Adaptation



Gah OMG it's just like in the book yay asjdflj;dflwj!!!!111

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I have been fervently following the progress of the movie adaptation of The Hunger Games ever since I finished the series earlier this year.  I was cautiously optimistic about it and with every little trickle of information-- casting information, the teaser trailer, character posters-- I feel more relieved and less anxious that it'll all build up to a disappointing finish.  My main concern is how the intense interior monologue of protagonist Katniss Everdeen will translate; the books are all written in first person and use present tense, which creates a lot of suspense and makes every action and thought heightened and more immediate, and much of the story happens in flashbacks to Katniss' past.  The most logical way to approach this is to use voice-over, and the teaser trailer features just that.  I just hope that there will be judicious use of voice-over and narration.

I'm forced to think back to the walk-off scene from Zoolander, and what David Bowie says: "First model walks; second model duplicates, then elaborates."  This is how I feel about adaptations.  While I love to watch movie scenes that are completely peeled from the original source material, certain changes need to be made to accomodate the different storytelling medium and enhance the experience.