The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes movie review

MOVIE TITLE: The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes

This dramatic movie is now playing in theaters.

RATING: PG-13

LENGTH: 2 hours 28 minutes

MOVIE REVIEW MOM GRADE: B+

IN A NUTSHELL:

We get an origin story, of sorts, of President Coriolanus Snow. What the filmmakers are able to show us in only one movie reminded me of Anakin’s plunge into the Dark Side that took place in 3 of the Star Wars films.

This movie is directed by Francis Lawrence who also directed 3 of the other Hunger Games movies. It’s designed as a prequel to the 2012 Hunger Games film. It’s supposed to take place 64 years prior.

The dramatic film was written by Michael Lesslie, Michael Arndt, and Suzanne Collins. Because they were able to secure an interim agreement from SAG-AFTRA, they were able to market the movie during the 2023 actors’ strike.

THINGS I LIKED:

Rachel Zegler is so beautiful and has such a lovely voice! She sang all of her songs live on set! I’m excited to see her in Snow White in 2025! She and fellow co-star, Josh Andres Rivera, met while filming the 2021 movie West Side Story together. They’re actually dating in real life!
Tom Blyth does a great job as Coriolanus Snow. It’s fascinating to watch the story unfold when we already know how he ends up in later films. Dexter Sol Answell is completely adorable as the young Coriolanus.
Academy Award winner Viola Davis won the role of the villain in this prequel after director Francis Lawrence saw a sinister meme of her that a fan had posted online! He thought, “That could work!” She’s excellent, of course.
I really liked seeing Jason Schwartzman slowly develop the skills he would need later as the flashy Lucretius “Lucky” Flickerman.
All of the characters are well defined and it’s easy to quickly feel something for them. The cast includes Peter Dinklage, Burn Gorman, Fionnula Flanagan, Pliny Harrington, Festus Creed, and many more.
The set designs are outstanding.
Cool special effects.
The movie definitely isn’t a musical, yet music plays a big role in the film and perfectly fits the title of the film. I didn’t expect to hear so much music in this! I know, that’s silly since the word “ballad” is in the title! I really enjoyed the musical element in the storyline. It gave a real down-to-earth feeling, and the lyrics showed us how much changed and how much remained the same in the districts.
I love that costume designer Trish Summerville included Katniss and Primrose flowers on it as a respectful nod to the previous Hunger Games movies. Nice touch!
There are several references to the previous films such as when Lucy Gray curtsies at the ceremony like Katniss did in the 2012 movie.
I haven’t read the book, but I hear it’s a very good adaptation and true to the source material.
It’s fun to see how the Hunger Games were more amateur in the beginning compared to the glossy veneer they acquired over the decades that we saw in the trilogy.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

Many of the scenes are visually dark, so it’ll be hard to see everything that’s going on if you watch this on a small streaming device once the film goes to Video on Demand.
It seemed ridiculous that Lucy Gray Baird had a beautiful, colorful, and expensive-looking dress while living in a poor district. It was pretty though!
Some of the actors deliver lines mechanically.
It drove me nuts when Lucy Gray Baird would just sit instead of run away. She seemed super cocky considering she wasn’t a very good fighter.
All of the characters looked normal, but Viola Davis was so over the top and seemed out of place. Even the rich people in the District weren’t dressed up outlandishly like they’re seen in later years in the trilogy.
While the movie is a prequel to the original trilogy, it’s not an origin story of the actual Hunger Games.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Violence with various weapons and hand-to-hand combat
Explosions and destruction
Some blood and gore
We see people die.
If you don’t like snakes, you’re going to be very uncomfortable watching some of the scenes.

THEMES:

Power
Control
Greed
Family
Trust
Sacrifice
Hope
Love
Duty

FUNNY LINES:
None. The movie is extremely dramatic and serious.

INTERESTING LINES:

“Trust is everything.” – Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth)
“It’s worth the risk to do the right thing.” – Sejanus Plinth (Josh Andres Rivera)
“People aren’t so bad. It’s what the world does to them.” – Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler)
“The world changes awful fast.” – Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler)
“Snow lands on top.” – Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth)
“It’s the thing we love most that destroys us.” – Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth)