The Hunger GamesMovie Reviews

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Avg. Critic Score: 67 out of 100 Generally favorable reviews Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
13 Iffy for 13+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 100
    New York Daily News | Joe Neumaier

    As tough-spirited as fans would hope for - and exciting and thought-provoking in a way few adventure dramas ever are. Read full review

  • 91
    Entertainment Weekly | Lisa Schwarzbaum

    A muscular, honorable, unflinching translation of Collins' vision. It's brutal where it needs to be, particularly when children fight and bleed. Read full review

  • 88
    Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

    My advice is to keep your eyes on Lawrence, who turns the movie into a victory by presenting a heroine propelled by principle instead of hooking up with the cutest boy. Read full review

  • 75
    NPR | Bob Mondello

    The Hunger Games' pacing is brisk, its stakes as high as stakes get, and its leading lady engaging enough that the odds - at the box office at least - will be ever in its favor. Read full review

  • 75
    Boston Globe | Ty Burr

    What The Hunger Games does have is a game cast, a large budget well spent, Collins on board as co-writer, and Lawrence as Katniss. Read full review

  • 75
    USA Today | Scott Bowles

    The action is brisk, the acting is solid, and barring an unlikely failure at the box office, a franchise is born. Let the games begin. Read full review

  • 75
    San Francisco Chronicle | Amy Biancolli

    This is better than any of the "Twilights." It features a functioning creative imagination and lots of honest-to-goodness acting by its star, Jennifer Lawrence. Read full review

  • 70
    The Hollywood Reporter | Todd McCarthy

    As she did in her breakthrough film Winter's Bone, Jennifer Lawrence anchors this futuristic and politicized elaboration of The Most Dangerous Game with impressive gravity and presence, while director Gary Ross gets enough of what matters in the book up on the screen to satisfy its legions of fans worldwide. Read full review

  • 63
    Philadelphia Inquirer | Steven Rea

    It also smells very much like a movie with money on its mind - not altogether successfully balancing its loftier ideas with a sense of superficial whimsy and Vegas-meets-Wizard of Oz production design. Read full review

  • 30
    Wall Street Journal | Joe Morgenstern

    In The Hunger Games it's both a feast of cheesy spectacle and a famine of genuine feeling, except for the powerful - and touchingly vulnerable - presence of Jennifer Lawrence. Read full review

View more reviews for The Hunger Games on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says Iffy for 13+ Intense adaptation is violent, thought-provoking for teens.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that although the bestselling Hunger Games books are enormously popular with tweens, there's a clear distinction between reading about violence and seeing it portrayed on screen. Developmentally, the 10- to 12-year-olds who've read the book may find the movie's visceral, sometimes bloody teen-on-teen violence upsetting -- especially the brutal scene that opens the Games, in which several teens are slaughtered by their fellow contestants. Even young teens need to be mature enough to deal with the 20+ deaths in The Hunger Games; characters are viciously dispatched with various weapons -- including spears, arrows, and swords -- as well as by having their necks broken, their skulls cracked, and their bodies ravaged by carnivorous and poisonous creatures. Despite the violence (which is, overall, less graphic than the novel's descriptions but is still very intense), the movie explores thought-provoking themes about reality television, totalitarian government, and screen violence as entertainment. And Katniss, the main character, is a strong heroine who's resourceful, selfless, and a true survivor. Her mentor, Haymitch, is initially depicted as a cynical drunk, but he ultimately proves to be a valuable ally.
  • Families can talk about how the Hunger Games' "last man standing" premise (minus the actual killing, of course) compares to current reality shows. Which shows pit people against each other? Why is it so much fun to watch the alliances and the voting off and the cattiness of these programs? How far do you think shows like this could go?
  • Use the movie's depiction of Panem -- particularly the relationship between the Capitol and the 12 districts -- to discuss how much kids understand about totalitarian governments and dictatorships. What does President Snow mean when he says he doesn't root for "underdogs"? Or that too much hope is a dangerous thing?
  • How does Katniss compare to other female protagonists in young adult books and movies? What are her views on love, marriage, and kids, and how are they tied to the unimaginably dire circumstances she endures?
  • Why are there more bleak portrayals of the distant future than optimistic ones? What are some other books and movies that feature a post-apocalyptic or post-war future?
  • How does the movie compare to the book? What are the main differences? Is it different to see violence rather than to read about it? 
The good stuff
  • message true3 Positive messages: Thought-provoking, complex messages. Teamwork and loyalty are valued, but deception and artifice are also rewarded. The will to survive, the fragile relationship between a dictatorial government and its oppressed people, rebellion as a preferred option to obedience, and the distinction between image and reality are all addressed. There are many discussion-worthy themes in the movie, and they touch on everything from the micro/personal to the macro/political. 
  • rolemodels true4 Positive role models: Katniss is a strong, resourceful, capable young warrior who looks after those she loves. Her entire journey is based on a selfless decision to take her younger sister's place in the Hunger Games. Despite the horrific circumstances that she and Peeta are forced into, they find a way to stay true to themselves and protect each other (and, in Katniss' case, Rue). Peeta encourages Katniss to not let the Capitol make her a pawn in their game. Gale, Katniss' unconditional friend, promises to provide for her family in her absence. Haymitch is a flawed but ultimately committed mentor to Katniss and Peeta; Cinna offers Katniss sympathy and support.
What to watch for
  • violence false4 Violence: As in the book, The Hunger Games' central "pageant" is a televised battle to the death: 24 children between the ages of 12 and 18 (12 girls, 12 boys) are selected to participate in a bloody reality show-style contest in which there's only one victor. There's a pervasive sense of peril and tension, and once the Games start, there's an immediate bloodbath, with vicious weapon use, a fair amount of blood, and several dead bodies -- though the quick editing means that the most gruesome bits aren't lingered on. The young combatants proceed to die from spears, arrows, knives, deadly insect bites, attack by genetically modified dog-like creatures, and poisonous berries (some deaths occur off camera). A couple of the tributes also have their necks snapped or heads bashed. The Gamemakers purposely devise situations to try and kill off characters, including a scary fire with fireball projectiles; another scene has a large explosion. Katniss is badly burned; Peeta has a nasty knife injury. Earlier in the movie, there are scenes of characters practicing with weapons and demonstrating their deadly skills, as well as gory snippets of footage from earlier Games. Scenes of a riot and subsequent retaliation by government forces.
  • sex false1 Sexy stuff: Peeta reveals that he's had a crush on Katniss since they were kids, and the two kiss a couple of times, one time pretty passionately.
  • language false1 Language: Very infrequent use of words like "damn," "hell," and "oh my God" (as an exclamation).
  • consumerism false1 Consumerism: No product placements in the film, but the viral marketing and merchandise tie-ins for the movie (and books) include a line of themed nail polish, as well as apparel, jewelry, games, and more.
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false2 Drinking, drugs and smoking: Haymitch is often drunk; he has a drink in his hand for the first half of the movie -- though as he gains focus/motivation, he drinks less. Several dinner and party scenes show adults and teenagers drinking various brightly colored beverages/cocktails.
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