# I finally saw the Hunger Games (open spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 27, 2012, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830 "2012-08-27T15:28:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/21 "2012-08-27T18:55:54Z")
> [@Hermitian](#): > > I think I have heard of that explanation before, but that doesn’t make much sense either. How do you get multiple kids, year after year, to volunteer to (most likely) die, especially without a cause? The only benefit of winning is the fact that you attain financial stability. Since the volunteers were from the better off districts this incentive is not all that awesome (they weren’t starving to begin with). First, imagine a society so dystopian that you can’t even imagine it… ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/22 "2012-08-27T19:11:17Z")
I watched it without reading the books. The hardest thing for me to accept was the rule that there were two from each district, but there could only be one winner. But thinking about it, I can see how that is an especially calculated rule. The contestants enter knowing it’s a fight to the death, only one survivor. It’s all about competitors from the different subjugated districts fighting for the Capitol’s pleasure, so it’s not like the Capitol have their kids involved. The inherent structure means that any partnerships are fleeting, temporary things and doomed to failure because you’ll just have to kill each other eventually. Thus, it subtlely creates a subconscious impression of partnerships and cooperation among the districts. The thing is, the rebellion already happened, and the people lost. Thus the strict subjugation under the Districts. Food is tightly controlled, and there’s an ingrained attitude of “go along to get along”. It is hard to accept the people would accept a rule that their teenagers would be chosen for this combat. That the people would not rebel en masse again when that plan was announced. Must have been some defeat that installed the situation in the first place. 74 years seems a bit long. I could see the generation that suffered the defeat being cowed, the generation growing up under the rule thinking it is natural. When the people who suffered the defeat are almost entirely dead, and even the second generation to grow up under the rule are starting to have grandchildren, you would think there might be unrest. But the structure of the Districts is very tight control, no means for interdistrict coordination and communication. Hmmm. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/23 "2012-08-27T19:14:40Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > Each kid gets his/her name entered into the lottery one time, at least. If a kid is willing to have more than one entry, his/her family gets a supplemental allotment of food and fuel (and I think other goods, as well). So, if a kid is willing to have his/her name in the lottery 10 times, then his/her family will get 9 allotments (the first entry doesn’t earn any allotments). > > Plus, of course, kids are allowed to volunteer as tributes. It’s worse than that. They automatically get one entry at age 12, 2 at 13 and so on. Plus the ones for taking extra rations. Which is how Gale ended up with 42. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/24 "2012-08-27T19:17:34Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > After that long of a time, every district would have “careers”, especially if it meant food and other benefits to the district. And, the “careers” would wipe the floor with the other district kids. I’ve read dystopian books, and I guess this one just went too far for my non-reality-show watching self. Technically it’s illegal to train careers. It’s just overlooked for a couple of the districts. ---
**Author:** ![Polerius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d78d45/32.png) [@Polerius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polerius)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/25 "2012-08-27T19:34:09Z")
For me, the stupidest part of the plot was that the combatants had to be teenagers. IIRC, it was between 14 and 18. At those ages, a four-year difference is a huge deal, and a 14-year-old has little to no chance against an 18-year-old. Why not send adults? If not adults, at least why not 17-18? The “sport” spectacle would be a better one for the viewers at home. Overall, the movie for me was in some sort of uncanny valley: It looked and felt like a high-end movie (due to movie production values, etc), but the story was not that of a high-end move. The story did not allow me to suspend disbelief and immerse myself into the world of the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/26 "2012-08-27T19:58:04Z")
I have to note that I have only read the first book, and part of the second, and I haven’t seen the movie at all. > [@Antinor01](#): > > It’s worse than that. They automatically get one entry at age 12, 2 at 13 and so on. Plus the ones for taking extra rations. Which is how Gale ended up with 42. Gah. I forgot about that. > [@Polerius](#): > > For me, the stupidest part of the plot was that the combatants had to be teenagers. IIRC, it was between 14 and 18. At those ages, a four-year difference is a huge deal, and a 14-year-old has little to no chance against an 18-year-old. > > Why not send adults? > > If not adults, at least why not 17-18? The “sport” spectacle would be a better one for the viewers at home. > > Overall, the movie for me was in some sort of uncanny valley: It looked and felt like a high-end movie (due to movie production values, etc), but the story was not that of a high-end move. The story did not allow me to suspend disbelief and immerse myself into the world of the movie. If you send in “adults”, then you have a much narrower age range before the kids start getting married. And what do you do if a tribute is married? Especially if she’s pregnant, or he’s about to become a father? Or if they already have babies? As teens, they might be doing some apprentice type jobs, helping out, but for the most part they are still a burden to their families, and the more responsible teens will try to offset this burden by signing up for the allotments. At 17 or so, a teen is starting to pull his/her own weight. Katniss is an exception because she’s able to bring in quite a lot of supplemental resources, and yet she STILL has to enter multiple times for the allotments. Plus, of course, the younger kids make much more sympathetic tributes. And that’s a big part of the Games…drama. A 12 year old might conceivably win, with luck and skill. I think that 12 is the very lowest believable limit for a tribute. A very young tribute will have people watching him/her more intently, and quite possibly have the game masters nudge and tweak things in his/her favor at first. Later on, of course, the game masters will allow this tribute to win or fail on his/her own, but at first, a young tribute would whip up interest. An adult, even a young adult, might be sympathetic, but not nearly as sympathetic as a younger tribute. ---
**Author:** ![Death\_of\_Rats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a6a055/32.png) [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/27 "2012-08-27T20:06:34Z")
Because ultimately this is a punishment for the Districts. The point to it is that it is ugly and cruel and they are forced to play along that it is some great honor and celebration that they are sending off two kids to die. The Hunger Games are not about the sport they are reminding the people of the Districts thet they owe everything, even the lives of thier children, to the Capital to make up for rebelling. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/28 "2012-08-27T20:09:14Z")
There must be a limit to how many rations a district could receive, right? Otherwise, wouldn’t families in districts all convene to get more rations? What’s the difference if your kid has 1,000 “balls in the jar” if every other kid also has 1,000? ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/29 "2012-08-27T20:09:36Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > …Plus, of course, the younger kids make much more sympathetic tributes. And that’s a big part of the Games…drama. A 12 year old might conceivably win, with luck and skill. I think that 12 is the very lowest believable limit for a tribute. A very young tribute will have people watching him/her more intently, and quite possibly have the game masters nudge and tweak things in his/her favor at first. Later on, of course, the game masters will allow this tribute to win or fail on his/her own, but at first, a young tribute would whip up interest. An adult, even a young adult, might be sympathetic, but not nearly as sympathetic as a younger tribute. I think sympathetic tributes is a great way to rile up a district and start riots. “Awww, look how cute she is…Oh my god! Her head just got chopped off!” Even if they win, “awww, isn’t that cute the way the little one stabbed that other tribute in the eye? You know, she really looks great in blood red.” Just like the way the MC humanized the tributes before sending them off to slaughter, I can’t imagine a repressive regime wants that. It’s just one more item to burst my bubble of disbelief suspension. Ultimately, whatever, it’s just a kids movie. It was just so incredibly popular, as were the books, even among adults, that I guess I wasn’t expecting the plot to be so (IMO) hole-y. Thanks for letting me vent, though! ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/30 "2012-08-27T20:13:48Z")
Eh, I think that the districts are so beaten down that they don’t think that they CAN successfully riot. They think that if they riot, they’ll only bring down something worse. I wasn’t expecting anything better, though I was hoping for it. I’m nearly always disappointed when I read best sellers, I’ve found. I mean, I’ll probably finish up the second book, and possibly pick up and read the third book…but only in used editions. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/31 "2012-08-27T20:18:18Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > …I’m nearly always disappointed when I read best sellers, I’ve found… Yeah, don’t even get me started on what I thought about The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. No, really, don’t – I don’t post here very often, and I don’t want everyone to recognize me as that complaining, contrarian jerk. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/32 "2012-08-27T20:40:05Z")
BTW, in the film, at the end, the only way I think the two protagonists could really have won would have been to follow through with their suicide pact even after the game manager declared them both winners. ---
**Author:** ![Cheerleading\_Dropout](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ac8455/32.png) [@Cheerleading\_Dropout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheerleading_Dropout)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/33 "2012-08-27T21:01:55Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > Also, the alliances during the games don’t make any sense. Why would one help another, knowing that at some point, one of you will have to kill the other? The alliances are mutually beneficial for the people involved since they get all of them a bit farther in the game. This can be seen on a lot of reality TV game show type things (I think Survivor has been mentioned). Everyone knows that there can only be one winner, so they all get into an alliance knowing that in the end they _will_ take the others out. In the context of the Hunger Games, they all work together for a while, getting to know each other’s strengths and weaknesses, take out other people which is easier to do in a group, and then each person is planning to stab their allies in the back when the time is right. > [@RitterSport](#): > > Similarly, with that little girl that Katniss gets all upset about (Rue?) – she was just delaying the inevitable – either she would kill Rue or Rue would kill her. “I’m so sorry you had to die…by someone else’s hand.” In the book (spoilers from the first Hunger Games book) as far as I remember, Katniss admits to herself that she knows she or Rue would have to die by the end. She’s not sure she would be able to kill Rue if it came down to it. Just because it’s inevitable and one of the best possible scenarios in a place where there’s no good scenario doesn’t mean that she’s not going to be sad. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2012, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/34 "2012-08-27T23:53:26Z")
> [@StGermain](#): > > …By singing to the dying girl and covering her with flowers, Katniss made Rue human. And made herself human to Rue’s district. She wasn’t another brutal killer, she was someone who mourned the death of Rue, who wasn’t even from her district… Which was a huge violation of the rules in and of itself. Tributes are supposed to just leave their kills laying where they fall (after scavenging any weapons or useful supplies) for the Game staff to collect. > [@Miss\_Woodhouse](#): > > 1. the districts are “other.” Did you not see how the districts are poor and hungry, treated as lesser human beings and the Capitol had money, power, technology, and superior weaponry?.. Not all the districts are poor & full of starving people. The Inner Districts (which supply Careers) have a much higher standard of living (albeit not as good as Capitol), but at the same time are kept on a much tighter leash by the Capitol that the poorer districts and have to put up with much more fanatical Peacekeepers. The authorities in District 12 turn a blind eye to alot of things like the black market. Katniss doesn’t just hunt for her family; she regularly sells to local officials and Peacekeepers. > [@RitterSport](#): > > It’s a lottery for those districts that don’t have volunteers. Remember, Katniss was able to volunteer after her sister was chosen in the lottery. Some of the other districts have plenty of volunteers. Which raises an interesting question; presumably the Inner Districts have more volunteers then there are Tribute slots. So do they just have a lottery of volunteers or some kind of competition? > [@Polerius](#): > > For me, the stupidest part of the plot was that the combatants had to be teenagers. IIRC, it was between 14 and 18. At those ages, a four-year difference is a huge deal, and a 14-year-old has little to no chance against an 18-year-old… IIRC older children are entered mulitple times so the lotterly is weighted to select older teens (obiviously kids younger kids can still get selected). ---
**Author:** ![Pine\_Fresh\_Scent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/43a26b/32.png) [@Pine\_Fresh\_Scent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pine_Fresh_Scent)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2012, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/35 "2012-08-28T03:06:56Z")
I liked the book and the movie and like others here, focused on them as a commentary of reality TV. Can someone explain how Rue’s District 11 partner knew about Katniss arranging flowers around Rue, leading him to spare Katniss’ life “for Rue” later on at the battle over the backpacks? Unless he saw it first hand, all he’d know from the cannon and sky projection was that Rue was dead, not even who killed her. Maybe a sponsor sent him a note with that info, but I can’t remember if the book addressed that. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2012, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/36 "2012-08-28T03:35:17Z")
Saw the movie, haven’t read the books, my question is this: Did the book ever address the fact that Katniss saw Peeta with the careers, one day he’s helping them dismantle her traps and the next they’re both lovee dovee? WTF? ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2012, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/37 "2012-08-28T03:40:28Z")
> [@Pine\_Fresh\_Scent](#): > > Can someone explain how Rue’s District 11 partner knew about Katniss arranging flowers around Rue, leading him to spare Katniss’ life “for Rue” later on at the battle over the backpacks? Unless he saw it first hand, all he’d know from the cannon and sky projection was that Rue was dead, not even who killed her. Maybe a sponsor sent him a note with that info, but I can’t remember if the book addressed that. In the movie, he overhears the crazy girl with the knife monologuing about Rue as she prepares to kill Katniss. Note to the OP: I am suddenly craving chocolate… ---
**Author:** ![auRa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c4cdca/32.png) [@auRa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/auRa)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2012, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/38 "2012-08-28T11:41:58Z")
> [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](#): > > (2) I chose to watch it as a commentary on our society and reality TV. I found it interesting how much the author was able to lift from Survivor without alteration - alliances, rewards, semi-random rule changes to serve the producers. The bit where they allowed 2 winners from one district reminded me very much of how they just handed Rupert a million bucks because everyone liked him, and they were afraid that people would stop watching if he didn’t win. This, to me, actually made it a lot harder to swallow. The 9th (I think) season of Big Brother Finland just started yesterday. For the past five or six years, the contestant profile has pretty steadily been “early 20’s, from the greater metropolitan area (although usually not actually from Helsinki), interested in a career ‘in modeling’ or ‘on TV’ or ‘in show business’, works ‘as a promoter’ or as a bartender”. It’s been _extremely_ homogeneous. Also, the contestants know _exactly_ what to do to stay in the house for as long as possible: they need to cause controversy but be just funny or hot enough to not get kicked out. You know, because they need to endear themselves to the public. It’s gotten to the point now where you have 18 early-20’s bartender-hopeful-models trying to outdo each other in terms of hilariousness or “we have to keep her/him in the house just to see the crazy unfold”-ness. This is in 9 years. These are the _74th_ Hunger Games - an event which apparently is broadcast everywhere all the time to everyone - something not only these kids, but their parents and maybe even their _grand_parents have grown up with - and we’re supposed to believe that Katniss has no concept of endearing herself to possible sponsors? ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2012, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/39 "2012-08-28T13:29:10Z")
> [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](#): > > There must be a limit to how many rations a district could receive, right? Otherwise, wouldn’t families in districts all convene to get more rations? What’s the difference if your kid has 1,000 “balls in the jar” if every other kid also has 1,000? Was this obvious strategy ever explained in the book or the movie? Furthermore, the negative side of having more names in the hat diminishes if the population of a district is larger. If I’m starving, and there’s already a thousand or even a million names in the hat, there is very little downside to throwing one more of my names in the hat. A Powerball player with 100 tickets probably shouldn’t be significantly more confident about winning the jackpot than one with only 1 ticket. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2012, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830/40 "2012-08-28T13:51:47Z")
> [@Maserschmidt](#): > > Note to the OP: I am suddenly craving chocolate… Heh. Here, I’m sending chocolate thought waves your way. Enjoy! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-saw-the-hunger-games-open-spoilers/632830.md?page=3)