After eight years since its release, the Hunger Games movie series has delivered a captivating prequel surrounding the notorious President Snow’s villain origin story. Released in the United States on November 17, 2023, this movie takes Hunger Games lovers back before the days of Katniss Everdeen and gives context as to why President Snow hated her enough to start a war.
Prior to becoming the tyrannical president of Panem, this movie shows 18 year old Coriolanus Snow navigating being a poor man within the riches of the Capitol, vying to become the most powerful man in the Capitol. Snow and his classmates are forced to compete against each other for a scholarship by becoming mentors to the tributes competing in the 10th annual Hunger Games in an attempt to make people tune into the games again.
Snow is assigned his tribute, Lucy Gray Baird, and he is first introduced to her through a video of her at the reaping ceremony. When she gets chosen for the Hunger Games she passionately sings about how she will not be broken. Snow instantly feels connected to Lucy Gray and sees her as a human, not just a tribute. Snow falls in love with Lucy Gray and does whatever he can to make sure she does not die in the arena. How far will Snow go to protect Lucy Gray? When will his good intentions turn to evil and turn him into the infamous villain displayed in the original Hunger Games movie?
Lead actors Rachel Zegler (Lucy Gray Barid) and Tom Blyth (Coriolanus Snow) truly demonstrate the love story between Lucy Gray and Snow and make
the audience feel the characters’ emotions. Specifically, Tom Blyth demonstrates the many layers of Snow and convinces the audience to see the good parts of the notorious villain.
Produced by Francis Lawrence, the Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes has already grossed $98.6 million in the United States and Canada with a worldwide total of $197.5 million. The movie has a current rating of 65% on Rotten Tomatoes but has yet to be released out of theaters.
If you liked any of the other Hunger Games movies, then this should be a movie you put on your list. There is action, romance, and betrayal throughout the film, and you are never positive what’s going to come next. All of the actors in the movie play a significant role in creating this thriller. I would rate this movie a 4 out of 5 stars only because there were a couple of cringe moments, but overall, this movie has a strong story line, and the production was perfect.
