Catching Fire Movie

Recently the second book in the Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins; Catching Fire has been created into a movie to sequel the first movie; The Hunger Games. It has been a major hit all over the world and is a brilliantly directed and created movie that stays towards the same story line as the book. This movie was a joy to the Hunger Games fandom and was a great movie for those who have not read the books.

This movie starts off with Katniss Everdeen in the woods. She is with her friend Gale and they are trying to get some food for their families so that they won't starve throughout the cold months of the year. Katniss is just about to shoot a turkey when she sees Marvel; a young boy from the previous Hunger Games who she shot trying to save her ally and her friend Rue. She begins to scream and has to be calmed down by Gale. I think that this part of the movie not only reminded people of what she has been through but it showed them that she will never be the same again and that her past will haunt her forever.

Shortly after this there is a kissing scene between Katniss and Gale. This scene to me feels very rushed. It seems that the director of the movie didn't think this was such an important part of the movie as it truly was. In the book this kiss showed the confusion and the emotions that she was feeling towards her friend Gale. In the movie it is waved over as a less important part. I believe that it was not one of the most important parts in the book but I do think that it should have been more memorable.

Another thing that I found to be interesting was the fact that Katniss wasn't mocking the Capitol by being able to 'hear the force field'. In the book she says that she can hear the force field using the ear that the capitol repaired after her first Hunger Games experience. In Catching Fire she just throws nuts at the force field (which is done in the book as well as her being able to hear the force field). I thought that this should have been in the movie as it is a small way of her showing her anger towards them as she knows that if she could hear the force field then someone will be punished for giving her an advantage in the games.

The Spile was another controversial topic point in the movie Catching Fire. In the book it takes them a longer period of time to work out what it actually is. I understand why Katniss was made to seem like she knew what it was immediately (time management of the movie) but I think that they all should've sat around for a while trying to work out what it was.

A major thing that I believe was not portrayed well enough in the movie was the fact that Katniss is supposed to be pretending that she was pregnant. When the games start you completely forget that she is supposed to be pregnant. She rubs her stomach and complains about the babies health in the book but in the movie there is no reference what-so-ever to the fact that she was supposed to be pregnant. It was supposed to be a major way of showing everyone that the Capitol was cruel, unjust and murderous but because they didn't follow through it was a forgotten fact.

All in all I believe that for those who have not read the books it was a thrilling and engaging movie that really differed from other movies. For those people who have read the books I believe that it was a captivating movie that was true to the book with some minor and some major differences. I don't want to ramble on about much more as I did love the movie and I did believe that it was a fantastic interpretation of the book but those were just a few of my thoughts on what could have been included without majorly changing the dynamics of the movie.


~ Mockingjay On Fire

My Favourite Book Quotes

HUNGER GAMES

"Remember who the real enemy is."
- Haymitch Abernathy


“You don’t forget the face of the person who was your last hope.” 
- KatnissEverdeen

“It takes ten times as long to put yourself back together as it does to fall apart.” 
- Finnick Odair

“I want everyone to think of one incident where Katniss Everdeen genuinely moved you. Not where you were jealous of her hairstyle, or her dress went up in flames or she made a halfway decent shot with an arrow. Not where Peeta was making you like her. I want to hear one moment where she made you feel something real.”
- Haymitch Abernathy

“I am not pretty. I am not beautiful. I am as radiant as the sun.” 
- Katniss Everdeen

“You’ve got about as much charm as a dead slug.”
- Haymitch Abernathy

“Yes, frosting. The final defense of the dying.”

-Peeta Mellark

"And you always double-knot your shoelaces.”
- Katniss Everdeen

"Because when he sings... even the birds stop to listen."
-Peeta Mellark

“Kind people have a way of working their way inside me and rooting there.” 
- Katniss Everdeen


HARRY POTTER

"Spiders... the spiders... they want me to tap-dance. And I don't want to tap-dance!"
- Ron Weasly

"Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow,
Turn this stupid, fat rat yellow."
- Ron Weasly


"Imagine losing fingernails, Harry! That really puts our sufferings into perspective, doesn't it?"
- Hermione Granger

"You-complete-arse-Ronald-Weasley!"
- Hermione Granger

"We tried to shut him in a pyramid, but Mum spotted us."
- George Weasly

 "I suppose she thinks you don't forget your name. But we're not stupid - we know we're called Gred and Forge."
- George Weasly

"Yeah, someone might slip dragon dung in it again, eh, Perce?"
- Fred Weasly

"This is night, Diddykins. That's what we call it when it goes all dark like this."
- Harry Potter

"Albus Severus... you were named for the two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I ever knew."
- Harry Potter

DIVERGENT

"I'd only go if there was cake"
- Tobias (Four) Eaton

"We don't know what's happened out there since they put us in here, or how many generations have lived and died since they did. We could be the last people left."
- Beatrice (Tris) Prior

"Sometimes I still forget to look for the gentler parts of her. For so long all I saw was the strength, standing out like the wiry muscles in her arms or the black ink marking her collarbone with flight."
- Tobias (Four) Eaton


~ Mockingjay On Fire

Urban Legend - My Creation

For English class in my school my friend and I were told that we had to write a short recreation of an urban legend that was between 300 - 400 words. We took the idea of a young couple who were driving to a remote location without anyone knowing. We researched some ideas and found the murderer idea to be a good start. This is our draft but I wanted to put it into the world to see if one day the story will some day come back and be told to me.

This is it. Enjoy.

A young teenage couple are Driving to Lovers Lake to get some privacy from their families and friends. They were driving down an old and disused road when the engine starts to shudder and suddenly stops. At that moment the music in the car's radio is replaced by an urgent news report. The reporter said that a serial killer has escaped from the jail that was near Lovers Lake. This serial killer had an accident whilst in the jail and had his hand replaced with a hook and was looking to use it as a murder weapon. The reporter said to stay away from areas such as Lovers Lake, anywhere near the jail and to stay inside until he was found as he was highly dangerous. 

The young girl started to get scared and begged her boyfriend to take her home immediately. He explained to her that in order to get home they would have to fix the engine and he began to get out of the car. The girl grabbed his arm and screamed "No! Don't get out of the car! We can call someone to come and pick us up but please don't get out!". The boyfriend waved away her warnings and got out of the car to try to fix the engine. 

Outside of the car everything was eerily silent. The black horizon didn't seem to faze the young boy but it scared the young girl. She waited patiently and nervously in the car until she decides that he has taken too long. Just as she was about to get out of the car to check on her boyfriend he gets into the car and quietly says "I fixed it. Lets go home.".

Her boyfriend was silent for the car trip and kept looking away from her and kept his face hidden underneath his hood. They stopped at a red light on the way home and she was just about to ask him if he was okay when she saw a glistening hook protruding from his jumpers sleeve. She gasps and the hook is slammed straight into her heart.

~ Mockingjay on Fire

Technology Replacing Books?

No one reads anymore. No one holds a book in their hands, becomes attached to the characters, lets themselves become completely submerged in a book... It's sad. I love to read and go outside and be in the sunlight whilst most of my other friends like to sit inside on the most beautiful days and play their Xbox's or PlayStation's or stalk people of Facebook. People don't realise how amazing it feels to hold a book in your hands, to become so attached to a character that you think that they are real or they don't appreciate how the author makes you feel like your in the story; experiencing everything that is happening in the book.

My friend said to me today


"Why would I read when I could play video games or go on Face book?"

This was a real shock for me as I would prefer to sit in the sunshine with a good book and some watermelon and read for hours than sit inside in a muggy house with coke and a headset on. The value of books is truly unappreciated. No one understands how reading transports you into a whole new world. People think that playing video games and sitting inside is transporting you into another world? That doesn't make sense to me. Sure you could visually see whats there but that's it. You can't see any more than what there already is. When you read there's nothing stopping you from imagining anything and everything that you want.

When you read the book is your reality. You don't notice what's happening around you. You only know whats happening in the book. You get drawn in and can't get back out until some one is ready to jump on you because you couldn't hear them. You were too busy worrying about what was going to happen next.

I believe that books are not only one of my favourite things ever but they are your escape. When your friends are fighting and your sick to death of it you pick up a book and read. When you parents are fighting you read your problems away. When you loose someone that you love you read their favourite book and realise why they loved it so much; the book related to them, said the same sorts of things that that person would say and was their escape route. Books can transport you away from your problems, troubles and griefs. They take you away from your problems; even for just a moment you forget everything else, forget about your friends problems, that your parents are fighting, that you lost someone. That all becomes irrelevant. Your happy for a moment and that's all that matters.

Technology has replaced this escape route. Now people feel like they don't have that escape because their lives are being based around their phones and iPad's and whatever other devices that they have. I'm not saying that I'm not guilty of this from time to time but normally my phone and laptop are tools that are there to help me not to entertain me. I use them everyday but everyday I manage to find plenty of time to come back to this escape and forget about everything else that is happening in the world.


~ Mockingjay On Fire

My Family and Other Animals

My Family and Other Animals is a beautifully written book by Gerald Durrell. It is an autobiography about Gerald Durrells family when they moved to the Greek island of Corfu just before World War Two. This book was the starting point for both my love of animals and my love of books. It showed me the beautiful things about the small animals and I imagined these beautiful images in my mind because the words on the pages made it sound so beautiful that you wish that you were there.

The main character is Gerald himself. He tells the story of the five years that he spent exploring on the island of Corfu when he was ten years old. Gerald tells a comical tale about his adventures throughout Corfu, the wonderful people that he met that changed his life forever, his families mishaps and his animals adventures. He tells a story that every child wishes was their own, with the beautiful nature, the freedom, the animals and the laughs.

This book has changed my views on many things. It made me think about what I love about animals, what I love about books and what I love about the human race. It reminded me that all animals play an important role in the ecosystem and that each and every one of them is a beautiful creature with amazing skills. It made me think about why I love reading. It made the feel like there was something more, something that I couldn't hide from; the fact that I love reading. This book opened my eyes to the wonderous world of books, imagination, creativity and love. It showed me that books are an escape that are loved by billions. That they are a way of life.

This is and always will be my all time favourite book.

~ Mockingjay On Fire

Jennifer Lawrence's New Hair Cut

As some of you know, Jennifer Lawrence has decided to take a bold step and cut her once long, golden locks into a cute and fresh pixie cut. I was surprised to see that she has cut her hair becasue she still has to finish filming The Hunger Games Trilogy. She has told the press however that she will be wearing a wig throughout Mockingjay.
Many actresses have been taking the bold step and have been cutting off their locks but in my own opinion, she pulls this off very well. She is so young and as many older older actresses have been cutting the hair, she still makes it feel young.

Many people have been discriminating her new hair style but I think that it is a brave move. It frames her face perfectly and it is the perfect style for someone who wants to seek a fresh new look. As she is a confident actress she has the personality to pull off a unique new look like this.

When I first saw her new look I was glad to see that despite other peoples opinions she did the bold thing and went against the 'right' way. I am proud to say that she is my idol for many things other than the fact that she was brave enough to cut her hair off. She is a smart, confident and beautiful woman who does what she believes in.

~ Mockingjay On Fire

Hunger Games Theme Park

In case you haven't heard there's a rumour going around about the possibility of a Hunger Games Theme Park. Lionsgate is apparently thinking about creating a Hunger Games theme park for the lovers of the post apocalypse world also known as Panem. 

According to Jon Feltheimer, CEO of The Hollywood Reporter was the one to report about the possibility of this theme park.

He told analysts in a conference call that "We have been approached in two different territories about potential theme park opportunities, which gives you a sense of the cultural impact of this franchise."

The fact that they have been approached twice in two different locations about this theme park really shows that The Hunger Games has made a major impact all over the world. It has been printed in 26 different languages and has affected over 35 million people world wide.

I for one am extremely excited to have another theme park to add to the list of parks that book lovers can officially visit and enjoy. They can relate better to certain book characters and can experience their feelings and emotions in greater detail and can have fun whilst doing it.

If I created a Hunger Games Theme Park then this is what I'd include.

1. I'd put all the 13 districts around the Capitol. Each District would be a different part of the theme park where you can experience life in each district.
2. I'd have a roller coaster that went from district to district that eventually met up with the Capitol in the centre of the park.
3. I'd have employees dressed up as different characters from the books - Effie Trinket, Peeta Mellark, Katniss Everdeen etc.
4. I'd have two smaller sectors of the park reserved for Catching Fire and Mockingjay. These sectors would portray the wars and events that happened in these books.
5. I would have roller coasters that made you feel like you were in the arena and that you were running away from someone else.
6. I'd have mini arenas set up where you could stay for the night i.e. camping in the woods (I'd make it glamorous)

I have many more ideas but I think that this post would go on for too long. I think its a great idea though. I love the idea of people being able to connect with the characters that helped make them the people that they were today. I do realise that this theme park however wouldn't be the best for little children. I don't know what Lionsgate would do if the theme park idea did go through. I am excited and I really hope that this idea becomes a reality.


~ Mockingjay On Fire

Birds in Books

THE HUNGER GAMES

In The Hunger Games Trilogy the symbol of rebellion is simply a bird called a Mockingjay. The complicated history of the Mockingjay is what makes it such a perfect symbol of rebellion for Katniss Everdeen.

The ruler of Panem was the dictator President Snow who kept his city under control through the use of force, threat, punishment and murder. He was afraid that his city would rebel against him when they had the upper hand so he sent out a mutation; a bird that was created so that President Snow could spy on the civilians of Panem. This mutation was the Jabberjay.

The Jabberjay could repeat whole human conversations perfectly. The were sent into suspected rebel headquarters to find out information for President Snow. The rebels quickly realised what was happening and started feeding the capital lies; thus humiliating them. The Jabberjay project was quickly abandoned and was left to die by the Capitol. What the Capitol had not anticipated on however was that the Jabberjays would reproduce with the female Mockingbirds; thus creating the Mockingjay.

The Mockingjay had lost its ability to reproduce human conversarions but when it heard a melodious tune it could repeat it perfectly and beautifully. This complicated history is why I believe that it is truelly the perfect symbol of rebellion for Katniss Everdeen.

Her history is just as complicated as the Mockingjay's history.

Her mother moved from the rich part of the mining District 12 to the poorest part of the District called the Seam for love. Katniss's mother and father had children; Katniss herself and her little sister Primrose. They lived happily until her father was killed in a mining accident when she was eleven years old. This left her mother distraught. She remained inconsoluble for years before she returned to what was going to be her 'normal'. Her mother was never the same after her fathers death. At the age of eleven Katniss was determined to keep what remained of her family alive and she cared for her family ever since.

The Mockingjay was abondoned and was left to fend for itself. It rose and became a blooming population and technically rebelled against the Capitol's wishes. Katniss Everdeen did the same thing. She was left to fend for herself after her father died and her mother went into extreme trauma shock. She was left to die by the Capitol in The Hunger Games but rebelled by saving both herself and her proclaimed lover Peeta Mellark.

The were both abondoned but both rose and fought back against the Capitol. The both fought for their wellbeing and they both succeeded. These complicated beginnings of both Katniss herself and the humble Mockingjayare what make me believe that the Mockingjay is in fact the perfect symbol of rebellion for Katniss Everdeen.

DIVERGENT

Birds are also used a symbol of importance in the Divergent trilogy.

Tris Prior (also known as Beatrice in the beginning of the book) starts off in the Abnegation Faction; the faction that values selflessness. She then transfers to the Dauntless Faction; the faction that values bravery. She starts Dauntless initiation and soon realises that to officially fit into the Dauntless community she must prove her bravery through one simple act. She gets a tattoo. The tattoo that she gets is of three ravens flying across her collar bone. Each of the three ravens represents one of her family members; her brother Caleb, mother Natalie and her father Andrew. She got them to remind her that even though they are of different factions that they will always be with her no matter what.

Tris Prior also faces her fears whilst using the fear serum throughout Dauntless initiation. The fear serum induces the persons greatest fears and makes them believe that they are in a real life situation. One of Tris's fears is of being attacked by crows. In her fear she was in a meadow. She was defenceless when the crows started to attack her. I interperet this fear not only of crows attacking her but the fact that she could not fend them off or kill them. The fact that she was completely at the mercy of a greater force was what I interpereted her fear as once I had looked closely at it.

HARRY POTTER

Birds are definately are major part of the Harry Potter series.

Owls are used as a mode of communication throughout the whole series. It is how magical folk such as witches and wizards communicate with each other all over the world. They are not only a form of communication but they are also extremely close to their owners and form a close bond with them.

Harry Potter and his owl Hedwig share this bond and are extremely close friends. Owls are portrayed as loyal and trustworthy animals throughout the series. They will protect their owners from harm and all types of predators. In the book Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Hedwigs life is taken whilst he is protecting Harry from Death Eaters. This brave and selfless act of bravery from Hedwig shows the bond that is formed throughout Harry's years at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft  and Wizadry.

It shows how Harry has developed his relationships with his friends and all who support him in his journey throughout the wizarding world. Hedwig; being one of those helps to show his emotional development throughout the series. When Harry satrted his wizarding schooling in Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone Hedwig was beginning to form a relationship with Harry and the bond that they were making was the starting point for a long journey of love, adventure, death and loss.


~ Mockingjay On Fire

When Someone Asks Me Why I Love Books

I love books.

Not the books that you buy in your iPad or iPhone or your kindle,

I love the books that you buy from a book store.

 

I love the smell, texture, look, weight of the book in my hands,

the imagination that you must have to fully understand it's value.

 

I love how YOU get to visualise the main characters

to how you want to see them.

 

I love how you become a part of that book,

the connection that you have to the book.

 

I love the authors writing, the adjectives,

the imagery, the metaphors, the similes.

 

I love that feeling you get when something amazing happens,

laughing when something funny happens.

 

I love crying when someone that you love dies,

Smiling when they smile.

 

I love talking to my friends about our favourite books,

Laughing about inside jokes.

 

I love how you become a part of the book.

I love how the book becomes a part of you.

I love books.

~ Mockingjay On Fire