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The Hunger Games

Play trailer 2:31 Poster for The Hunger Games PG-13 2012 2h 25m Sci-Fi Action Adventure Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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84% Tomatometer 314 Reviews 81% Popcornmeter 250,000+ Ratings
In what was once North America, the Capitol of Panem maintains its hold on its 12 districts by forcing them each to select a boy and a girl, called Tributes, to compete in a nationally televised event called the Hunger Games. Every citizen must watch as the youths fight to the death until only one remains. District 12 Tribute Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) has little to rely on, other than her hunting skills and sharp instincts, in an arena where she must weigh survival against love.
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The Hunger Games

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Critics Consensus

Thrilling and superbly acted, The Hunger Games captures the dramatic violence, raw emotion, and ambitious scope of its source novel.

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Critics Reviews

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Julie and Brandy Autostraddle 08/31/2021
[Rue's] presence gave the heart to the whole movie. Go to Full Review
J. Hoberman ARTINFO.com 02/25/2019
The Hunger Games is undeniably progressive in making its protagonist so plucky, independent, and self-actualizing a young woman. Go to Full Review
David Thomson The New Republic 06/17/2013
The film shows precious little hunger and no sense of game. Go to Full Review
Don Shanahan Every Movie Has a Lesson 10/18/2024
3/5
Collins' involvement enables the movie to retain the themes and tone of the novel while still delivering an exciting and interesting drama/thriller that works on the big screen. For those who don't know the Go to Full Review
Iván Kazi EscribiendoCine 06/14/2023
4/10
The Hunger Games is insipid. [Full review in Spanish] Go to Full Review
Sean Axmaker Stream on Demand 03/04/2023
I confess that for all my issues with the film (and there are many), I more impressed at how much it got right. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Jadan S Apr 8 While it does leave out some key details from the original novel that I would have loved to have seen on the big screen, the movie adaptation of The Hunger Games is absolutely a solid film. See more . 02/27/2025 It was amazing! The theater was great, the screen quality and audio was great. I loved seeing this in a theater! See more Romas M @Romas 2d Greetings from Lithuania. "The Hunger Games" (2012) is a movie adaptation of "Hunger Games" book series, and it is first installment. The film was very popular back upon its release (same as book), therefore as of 2026 there 5 films in total been made and 6th one is on its way. I did enjoyed all of them so far and decided to revisit each and every in 2026 - on 4K UHD. This film isn't for me best in the series, but it is a really good one. The success of this one made possibilities for sequels. Jennifer Lawrence is a front and center of this movie and she is very good here. But for me it was Stanley Tucci who stole every scene he was in. At its running time 2 h 12 min this movie barrely drags and is involving from start till finish. One big critic from my side is a camera work. During action sequences it is shaky and it's hard to figure it out what is really happening. I know this was the popular back in the day, glad there isn't no longer present for big movies in 2026. See more Dallas H. @FozzieMcFly 4d This was the first time I watched the movie in a theater. I forgot that Jack Quaid and Isabelle Furhman were in it. The movie feels like it drags on. The "star-crossed lovers" relationship felt disingenuous and forced. The numerous competition rule changes felt like a weak copout, and I struggled to believe they've been running the Hunger Games for 74 years and are flipping gameplay rules without a backbone. As for the filming, the visuals were pretty bright in contrast, the camerawork was constantly shaky, and the editing was annoyingly cut too quickly. It's like they overshot too much footage for "coverage" and wanted to use as much of it as possible in the final cut. I get it, this movie is intended for the young adult audience, but it felt too shallow and void of real substance to really dig into its storytelling. See more Jamie V @crosive Mar 6 Rue 💔💔💔 noooo.. 💔💔💔💔 See more Gabe K. @GabeK Feb 27 As a person who read all 3 of the main Hunger games books I have some takes.First the actor of Rue fits the role so perfectly with Katness also fitting her role well. Something else I did notice was that all the stuff you see (if you read the books) makes your brain go "Yo it's Haymitch" this movie is great and I will re-watch it's any time or day of the week. See more Read all reviews
The Hunger Games

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The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Cornucopia Bloodbath The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Cornucopia Bloodbath 2:19 The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Rule Change The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Rule Change 2:06 The Hunger Games: Official Clip - They Don't Own Me The Hunger Games: Official Clip - They Don't Own Me 1:33 The Hunger Games: Official Clip - The Kiss The Hunger Games: Official Clip - The Kiss 2:32 The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Rue's Death The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Rue's Death 3:01 The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Star-Crossed Lovers The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Star-Crossed Lovers 2:00 The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Tracker Jackers The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Tracker Jackers 3:03 The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Hope The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Hope 1:04 The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Shooting the Apple The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Shooting the Apple 2:04 The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Get People to Like You The Hunger Games: Official Clip - Get People to Like You 2:37 View more videos
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Movie Info

Synopsis In what was once North America, the Capitol of Panem maintains its hold on its 12 districts by forcing them each to select a boy and a girl, called Tributes, to compete in a nationally televised event called the Hunger Games. Every citizen must watch as the youths fight to the death until only one remains. District 12 Tribute Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) has little to rely on, other than her hunting skills and sharp instincts, in an arena where she must weigh survival against love.
Director
Gary Ross
Producer
Nina Jacobson, Jon Kilik
Screenwriter
Gary Ross, Suzanne Collins, Billy Ray
Distributor
Lionsgate Films
Production Co
Color Force, Lionsgate
Rating
PG-13 (Disturbing Images|All Involving Teens|Intense Violent Thematic Mat.)
Genre
Sci-Fi, Action, Adventure, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 23, 2012, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 9, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$408.0M
Runtime
2h 25m
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