When the Hunger Games came out with the film adaption of the novel, box office were in the 700 millions, and the positive ratings were sky high. However, despite the amazing cinematography and action in the movie, the Hunger Games still faced its fair share of public criticism.
On Twitter, hateful comments towards the representation of Rue as a young black girl flooded the social platform. The racist audience mentioned opinions explaining their disappointment and an underlying disgust towards the portrayal of Rue in the film.
When I first read the news article compilation of the comments made, I couldn’t believe my eyes. The book had clear descriptions of Rue that hinted towards the race and color of her skin. From the description of her having “dark brown skin and eyes” and that agriculture district she comes from, it is easy to relate history with the connotative message Collins is trying to portray. Collins does a great job tackling relevant problems that plague society through her dystopian novel. From social hierarchy and the evergrowing wealth gap to hidden slavery, Collins is teaching an overarching lesson about the flaws in our government and authoritative figures through a hero’s journey and inner thoughts.
Book to film adaption will always continue to face criticism for casting certain individuals for the book’s roles. However, if race is the reason for this negative feedback towards a movie, then it is society that is in the wrong. The Harry Potter and the Cursed Child movie adaptation faced a similar problem.
From Rowling herself, she “had a bunch of racists telling me that because Hermione ‘turned white’ – that is, lost colour from her face after a shock – that she must be a white woman, which I have a great deal of difficulty with. But [she] decided not to get too agitated about it and simply state quite firmly that Hermione can be a black woman with [her] absolute blessing and enthusiasm.” The anger from these “fans” is stemming from a racist undertone, not the desire for an accurate portrayal from book to film. Despite how progressive we claim our society to be, it is clear in times of controversy do we see the unjust perspectives that still exist to this day.