 

Hermione and Harry

The Hunger Games

OTPs

Everlark- Katniss and Peeta

BROTPs

Katniss and Gale

Merlin

OTPs

Merthur- Merlin and Arthur

Gwen and Arthur

Freya and Merlin 

(yep, it lasts for one episode, but seeing Merlin truly fall in love melts my heart)

BROTPs

Gaius and Merlin

Basically all the knights with each other and with Merlin as well

Sherlock

OTPs

Johnlock- Sherlock and John

Sherlolly- Sherlock and Molly

BROTPs

Sherlock and Mrs Hudson

Doctor Who

OTPs

The tenth Doctor and Rose

The eleventh Doctor and Clara

Amy and Rory

BROTPs

The eleventh Doctor and Amy

The tenth Doctor and Donna

The tenth Doctor and Wilf

The tenth Doctor and Sarah-Jane

In real life my ultimate Brotp is Colin Morgan and Bradley James. I love their friendship SO so so much and it makes me incredibly sad that they probably will never act together again. *sad face*

So that's all for now folks, but I hope you enjoyed a small insight to the love that goes on in a fangirl's head.

On my birthday wishlist

So I know my birthday is in June, but my mum is seriously into forward planning and usually begins asking me around about now, so in preparation for this moment I thought I would piece together a small wish list.

The number one thing I want this year is a small tattoo on my foot. I know many don’t approve of tattoos at a young age then that’s all very well but I personally think that they can take you back to a moment in time when you were younger and have something that impacted you enough to want to get it permanently on your body, this is why it is important to get something that means something to you and not just because all of your friends are getting one (unless it’s something commemorative like a place name of your first holiday without parents etc, which is what my brother did with a few of his friends.)

I would also like a new pair of Hollister tracksuit bottoms as the ones I have at the moment are old and have gone baggy. My favourites are the skinny sweatpants that are about £40, expensive I know but they last a long time and are super comfy. If I were to get them I would get them in a darker colour than the ones in the picture, like the pair that I have now in navy.

I would also really like to have a few t-shirts from my favourite fandoms, such as these ones from Etsy which show off The Hunger Games, Doctor Who and Harry Potter. 

The tshirt links are here, here, here and here

“We read to know that we are not alone.”

                                    

As some of you may know from reading my blog, is that I love to read it is my absolute favourite past time and I get so much joy from it. I have made friends through a mutual love of reading and of the characters inside the novels; not only that but it has improved my imagination, my empathy and understanding of topics that I would never think to discuss. To some reading is a chore but to others it is a way of escapism and a way to relax, it is a way to put your emotions into something else other than your own life and for many it is a way of making people feel like they are not alone. 

As with most things I have my favourites which include titles such as Harry Potter, The Hunger Games and Divergent/Insurgent, which although all follow the same sort of genre follow completely different plots with completely diverse characters and with them all comes with fresh emotion and an experience that I've never had before. I can connect to the characters and feel their happiness, their sadness, I mourn when they die and I feel elated when my favourite characters finally end up together and get a chance at happiness (usually in these types of books their happiness is short lived but you still get the idea)

Out of the very many books I have read during my lifetime, I have also enjoyed The Fault in Our Stars which discusses an issue which could be slightly taboo and although it didn't affect me as much as it has affected the whole of the internet it was still a moving and well written book. I loved The Perks of Being a Wallflower because it related to a lot of feelings that most teenagers have but never feel the courage to speak up about. I am currently reading City of Bones and I can already tell that it’s going to be up there with my favourites once I have finished. On a softer note I have really enjoyed books written by Milly Johnson and although they are they are predictable and soppy they are great for easy reads; my favourites from her are The Birds and the Bees and Here Come the Girls, my mum loves her writing and because of this I have every book she has ever written at my disposal so when I'm feeling cheesed off they are brilliant to loose myself in for a few hours. 

For my English literature last year we were given Of Mice and Men to read for our exam and I read it within a few hours, I (unlike most of my peers) really loved the book as I am the type of person that loves to find hidden meanings and discuss the importance of the novel, I love talking about what could have impacted them to write about what they have and this book is a perfect way to do this. Due to my liking for this book I have extended my library to other classics such as The Great Gatsby, To Kill a Mockingbird, Emma and I'm even debating whether to read a Shakespeare novel.

books that have been reviewed or mentioned in previous posts:

  Perks of being a wallflower

Harry Potter

The fault in our stars

bookshelf tour