The Hunger Games

It really started with Taraji P. Henson. The news had just come down that Elizabeth Banks most likely will be cast as Effie in The Hunger Games. Each new cast addition had been met by careful dissection and with apologies to Elizabeth Banks, she is not what Amy and I had in mind for Effie. I had a Catherine O’Hara type in my head while reading the book, someone that always seemed slightly exasperated. It all fit in my imagination, until Amy said, “What about Taraji Henson?”

“Damn.” I thought, “That’s brilliant!”

Those of you who have read the books, come on, you can see it right? She’s got the exasperation part down, and without a doubt, the sass required to make Effie, well, Effie. However, as the books proceed, there is a sense of gravitas that Effie needs and those familiar with Ms. Henson’s film work know she’s got that down too.

Is she exactly what was described in the books? No. So, this is where I am going to make my plea – let your preconceived notions go. What we’re really looking for on the screen is the actor who embodies the qualities that made us care (or loathe) the character right? Do we really need them to look exactly what we had in mind? Sometimes it’s good to be pried out of our comfort zones, non?

So what about the rest of The Hunger Games casting? Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss? I’m firmly on board and those of you that have seen Winter’s Bone probably know why. Josh Hutcherson as Peeta? Eh. I was on the Hunter Parrish bandwagon, but Hutcherson convinced a casting agent, so maybe he’ll win me over too. Liam Hemsworth has been cast as Gale; I only know him as Miley Cyrus’ sometimes boyfriend, so we’ll see what he has to offer. Others that have been cast so far tend to be unknowns; a strategy that I think will work well for this franchise. There are still some biggies to be cast…Haymitch and President Snow have sparked the most conversation between me and Amy. But that’s another post. So. What do you think of the casting so far?

How This Little Blog Came to Be

It started innocently enough; a conversation between two friends about a book series we both loved. “Who do you see as Katniss?” Ideas were tossed around and then the conversation took a wider turn. “What about Peeta? Gale? Haymitch? President Snow?” Offbeat suggestions were met with “Mmmm, interesting,” or “I can absolutely see that!” So our fun little guessing game started to branch out and our self-congratulatory “We’re good at this!” exclamations became a blog. We hope our fun diversion will be your fun diversion too. We’ll pick books that we think will be fun to “cast,” whether or not they are currently slated to be movies. And we’re open to suggestions! Your input makes it fun, so don’t hold back – just keep it respectful. Time to meet your bloggers!

Amy – Often lamenting “so many books, so little time”, Amy got hooked on the book after reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in 2^nd grade and never looked back. With a thirst for history, whimsy, and anything macabre, Amy also grew up on 70’s and 80’s TV making her a viable candidate for the next episode of Cash Cab.

Sarah – A lifelong voracious reader who has been often overheard saying “The book was better,” Sarah exhibited pop culture savant tendencies from an early age with an uncanny ability to recall Scooby Doo plotlines. Countless books and movies later, she has all the makings of a trivia champion as long as there are no math or science questions.