catching fire victory tour scene

Victory Tour (74th HG)

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Victory Tour poster

The Victory Tour for the 74th Hunger Games celebrated co-victors Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark . It began in District 11 , cycled through all of the other districts , and ended in District 12 , Katniss and Peeta's home district.

• 1 Participants
• 2.1 District 11
• 2.2 District 10–4
• 2.3 District 3
• 2.4 District 2
• 2.5 District 1
• 2.6 The Capitol
• 2.7 District 12
• 4 References

Participants [ ]

The 74th Hunger Games victors Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark were featured on the tour . They were accompanied by their mentor , Haymitch Abernathy ; their escort , Effie Trinket ; their stylists , Cinna and Portia , and their prep teams — Katniss's consisting of Flavius , Octavia , and Venia .

The Tour [ ]

District 11 [ ].

District 11 was the first stop in the nationwide tour. Katniss noted on her way in how high the watchtowers were, how great the security was, how scarce the people were, and how shabby the houses looked (even compared to those in the Seam ).

The Victory Tour arriving in District 11.

After leaving the train , the team and victors were forced into an armored truck. Once they arrived at the Town Square, they realized that only a very small portion of the town was present; most of the rest were completing the harvest. A small platform was erected at the bottom of the stage for the dead tributes' families.

District 11

The mayor gave a speech in Katniss and Peeta's honor, and two girls handed them each a bouquet of flowers. After a scripted reply, Peeta began his personal comments about Rue and Thresh , then added that he and Katniss would be giving the tributes' families one month of their tribute winnings for the duration of their lives. The mayor presented Katniss and Peeta with a plaque. Shortly before the end of the ceremony, Rue's sister gave Katniss a reproachful look, prompting Katniss to give a sentimental speech. Following this, an old man whistled Rue's four-note song and signaled the crowd to give the three-finger salute , an old District 12 ritual to show admiration and respect. Katniss was then hurried inside, but returned to the veranda to find two Peacekeepers shooting a bullet into the old man's head before the crowd. [1] Two bullets rang out moments afterward, and Katniss suspected that either one of Rue's sisters or Thresh's grandmother had been killed. [2]

District 10–4 [ ]

Districts 10 through 4 were part of the same routine Katniss and Peeta did in District 11, with the exception that their speeches were provided by the Capitol , and no personal remarks were made. Districts 8 , 4 and 3 cheered Katniss' name in vengeance and fury rather than a celebration. [2] Katniss wore a green dress in District 5 , which Annie Cresta , a District 4 victor, later wore at her wedding . [3]

Katniss in District 3

District 3 [ ]

For the District 3 male , only one woman—presumably his mother—was present, while four of the District 3 female 's relatives attended. [4] District 3 was one of the districts that cheered for Katniss as a sign of rebellion . [2]

District 2 [ ]

District 2 was hard for Katniss as Clove and Cato , District 2's tributes for that year, could have made it home together if it wasn't for Katniss and Peeta. [2] The two avoided eye contact with their families. In District 2, Katniss wore a deep blue velvet dress with diamonds . [5]

District 1 [ ]

District 1 was, once again, "its own kind of awful" as Katniss personally killed Glimmer and Marvel , District 1's tributes. [2]

The Capitol [ ]

Katniss and Peeta at President Snow's mansion.

The Capitol appearance began with the victor interviews . During this interview, Peeta, to the delight of the people of the Capitol, publicly proposed to Katniss. Katniss had suggested this, but Peeta was quite upset as he wanted it to be real. President Coriolanus Snow made a surprise appearance to congratulate Peeta and Katniss on their engagement. During the appearance, Snow hinted to Katniss that she failed to convince him.

The Victory Dinner was held in the president's mansion . The roof had been transformed to look like the night sky, just like it looked in District 12. Katniss tried to eat some of each of the never ending line of exquisite dishes, but failed after ten tables. Flavius handed Peeta a small bottle of clear liquid, which would make him vomit in order to empty his stomach and eat more food, but this disgusts the two victors and Peeta refuses.

Katniss discovered that her mockingjay pin had become a fashion accessory in the Capitol, and a variety of items had been crafted into its likeness. Portia, Peeta's stylist, introduced the victors to Plutarch Heavensbee , who then showed Katniss his mockingjay hologram watch and said his Gamemaker 's meeting started at midnight. Although she failed to realize it at the time, this was a hint about the arena used in the upcoming Games. Heavensbee later told her that he wanted to gain her trust. [6]

District 12 [ ]

The celebrations in the winning tribute's district always occurred on the last day of the Harvest Festival . Since the Capitol threw the event, the entire district had full stomachs that night, which rarely happened. A dinner was held at Mayor Undersee's house for the victors and their families. After Katniss got ready for dinner, she stopped by the mayor's office, where she learned of the uprising of District 8 from his television. [6]

• According to The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes , the Victory Tour did not exist up to and including the 10th Hunger Games , [7] so the very first tour was Mags Flanagan 's, after she won the 11th Hunger Games . [8] This means that Katniss and Peeta's Victory Tour would have been the 64th to occur chronologically.
• In The Hunger Games: Catching Fire , Katniss learned about the uprising on the train from the Capitol back to District 12 at the end of the tour. She was walking down the hallway late at night when she came to a stop outside a control room door to watch the footage. [4]

References [ ]

• ↑ Catching Fire , Chapter 4
• ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Catching Fire , Chapter 5
• ↑ Mockingjay , Chapter 16
• ↑ 4.0 4.1 The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
• ↑ Catching Fire , Chapter 15
• ↑ 6.0 6.1 Catching Fire , Chapter 6
• ↑ The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
• ↑ MAGS, THE 11TH VICTOR - Capitol Couture
• Hunger Games
• 1 Coriolanus Snow
• 3 Lucy Gray Baird

‘Hunger Games’ 15 Most Memorable Moments: From First Kisses to Last Goodbyes (Videos)

In anticipation of the franchise’s finale, TheWrap looks back at Katniss, Peeta and Gale’s most shocking, heartbreaking and happy adventures

Katniss Shoots the Apple

In the first movie, Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) is ignored by the Gamemakers during a private session, so she takes up a bow and arrow, which she shoots through an apple in the roast pig’s mouth.

Katniss Sings to Rue as She Dies

In the first film, Katniss and Rue team up in the arena, where the latter is killed early. To honor her, Katniss covers her in flowers and sings until her last breath before displaying the District 12 salute.

“I Volunteer As Tribute”

When Katniss’ sister, Prim (Willow Shields), is selected as a tribute in the first movie, Katniss offers to take her place, spawning the most famous line of the film: “I volunteer as tribute!”

First Look at the Cornucopia

Katniss and the other tributes first step into the Cornucopia, giving us our first look at the arena in which most are sent to die.

Katniss and Peeta Make Suicide Pact

Katniss and Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) are the last remaining combatants after it’s announced that two tributes from the same district can be victors. However, a last-minute rule change negates the first, and the duo hatches a plan to eat poison berries rather than fight each other to the death.

Katniss and Peeta’s First Kiss

Katniss and Peeta lock lips in the first film after she discovers him injured and brings Peeta to the safety of a nearby cave.

Katniss And Peeta’s Victory Tour

During Katniss and Peeta’s return to Rue’s home District 11 while on their victory tour, legions whistle the Mockingjay call and raise the District 12 salute before a riot breaks out.

Katniss and Gale Kiss

Giving Gale (Liam Hemsworth) fans what they’d wanted since his true feelings for Katniss became clear, the two finally kiss in “Catching Fire.”

Katniss Reveals Her Wedding Dress

In “Catching Fire,” Katniss returns to Caesar Flickerman’s (Stanley Tucci) TV show to reveal her wedding dress/Mockingjay costume, cementing her as the symbol of the revolution.

Mags, who was Finnick’s mentor during his first go at the arena, volunteers to replace his love, Annie, when she is selected as a tribute. When Mags dies in the arena and Finnick says goodbye, hearts break in unison.

Gale Gets Whipped

Gale runs to protect a beaten-down woman from a peacekeeper, and is whipped in a public square as punishment.

Plutarch is Actually a Rebel

Philip Seymour Hoffman’s character surprised everyone when it turned out he was a rebel all along.

Katniss Sings “Hanging Tree”

In “Mockingjay, Part 1,” Katniss sings a rendition of “The Hanging Tree,” when desperate but determined denizens from the various districts blow up a dam and cut off electricity in the Capitol.

Katniss Sees Peeta’s Message From the Capitol

While captive, Peeta warns Katniss that the Capitol is coming for her and everyone in District 13. When his video message cuts out, Katniss declares, “We have to get him out of there before they kill him.”

Reprogrammed Peeta Attacks Katniss

While he was held captive, Peeta’s positive memories of Katniss were replaced with malignant ones. When he’s released and sees Katniss for the first time, he tries to strangle her.

“If We Burn, You Burn With Us”

When the Capitol bombs a hospital filled with unarmed men, women and children in “Mockingjay, Part 1,” Katniss broadcasts a message to President Snow: “Fire is catching, and if we burn, you burn with us!”

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Inside the ‘hunger games: catching fire’ premiere: the victory tour lands in l.a..

After a week of events around the world, stars Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson return to Los Angeles for the premiere at L.A. Live on Monday night.

By Rebecca Ford

Rebecca Ford

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Jennifer Lawrence Hunger Games Catching Fire Premiere

After a whirlwind world tour, the stars of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire returned to the U.S. for the Los Angeles premiere on Monday night.

Much like the Victory Tour that takes Katniss ( Jennifer Lawrence ) and Peeta ( Josh Hutcherson ) through the 12 districts after their win in the deadly Hunger Games rockets them to celebrity status, the stars of Lionsgate’s sequel have spent the past week traveling the world, with premiere stops in London, Berlin, Madrid, Rome and Paris.

PHOTOS: ‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’ Cast Shines at Glittery L.A. Premiere

The entire cast, including Lawrence, Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth , Elizabeth Banks , Sam Claflin , Jena Malone , Jeffrey Wright , Willow Shields , Stanley Tucci , Donald Sutherland , Lenny Kravitz , Woody Harrelson and  Philip Seymour Hoffman ,   and director Francis Lawrence , were back in L.A. on Monday night, walking the long red carpet at downtown’s Nokia Theatre at L.A. Live.

PHOTOS: ‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’ World Premiere Lights Up the Red Carpet

Francis Lawrence told THR that of all the stops on the world tour, Rome was the craziest.

“We were at the Rome Film Festival, and there were probably 10,000 people,” he said on the red carpet. “It was insane. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Francis Lawrence, who has already begun shooting the next installment in the franchise, Mockingjay: Part I , said the cast will head back to resume shooting right after Thanksgiving, on Dec. 1.

The director had plenty of praise for his film’s star, Jennifer Lawrence. “She’s a giant goofball, but she’s an amazing actress,” he said. “I’ve never seen somebody who is so intuitive. She just understands people, and emotion and behavior, and she’s a great read of people. I think she’s able to use that in an astonishing way.”

PHOTOS: ‘Hunger Games: Catching Fire’: Meet the Key Characters

The screams from the crowd who lined the red carpet — some of whom had been waiting downtown since the night before — were deafening when Lawrence finally arrived, showing off her new short haircut and wearing a dark gray Dior Haute Couture gown that featured a bodysuit under a textured sheer gray overlay. She signed plenty of autographs, bringing some fans to tears.

The attendance list for the Catching Fire premiere read like a who’s who of Young Hollywood. Guests included Jaden and Willow Smith , who walked the carpet hand in hand, Sarah Hyland , Joe Jonas , Ashlee Simpson , Kylie Jenner , Bella Thorne , Lyndsy Fonseca , Chord Overstreet , Kiernan Shipka and Liam’s brother Luke Hemsworth .

In the theater, Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer took the stage to greet the enthusiastic crowd.

“I should say, ‘Welcome, welcome, welcome,'” he said, giving a tip of the hat to Effie Trinket’s (Banks) infamous greeting.

STORY: Hunger Games: Catching Fire’: 5 Most Anticipated Scenes

“It’s great to see so many friends here tonight. As a matter of fact, I didn’t know I had so many friends until I started getting phone calls last week from people looking for tickets for tonight,” continued Feltheimer, getting a laugh from the crowd.

“After a long week of premieres in London, Paris, Berlin, Madrid and Rome, we’re back here in the Capitol,” he said, before thanking the fans for their enthusiastic support.

Feltheimer then welcomed Francis Lawrence to the stage, who went on to call the cast onto the stage. Banks, who had worn a long, bright orange Atelier Versace gown on the red carpet, had changed into a shorter dress for the screening and afterparty. When Claflin took the stage, he did a quick jump and heel-click in the air, followed by a small stumble.

The crowd at the screening was a boisterous one, especially from the back half of the theater where most of the die-hard fans were sitting. They squealed, squirmed and shrieked at various points during the film, letting loose especially loud cries when Katniss would kiss one of her love interests.

VIDEO: Jennifer Lawrence Comforts Crying Fan in Wheelchair at ‘Catching Fire’ Premiere

After the screening, the stars and other moviegoers walked across the street to the afterparty held in a large tent in the upper parking lot. At the tent’s entrance, several well-built drummers greeted the crowd as they walked the short red carpet into the party.

Inside was a setup that would have made the most fashionable citizens of the Capitol jealous. White roses (a nod to President Snow) were everywhere, in large vases on the tables and floating in giant columns of water. Models dressed in Capitol Couture roamed the party, taking photos with attendees. Around the outer section of the tent were dinner buffets featuring roasted vegetables, mashed potatoes, mushroom ravioli, green beans and braised beef. Underneath the many spotlights lighting the room were dessert buffets as lavish as in the film, stacked with cake pops, macaroons and banana cream pie.

The only thing missing from the afterparty were a few of the stars — Jennifer Lawrence, Hemsworth and Hutcherson did not attend because they would be flying to New York early the next morning for their final stop on the Victory Tour, a New York media day and then a screening on Wednesday. Additionally, Lawrence was feeling a bit sick, likely due to her taxing promotional schedule.

But plenty of attendees gathered around Claflin, who plays the handsome Finnick in the film, to ask for photos, while Banks and Harrelson — wearing jeans and a baseball hat with his suit coat — stayed until nearly midnight.

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire opens in the U.S. on Nov. 22.

Email: [email protected] Twitter: @Beccamford

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Movie Review

Striking Where Myth Meets Moment

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By Manohla Dargis

• Nov. 21, 2013

When “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” opens, its lethally resourceful teenage heroine, Katniss Everdeen, is crouching in a forest, surveying a terrain as pristine as the one once scouted by American Indians. However pastoral, this isn’t the forest primeval but the very edge of free land outside the impoverished zone in which Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) and her relatives, friends and the other starved souls labor for Panem, the authoritarian state built on the ruins of North America after a catastrophic war. It’s here that she hunts game to feed her family and where this startlingly new pioneer — with her bow and arrows, leather jacket and boots, primitive individualism and totally awesome strength of character — was forged.

“Catching Fire” is the follow-up to “ The Hunger Games ” and the second in what will be four movie adaptations of Suzanne Collins’s fantastically successful book trilogy. (The studio behind the series, Lionsgate, is splitting the final book into two flicks.) It’s largely satisfying as far as screen adventures go, and comes fully loaded with special effects and action scenes, and embellished with the usual brand-name character actors, including the new arrivals Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jeffrey Wright and Amanda Plummer. It also has a different director, Francis Lawrence (replacing Gary Ross), who showed he knows his way around the post-apocalypse with the Will Smith vehicle “ I Am Legend .” (Given Katniss’s increasingly valiant trajectory, that title would have been apt for this dystopian romp.)

A thrillingly atypical heroine, Katniss is the heart, soul and bloodied embodiment of the series and the primary reason that both the book and screen versions soar above the usual adventure-fiction slag heap. Like most cultural sensations, which invariably owe part of their success to their recognizability (familiarity breeds revenue), “The Hunger Games” builds on stories deep in our collective databanks, from the Greek myth of the Minotaur to the fall of Rome, and “Survivor,” the seemingly indestructible reality TV franchise. Like the 2000 Japanese movie “Battle Royale,” to which it bears some resemblance, “The Hunger Games” works because it hits that sweet spot where classical myth meets contemporary anxiety to become a pop mind-blower.

Like a lot of middle sections, “Catching Fire” at once expands on the first part of the series and functions as a feature-long teaser for what will happen next. Shortly after the movie gets going, after Katniss has stashed away a rabbit from one of her snares and cozied up to Gale (Liam Hemsworth), one of her uneasy love interests (she’s the reluctant party), she is sent on a victory tour with the second one, Peeta (Josh Hutcherson). In the first “Hunger Games,” Katniss and Peeta won the annual contest of the title, a match that pits a girl and a boy, 12 to 18, from each of the 12 Panem districts against one another in a battle to the death, a setup that speaks to its young adult fans and takes adolescent bullying to gladiatorial extremes.

Metaphors aside, the games are principally a heavy stick that Panem, led by President Snow (an amused Donald Sutherland), uses to keep the progressively restive populace in check. President Snow is the big bad daddy of the series, the patriarchal heavy whom Katniss — who more or less took her own father’s place, after he died — is destined to overthrow. Something is in the air, she realizes in “Catching Fire,” when she glimpses seditious graffiti and other signs of dissent.

For now, though, as the story builds and builds and sometimes drags, and the studio squeezes the franchise for all it’s worth, Katniss primarily needs to irritate Snow, which finds Ms. Lawrence throwing variations of her scowl in Mr. Sutherland’s direction, while his caterpillar eyebrows jitterbug above his trademark silky-sinister smirk.

The script , by Simon Beaufoy and Michael deBruyn (a pseudonym for the screenwriter Michael Arndt), effectively distills the novel to the essentials from Katniss and Peeta’s victory lap, which involves a visit to the Capitol and the other districts, includes batted lashes and chaste kisses, and finally leads to the main event: a new round of games that pits past winners against one another in an ultimate death match called the Quarter Quell.

There, on a simulated island created by the new head gamemaster (an uncomfortable-looking Mr. Hoffman), Katniss and Peeta make friends as they fight foes and endure buckets of blood, poisonous fog, shrieking monkeys and, in a scarily visceral scene, birds that mimic the voices and screams of the combatants’ loved ones, as if they were under torture.

Mr. Lawrence gives “Catching Fire” a tougher, less sentimental feel this time around — there appears to be more kissing but less mooning about — that fits the material and Ms. Lawrence’s gift for projecting unaffected indomitableness. The actress is more expressive here than she was in the first movie, where her lack of convincing affect, including clenching fear, was at odds with the violent stakes. There’s no indeterminacy here, either in her performance or the direction, which both go a long way to clarifying Katniss and turning a girl with a bow into the charismatic figure she was always meant to be. (It’s nice, too, that the consistently appealing Elizabeth Banks, as the kaleidoscopic kook Effie Trinket, is allowed to deliver an actual performance this time.)

“Catching Fire” isn’t a great work of art but it’s a competent, at times exciting movie and it does something that better, more artistically notable movies often fail to do: It speaks to its moment in time. “The mythic America,” the literary critic Leslie Fiedler memorably wrote, “is boyhood.” One of the things that “The Hunger Games,” on the page and on the screen, suggests is that the myth is changing. Boys (and men) are still boys, of course, including in movies, but the very existence of Katniss — who fights her own battles, and kisses and leaves the boys, only sometimes to save them — suggests cultural consumers are ready for change, even if most cultural producers remain foolishly stuck in the past. It’s unlikely Katniss will lead the real revolution the movies need, but a woman can dream.

“The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” is rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned). Murder and mayhem.

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'The Hunger Games: Catching Fire': Feast your eyes on Finnick Odair

The latest Victory Tour portrait serves up another dose of man candy.

Winner of the 65th Hunger Games, District 4 victor Finnick Odair (Sam Claflin) may be known for keeping secrets, but it seems he has a hard time keeping his clothes on. In his poster, Finnick wears combat boots, wide-legged pants and a gauzy shirt with a deep V-neck, which gives us a sneak peek at his bare chest. Not bad, but I’m interested to see his outfit for the Tribute Parade, which is described in the book as “a golden net that’s strategically knotted at his groin so that he can’t technically be called naked, but he’s about as close as you can get.” Hope the studio sprung for a trainer to help get Claflin ready for his big reveal.

Feast your eyes:

Follow Bronwyn on Twitter: @BronwynBarnes

‘Catching Fire’ star Sam Claflin on Finnick’s sugar cube scene: ‘I was definitely prepared to do anything’ — EXCLUSIVE

‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’: Katniss’ wedding dress designer revealed

‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’: See Peeta’s new look and more Capitol portraits

‘Dragon Tattoo’ costume designer signs on to ‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’

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I'm A Diehard "Hunger Games" Fan, So Here Are The Moments I Think Are Way Better In The Movies And Wayyyyy Better In The Books

The poison fog movie scene in Catching Fire still bothers me because there's no way THE Katniss Everdeen would ever wait to touch mysterious fog to know if she should run (hello, she's smart!)

BuzzFeed Staff

It's wild to think that the last time a Hunger Games film came out was eight years ago! I've seen and read the entire series: The Hunger Games , The Hunger Games: Catching Fire , The Hunger Games Mockingjay Part 1, and The Hunger Games Mockingjay Part 2 dozens of times and I always find something new to love (Also, yes, I still cry at Rue's death).

With the upcoming release of the hunger games prequel the ballad of songbirds and snakes in november, it's the perfect time to rewind and pick apart six moments that were better in the hunger games films and six that were better in the books, so let's get started, 1. better in the movie: the start of the games/cinna's death in the hunger games: catching fire.

Cinna's death which transitions into the beginning of the Games is one of the best scenes of Catching Fire . Jennifer Lawrence's emotional range is INCREDIBLE as she screams out for her friend as she's lifted into the Games (you can literally FEEL her desperation). 

Cut to Katniss entering the Games — the cinematography in this scene is *chef's kiss* as the camera spins around Katniss to convey her feeling of disorientation.

The close-up shot as Katniss shakes off her pain to focus on survival is so intense, especially as the countdown is heard in the background. This scene is dramatic, suspenseful, and an absolute 10/10!

2. BETTER IN THE BOOK: When Thresh saves Katniss’s life in The Hunger Games

 In the movie, Thresh is brief and says, "Just this time Twelve, for Rue!"

In the book, Thresh and Katniss discuss her actions involving Rue's death and he contemplates letting her go, which makes the moment more emotional and heartfelt.

"'We teamed up. Blew up the supplies. I tried to save her, I did. But he got there first' I say. Maybe if he knows I helped Rue, he won't choose some slow sadistic end for me. 'And you killed him?' he demands. 'Yes I killed him. And buried her in flowers,' I say. 'And I sang her to sleep.' Conflicting emotions cross Thresh's face. He lowers the rock and points at me, almost accusingly. 'Just this one time, I let you go. For the little girl. You and me, we're even then. No more owed. You understand?'"

3. BETTER IN THE MOVIE: The victory tour in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

This scene was the first sign of rebellion and an important moment in both the book and the movie. Seeing the close-up shot of the man who whistled first and the wide shot of the crowd raising their fingers in unison was heart-wrenching because you knew he was a goner after starting that.

In the movie, Katniss gets dragged away by guards as she pleads for the man's life (again, shoutout to JLaw's acting)

The movie showing Katniss and the man being dragged away by Peacekeepers at the same time makes this moment that much more dramatic because she knows one of them is about to die. 

The main difference between the book and the film is that in the film, Katniss watches as the man is executed for his rebellious actions.

In the book, Katniss only hears the sound of gunshots and assumes what has happened to the man. The film creates an "uncensored" version of this scene, making this moment that much more significant to Katniss.

4. BETTER IN THE BOOK: The poison fog scene in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

In the book, Katniss smells the fog's odor and immediately knows it's poisonous which is much more realistic than in the movie when she waits for it to get close enough to actually touch it. (Hello, she's Katniss Everdeen, she's smart!)

5. BETTER IN THE MOVIE: Peacekeepers punishing Gale in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Oh Gale, we love you! In the movie, Gale tackles the head Peacekeeper (a SERIOUS offense) for hurting an innocent woman. 

This causes him to be sent to the square for lashings because the Peacekeeper wants REVENGE. (In the book, Gale is punished for getting caught poaching a wild turkey, which is way less exciting).

Katniss stands in front of Gale to protect him from the Peacekeeper but gets threatened with a gun (in the book it was just a whip), which proves she is willing to die to protect Gale.

In the movie, Haymitch takes a smarter approach and pleads with the Peacekeeper for mercy (in the book Haymitch threatens the Peacekeeper). The Peacekeeper ends up releasing them with a promise that if it happens again, they will be executed in the square. 

6. BETTER IN THE BOOK: Boggs's death/black wave in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2

In the movie, Boggs dies moments after his legs get blown off and tells Katniss to kill Peeta BEFORE Peeta turns violent. In the book, Boggs's legs get blown off from the bomb, but he is still alive when the team drags him away from the black wave attack. AFTER he witnesses Peeta kill a member of their own team, he tells Katniss to kill Peeta to complete her mission, which makes so much more sense! 

7. BETTER IN THE MOVIE: The "If we burn, you burn with us" speech in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1

Katniss and Gale see the hospital engulfed in flames due to the Capitol's bombing right before she gives her iconic rebellion speech. 

Katniss's speech directed at President Snow is the best monologue in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1. This close-up shot of her with flames in the background is mesmerizing as she says the iconic line: "Fire is catching, and if we burn, you burn with us."

If there's one thing Jennifer Lawrence is going to do, it's deliver a monologue!

8. BETTER IN THE BOOK: The "I volunteer as tribute" moment in The Hunger Games

Where was Haymitch in the first movie's most iconic moment — the reaping scene?! In the book, Haymitch and Katniss have their first real interaction at this moment:

"Now I am truly in danger of crying, but fortunately Haymitch chooses this time to come staggering across the stage to congratulate me. 'Look at her. Look at this one!' he hollers, throwing an arm around my shoulders. 'I like her! Lot's of...' He can't think of the word for a while. 'Spunk!' he says triumphantly. 'More than you!' he releases me and starts for the front of the stage. 'More than you!' he shouts, pointing directly into the camera."

In the book, this is the start of the complex friendship between Haymitch and Katniss, but in the movie we are robbed of this interaction. 

9. BETTER IN THE MOVIE: Destroying the arena in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Katniss's scream as she releases her arrow as the lightning strikes her is all of her anger at the Capitol finally coming out and I FELT IT IN MY BONES.

This shot of Katniss being electrocuted on the ground in a spotlight makes her look peaceful, even though the whole world is crumbling around her (this whole scene was way harder to follow in the book).

And, the best shot of the entire series — Katniss being lifted out of the arena by the rebels in slow motion, with explosions all around her. So sad, yet so beautiful.

Also, shoutout to the makeup department for making a bloody nose look cool!

10. BETTER IN THE BOOK: Saying goodbye to Prim in The Hunger Games

In the book, Katniss gets visited four different times before she is taken to the Capitol, by her mother and Prim, Peeta's father, Madge, and Gale. (In the film, she is only seen being visited by her mother, Prim, and Gale). 

In the book, Peeta's father is an angel and promises to look after Prim for Katniss:

"Someone else enters the room, and when I look up, I'm surprised to see it's the baker, Peeta Mellark's father. I can't believe he's come to visit me. After all, I'll be trying to kill his son soon. Why has he come to see me?"

The book's version shows how many people truly care about Katniss and her family. 

11. BETTER IN THE MOVIE: Rue’s death in The Hunger Games. This moment still breaks me, but shoutout to Amandla Stenberg for her amazing acting as Rue at just 14?!

In the movie, after rue dies and katniss raises her three fingers towards the camera, there is an added scene (not in the book) of rue's home district watching on the monitor. the crowd raises their fingers in solidarity with katniss..

This protest scene of Rue's district fighting the Peacekeepers in the film after her death is proof that there is becoming less and less public support for the Games.

12. And finally, BETTER IN THE BOOK: When Katniss attacks Peeta in The Hunger Games

They really dialed back this mini fight in the movie between Katniss and Peeta after Peeta told the world he had a crush on her. In the film, she just pushed him up against the wall. 

"After the anthem, the tributes file back into the Training Center lobby and onto the elevators. I make sure to veer into a car that does not contain Peeta. My elevator stops to deposit four tributes before I am alone and then find the doors opening on the twelfth floor. Peeta has only just stepped from his car when I slam my palms into his chest. He loses his balance and crashes into an ugly urn filled with fake flowers. The urn tips and shatters into hundreds of tiny pieces. Peeta lands in the shards, and blood immediately flows from his hands. 'What was that for?" he says, aghast."

In the book, Katniss went OFF on Peeta, making that man bleed.  

What other moments from The Hunger Games series do you think were better in the movie vs. better in the book? Let us know in the comments!

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'Catching Fire' Ignites: The Scenes We're Anticipating Most

Production on "The Hunger Games" sequel " Catching Fire " began this week in Atlanta, and like most ravenous fans, we have plenty of hopes, dreams and fears regarding the Francis Lawrence-directed dystopian drama.

Woody Harrelson, who plays District 12 mentor Haymitch Abernathy, happily allayed many of our apprehensions , telling MTV News at the Toronto International Film Festival that the script is "strong" and that Lawrence is going to do "great." Well, phew! Thanks, Woody. Now that our anxiety is squelched, we can focus on the positives, like, which scenes we're most excited to see translated to the big screen.

As such, this week's Hobnobbing is a collaboration among the members of the Movies team in which we divulge which "Catching Fire" moment we're hungering for. Read on for our thoughts and leave your own in the comments! ( SPOILERS AHEAD IF YOU HAVEN'T READ SUZANNE COLLINS' NOVEL )

President Snow Knows About the Kiss

The scene I can't wait to see: the one from early in the book in which Katniss finds herself face-to-face with the evil President Snow. He alerts her to the fact that her Hunger Games performance has sparked rebellion in the Districts ... and then also lets fly with the news that he's been spying on her and Gale during their sexual tension-filled reunion back in District 12. Not because it's a particularly important moment -- the revelation that the Prez is a creepy peeping Tom is more unintentionally hilarious than anything else -- but I can't be the only one dying to see if Donald Sutherland can deliver his line ("I know about the kiss!") with a straight face. -- Kat Rosenfield, writer

Victory Tour Stop in District 11

There are so many awesome scenes in this book! I had a really tough time selecting just one to write about. However, I settled on the scene that still makes eyes well up to this day: Katniss and Peeta's Victory Tour stop in District 11. Try to tell me you weren't moved to tears when the entire district saluted Katniss with the District 12 gesture, and I will not believe you. I still get teary-eyed just thinking about it. And yes, there was a hint to the scene in "The Hunger Games," but I'm hoping that Francis Lawrence includes the full-scale version in "Catching Fire." After all, it does start to set the tone for rumblings of rebellion... -- Kara Warner, senior writer

Haymitch's Hunger Games

Haymitch Abernathy is a mean, take-no-guff-from-you-young-whippersnappers-even-if-you're-about-to-die drunk. He's also, under Woody Harrelson's scene-stealing control, totally loveable and the best part of "The Hunger Games." In that film, we hear all about Haymitch's former exploits as a 16-year-old champ of the kill-or-be-killed tourney. But it's hard to square that badass warrior with the blotto bozo attempting to mentor his District 12 charges. "Catching Fire" fills in the blanks, and I can't wait. As Katniss and Peeta train for the 75th Games, they watch footage of Haymitch's tactical wizardry on his way to victory. It's a short scene, yet one on which the man's entire character arc depends. Plus I wonder who will play young Haymitch. Is Aaron Paul too old? Probably. What about Jamie Campbell Bower? Or -- oh, please -- Woody going in for a "Benjamin Button"-style makeover. -- Eric Ditzian, Movies managing editor

Mags' Death

I'm a Finnick fan. Sure, he looks good armed with nothing more than a trident and a bathing suit, but there's more than meets the eye to that one beyond appearances. You really get your first glimpse at what makes Finnick tick, the kind of person he is and the types of values he holds, when Mags sacrifices her life not just so would-be rebellion figureheads Katniss and Peeta can survive the Quarter Quell, but so her dear friend Finnick can live, too. It's not just a wonderfully poetic death for an old soul; it's a moment of profound sadness for a guy who, up until that point, was little more than a walking, talking pair of pecs. I'm very curious to see how Sam Claflin and Lynn Cohen bring that scene to life. It won't be easy, but it'll (hopefully) be great. -- Josh Wigler, Splash Page editor

The Ticking Arena

It probably isn't a spoiler anymore, but Katniss heads back to the Hunger Games in "Catching Fire." Except this time, since the Games are for the Quarter Quell, the stakes are even higher. The arena that Plutarch Heavensbee (played by the fantastic Philip Seymour Hoffman) creates puts Seneca Crane's to shame, and the drama is only heightened when -- surprise! -- we find out the arena is actually a giant clock . The setting is much more fantastical than the one in "The Hunger Games," so I can't wait to see how director Francis Lawrence brings it to life. -- Terri Schwartz, writer

A Chink in the Armor

Much like Terri, I'm keen to see the vicious Quarter Quell in all its gory glory. But the moment I'm anticipating most is the arena's destruction at the hands of Katniss and a single, well-placed arrow. Early in the Games, our heroine realizes that the jungle is surrounded by an electrified force field -- with one small imperfection in its surface leaving it vulnerable. Katniss files the flaw away in her mind, but uses it to her advantage in a particularly dire moment of the Games. Recalling Haymitch's words, "Remember who the real enemy is," Katniss points her arrow not at a fellow tribute but at the "chink in the armor," taking down the arena in a manner that only the Girl on Fire could. -- Amy Wilkinson, Hollywood Crush editor

Which scene are you most excited to see? Sound off in the comments below and tweet me @amymwilk with your thoughts and suggestions for future columns!

Earlier "Hunger Games" columns

» [article id="1692963"]Fall Movie Preview: 'Hunger Games' Edition[/article]

» [article id="1691921"]'Hunger Games' DVD Viewing Party: Foxface Has Tips![/article]

» [article id="1691507"]'Catching Fire': Finnick Is Just One Casting Mystery[/article]

» [article id="1691097"]'Catching Fire' Casting: Who Is Mags?[/article]

» [article id="1690617"]'Catching Fire' Casting Rumors: What About Sam Claflin?[/article]

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Let the Games Begin: Visit These ‘Hunger Games’ Filming Locations

By Keira Ezzo

The young adult dystopian movie franchise The Hunger Games is coming back to theaters for a two-day exclusive event. The movie, based on the book by Suzanne Collins, was originally released in 2012 and was a phenomenon for young adult readers and moviegoers alike. This Hunger Games renaissance is coming just a few weeks before the movie adaptation of Collin’s prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is set to hit theaters. Here are some filming locations that you can visit to get hyped for this special event.

Spoilers ahead, but these movies are over 10 years old.

The Hunger Games Filmed in Western North Carolina

The first movie in the soon-to-be five-part series was filmed entirely in North Carolina in and around the Asheville area. In the first book, Katniss says that she lives in an area that was once known as Appalachia, so filming in these wooded areas and old, abandoned towns made for an excellent backdrop, especially for the brief period of time that she is home in District 12.

Henry River Mill Village – District 12

Located halfway between Charlotte and Asheville, this historic town was the backdrop for Katniss and Peeta’s home in District 12 . Visiting the area allows you to step back in time to see what a traditional textile mill looked like in the Carolinas . . . or it allows you to take a step into the dystopian future. The town was originally built in 1905, and in 2019, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

To get to Henry River Mill Village, take Exit 119 on I-40. There are walking tours and overnight accommodations available.

Pisgah National Forest – 74th Hunger Games Arena

Parts of Pisgah National Forest were used as the backdrop for the arena at the 74th Annual Hunger Games featured in the first film, as well as the early scene where Katniss and Gale go hunting before the Reaping. Filming specifically took place in the Big Ivy Area of the forest. The scene where Katniss finds Peeta hiding amongst the rocks was filmed here. Unfortunately, the cave they hid in was created on a soundstage .

Catching Fire Filmed in Georgia, Hawaii, and . . . New Jersey?

Whereas the first movie was filmed in just one state, the second film in the series, Catching Fire, was filmed across the United States. Surprisingly, they did not return to any of the locations in North Carolina but rather opted for another Appalachian state for District 12 and much of the Capitol. And when they needed snow, they headed north to the Garden State.  

Atlanta, Georgia – Victory Tour and Pre-Show

Atlanta was used to film much of the time the victors  spent in the Capitol. The Atlanta Marriott Marquis is where they filmed that elevator scene between Katniss, Peeta, Haymitch, and Joanna. The Victory Banquet at President Snow’s home was actually filmed at Swan House at the Atlanta History Center—and it is just as breathtaking in real life as it is in the movie. You can even walk around in the Mansion Gardens , which are kept in immaculate condition.

Ramapo Mountain State Forest – Snowy District 12

Though the Appalachian Mountains do not cross into New Jersey, there are a variety of beautiful locations that receive a decent amount of snow during the winter months. The opening scenes of Catching Fire were filmed in Ramapo Mountain State Park , which is near the New York-New Jersey border in Bergen County. Filmmakers also used shots of the New York City skyline for the Capitol.

Oahu’s North Shore – The Quarter Quell Arena

The 75th Annual Hunger Games Arena is vastly different from the one Katniss and Peeta see the year before. Rather than being in the middle of the woods—an area that Katniss is very comfortable in—they are sent to a tropical climate. For the clock-inspired arena, the crew needed access to the ocean and jungles. Much of the arena scenes were filmed at the Turtle Bay Resort in Oahu.

Mockingjay Parts 1 and 2 Filmed in Paris and Berlin

When the third film, Mockingjay, begins, Katniss has been saved from the Arena and is in hiding in District 13, which has been built up after being bombed, although much of it is underground. Many of the scenes in District 13 were filmed on a soundstage, but many other shots of the Capitol—as well as many other districts—were filmed throughout several old cities in Europe.

Berlin – Districts 2 and 8

Berlin Tempelhof Airport and Rudersdorf were used as the backdrops of District 2 and District 8 in Mockingjay Part 2 . Berlin Tempelhof Airport and the park were designed to look like the area had been bombed and served as the background for battle scenes. Rudersdorf is located just outside of Berlin and has a variety of abandoned buildings that the crew filmed in and used as factories for aircraft in District 8.

Château de Voisins – President Snow’s Home

Though the exterior of President Snow’s home is located in Georgia, the interior scenes were filmed at the Chateau de Voisins in Saint-Hilarion, just outside of Paris, France. The stately château served as the perfect backdrop for the chilling scenes filmed there between President Snow and Katniss.

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10 Most Memorable 'Hunger Games' Scenes

I t's been 15 years since Suzanne Collins created one of the biggest sensations of the 2010s. At the height of the young adult dystopia craze, The Hunger Games was arguably the most popular franchise of its time. Before the true heyday of the MCU and Star Wars still dormant, Jennifer Lawrence led this quartet of films to worldwide acclaim.

Ahead of the release of the new prequel The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes , let's take a look back at some of the most memorable and iconic scenes from the original series. Be it an action spectacle or a tragic death , these moments were burned into our hearts and minds like the girl on fire herself.

The Quarter Quell Interview

Catching Fire is one of the best sequels of the past decade, and scenes like this are why. With all the tributes furious to head back into the arena for the Quarter Quell, the interviews with fan favorite Caeser Flickerman, played by the great Stanley Tucci , incite some climactic moments for all the Capitol to see.

From another fashion masterwork from designer Cinna ( Lenny Kravitz ) with his wedding dress that transforms in flames to a mockingjay for Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) to Johanna's ( Jena Malone ) bleeped outburst, this scene ratcheted up the stakes for the 75th Hunger Games. After Peeta ( Josh Hutcherson ) tells the lie that Katniss is pregnant to try and get sympathy from the viewers, seeing all the tributes stand hand in hand as the audience yells out to cancel the games was a thrilling scene of tension.

Victory Tour

After going off-script during Katniss and Peeta's victory tour for winning the 74th Hunger Games, Katniss gives a tearful eulogy to her fallen ally as she looks out towards Rue's family. The crowd solemnly raises the three-finger mockingjay salute, but the old gentlemen who raised the salute first is taken by peacekeepers and shot dead to Katniss' horror.

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This scene is vital in depicting the cruelty of living under the rule of President Snow ( Donald Sutherland ), especially outside the arena of the games. The world building this scene achieves with expanding beyond the Capitol and District 12 is of vital importance to establishing the setting of Panem. Few scenes incite the goosebumps this does when the look of sadness, shock, and anger spread across Katniss' face, marking this a stellar showcase to why Jennifer Lawrence is one of the best actors of her generation.

Peeta Attacks Katniss

After being apart for the entirety of Mockingjay Part 1 , the reunion of Katniss and Peeta was striking... literally. After being rescued by Gale ( Liam Hemsworth ) and other brave District 13 soldiers, Peeta immediately attacks Katniss as a result of being injected with trackerjacker venom by President Snow.

Right when you're expecting some catharsis in the film's final moments, this shocking show of violence leaves you on an emotional cliffhanger. The one motivating force in Katniss' life may just be beyond saving when the film cuts to black.

Battle in the Sewers

Katniss and company escape the sewers of the Capitol in this sequence after President Snow sends the humanoid monsters known as "mutts" to kill them. With his trident ablaze, Finnick ( Sam Claflin ) meets his untimely end, falling to his death as the mutts consume him.

One of the scariest scenes in a non-horror film, Mockingjay Part 2 found director Francis Lawrence delivering a nail-biting set piece of suspense and thrills. The despair as Katniss blows up the Holo to spare Finnick from his suffering was a tragic moment for the two friends to end their journey together.

After all the other tributes lay dead in the first film, Katniss and Peeta hear an announcement from Claudius Templesmith ( Toby Jones ), reversing the rule that two tributes from the same district can win the games together, forcing either Katniss and Peeta to kill the other.

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When all hope seems to disappear, Katniss' trademark rebelliousness concocts a plan - her and Peeta will eat the deadly nightlock berries, killing them both. Before they go out Romeo and Juliet style, the games end, anointing them both the victors of the 74th Hunger Games - since two victors is better than none at all. A memorable scene that epitomizes Katniss' intellect and drive, as well as how much Peeta both trusts and loves her.

Yelling at Buttercup

One of Jennifer Lawrence's finest moments, this scene finds her yelling at her sister's cat, Buttercup, in rage against Prim's ( Willow Shields ) death. A small scene with a lot of emotion, Katniss yells to the point of scaring the animal, only to bring her close and keeping her inside.

After four movies of anguish and suffering, this scene allows Katniss to let all her pain out. She doesn't have to play the role of a victor or a mockingjay, yet she can't be with the person she did all this to save. It's an authentically harsh scene, but one filled with humane grief and understanding.

Arrow to the Skies

Katniss remembered who the real enemy was. Taking an electrical arrow to the skies, she brings the 75th Hunger Games to an explosive finale, destroying the arena as it goes up in flames around her.

Plutarch ( Phillip Seymour Hoffman ) rescues her, with the mockingjay rising out of the games and towards her now home: District 13. A surprising turn of events that not only solidified Katniss and Finnick as true allies, but ended Catching Fire on a riveting final note.

President Coin's Death

It was all leading to this. After her ascent to become interim President of Panem, Alma Coin ( Julianne Moore ) receives punishment from Katniss in the form of an arrow to the heart. When finally given the chance to kill President Snow, Katniss adjusts her aim, taking out Coin for authorizing the bombing that killed not only countless Capitol children but Prim as well.

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Nothing prepared audiences for the whiplash of this scene. To get so close to the death of Snow only for Katniss to find a new target was stunning, leaving everyone on the edge of their seat. Ultimately, Mockingjay Part 2 is a story of war; one person doesn't create war, a system does - Katniss broke the system.

Rue's Death

The most devastating moment from the series, 12-year-old Rue ( Amandla Stenberg ) is killed during the games in the first film. As she passes away, Katniss sings her a lullaby before laying her to rest in a bed of wild flowers.

Obviously this scene leaves an impact, but director Gary Ross hits home the importance of Katniss' kindness, a key character trait that defines her motivations throughout the series. Had this scene not worked, it would've ruined the trajectory for everything to follow, coming off as gratuitous and exploitative. Instead, it's a quiet moment with gentility, tact, and heart.

I Volunteer As Tribute

The scene that started it all. At the reaping where two tributes are chosen to complete in the annual Hunger Games from every child aged 12 to 18, the young Primrose Everdeen's name is called, but not for long. Because in comes Katniss without hesitating to save her sister and volunteering in her place.

One of the most quoted lines in modern pop culture and setting the stage for the whirlwind of the story's future, this moment established the emotionally wrought yet exciting tale about to be told. This is when The Hunger Games became a worldwide phenomenon. From here on out, the odds were always in this series' favor.

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