(Spoiler alert) The supposition of the story is nothing new. The occurrence of human killing for sport/entertainment goes back thousands of years. Throughout history, mankind has proven time and time again it can be exceedingly cruel, especially when displayed in its basest form. And, yes, I realize this is fiction, and that the story is not new. We’ve seen it retold numerous times in books or in Hollywood. Yet, despite the countless hours of entertainment I’ve taken in over the years, I’ve not had this much sentiment over a film since after screening Schindler’s List in a packed-yet-silence theater. But, Schinder’s List was recounting history. This is purely fiction. So, why such a response?
I believe it has to do with the fact that as celebrated as this movie and the book series have been, especially by the young, I was honestly surprised at the plot line. I left wondering whether we as a society have become so desensitized to what's portrayed in entertainment that we do not stop to consider what's being presented. Specifically, do our youth truly understand what situations like this one with the “games” portray?
My reaction is probably in part because my three daughters have read the book, after my discerning wife had already read the book. As even our youngest has an advanced reading level, I feel confident they adequately comprehended the story. In fact, as I've yet to read the book, they probably understand the nuances of the narrative better than me. But, did they see the big picture?
My girls all thought it was a great book, and the two oldest enjoyed the movie. When they asked me what I thought of the movie, I shared that I thought it was an intense, well presented story. I was drawn into this intriguing story this afternoon. While I didn't tell them this, know that I was rooting for the protagonist, along with the rest of the audience, although I was hoping she’d take out the President or one of the other game organizers with an arrow…but I digress. But, I did share with them that I was a bit conflicted that the hype over the film might allow them to overlook the serious overtones of the story. I wanted them to consider with me what the “game” was portraying. It felt good to dialogue with them about it.
Now, please don’t read this as a call for censorship against the book or movie. I may well—in my copious amounts of spare time—read this book and the rest in the series. Additionally, I’ll be the first to admit that claiming entertainment is desensitizing our society to mankind’s ills is a slippery slope argument. But, it was to that point that I wanted to converse with my kids about my thoughts and theirs. That was probably the best outcome of the experience.
