THE HUNGER GAMES : CATCHING FIRE – (2013) – Movie Review ★★★★

Cast – Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Jena Malone, Donald Sutherland, Philip Seymour Hoffman & Sam Claflin – Catching Fire starts with Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark preparing for their victory tour throughout the country – President Snow is growing suspicious of Katniss’s true feelings for Peeta and wants her eliminated, blaming her for the recent uprising in the districts and the announcement of Panem’s third Quarter Quell, a special version of the Games held every 25yrs throws Katniss & Peeta back in the arena where survival at all costs is top of the agenda VERDICT – with I Am Legend director Francis Lawrence on-board for the sequel to 2012’s The Hunger Games and a group of actors more familiar with their surroundings and current status amongst Hollywood’s elite, Catching Fire entered rare territory by becoming a movie sequel that’s far superior to it’s original – everything from the film’s sets, the film’s urgency and the exhilarating action were far superior to the first movie – especially the District 12 sets, the poison mist and the Monkey Mutts chase scene were breathtaking – hats off to some of the newcomers to the franchise, my favorites being Jena Malone’s Johanna, Philip Seymour Hoffman’s Heavensbee & Sam Claflin as Finnick Odair all playing pivotal roles and shining when the spotlight was on – overall THE HUNGER GAMES : CATCHING FIRE does fine justice to the world created by Suzanne Collins and surpassed any expectations I had going into the theater – the third and final book is being adapted over two movies the first of which lands late 2014 and if Catching Fire hasn’t whet the appetite for what’s to come then the cannon must have sounded and your dead somewhere ready to be craned off to the Capitol….