The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes – The Transformation of Coriolanus Snow

The more I think about this film, the better I like it.  As far as a prequel goes, I think it adds significantly to the first four films of the franchise.  I didn't like it as much as the first two movies, but I thought it was better than 3 or 4.  The film reminds me of Star Wars III, which is primarily about Anakin Skywalker transforming into Darth Vader. This film takes place about 64 years prior to the first film.  The Hunger Games was created by Casca Highbottom (Peter Dinklage), but he thinks the time for them has passed and perhaps they should be retired.  He is apparently guilty about creating them and has turned to alcohol to ameliorate his guilt.  Dr. Volumnia Gaul (Viola Davis) is now the Head Game Maker, and she is still an avid proponent of their continuation.  Unfortunately for Volumnia, The Hunger Games ratings are continuing to slide and the citizens of the Capital of Panem are becoming bored with them. Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) is from a prestigious family in the Capital, but, although he pretends otherwise, his family is broke.  Coriolanus has been chosen to be the Mentor to the Tributes from District 12 – one of them the pretty Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Segler), who is a singer/songwriter with an excellent voice.  Coriolanus convinces Dr. Volumnia to make some changes in the games in order to boost the ratings.  The first part of the film, "The Mentor," is primarily about the relationship between Coriolanus and Lucy Gray and their tenuous development of trust in each other. The middle part, "The Prize," primarily involves the Hunger Games.  The Games are much less elaborate than in the earlier films since they occur much earlier in time.  They takes place in an arena, much like the Coliseum.  The Games are still suspenseful, but not nearly as good as in the first two films. The final part, "The Peacekeeper," is slower but more interesting, since it involves Snow going over to the "dark side."  (He turns into the Donald Sutherland of the first four films.) At 157 minutes, the film is long, but it didn't drag.  If you are a fan of the franchise, you should definitely see it, and, if you haven't seen one yet, I think it's worth the trip.  The movie needs to be seen on the B.S. Bottom Line: "The Hunger Games: The Ballard of Songbirds and Snakes" has "whet my appetite" for a 5th film.