The Hunger Games is a beloved book and movie franchise by Suzanne Collins, recently released the newest movie, The Hunger Games Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Focusing on the original movie’s villain, President Coriolanus Snow, before he became president, or what many may call dictator, of the Hunger Games World Panem. Prior to becoming president he had the challenge of leading his tribute, Lucy Gray Baird, into victory during the annual Hunger Games. Before the games,a  representative from each of the twelve districts of Panem draw the names of a “tribute”. After each tribute receives coaching from their Panem district representative, these children then go on to fight to the death against each other while the people of Panem watch from the comfort of their homes.  

Snow’s tribute Lucy Gray is from district twelve. She is outspoken and very sure of herself but shows early on that she isn’t much of a physical fighter. Lucy Gray loves to sing and uses this as an advantage in her Games. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes shows the downfall of Snow from when he was a teenager and how leading his tribute into victory led him to become the villain he we know in The Hunger Games. 

One stand out aspect of the movie is how different the character Lucy Gray is from the original Hunger Games heroine, Katniss. The actress Rachel Zegler who plays Lucy Gray stated in an interview with Time magazine that, “ Lucy Gray is a performer forced to fight, and Katniss is a fighter forced to perform”. Katniss was a born fighter who had to learn to be presentable and perform as someone else whereas Lucy Gray loved to perform through music but was forced to fight.

 I would give this movie four out of five stars. This film brilliantly led the audience as they followed a story through many years and witnessed the characters develop overtime. I enjoyed seeing President Snow as a teenager and how a contrast can be seen between who he was and who he became due to the challenges and circumstances in his life. There were multiple obstacles that shaped his future and allowed the audience to gain an understanding of how he became the President Snow were first introduced in The Hunger Games original book and movie. I think this film stayed true to the hero’s journey that is at the heart of The Hunger Games saga. 

Even with all of these positives the movie was very long and some parts tended to unnecessarily drag on too long. That said, they were able to create new likable characters who were so different from the original series that you grow to love them. The movie shows an innocence in each of the characters at the start of the movie and how as  they develop in such a short amount of time, that small amount of innocence fades away. Overall this movie is action packed and fun to watch. I would recommend the movie to anyone.