Director on the new “Hunger Games” film: “Became restricted for children”

Lawrence talks about the challenge of the story’s violent nature and how they had to think when the book wouldn’t be split into two films. Ahead of the premiere of the upcoming “Hunger Games” prequel, Francis Lawrence, who directed the last three films in the series, has revealed various challenges with the adaptation. The director told GamesRadar+ that they almost constantly had to navigate the film’s brutality when the book was turned into a movie:

• What I’ve always tried to do with these films is to focus on the emotional impact of violence, not the act itself, and not make the violence entertaining. I don’t want to glorify the violence; instead, I want the audience to be affected emotionally.

However, it’s easier said than done, as Lawrence managed to have all the films in the series initially rated as restricted for children.

• Every film I’ve directed, the first time I show them to the censorship board, they get classified as restricted for children. And then I have to start cutting details, whether it’s sound, snippets, or blood that may have been added later. But fortunately, I didn’t have to change much with this one.

Suzanne Collins’ novel is over 500 pages long, and for Lawrence, it was clear not to make two films out of the book. The third novel, “Mockingjay,” was split and turned into two films, something Lawrence seems to have learned from:

• I don’t want to split this into two; we received so much criticism for splitting “Mockingjay” before. So I thought, I don’t care if the film is long. Let’s make a satisfying film with a clear beginning, middle, and end.

Do you agree with Francis Lawrence about toning down violence and not splitting the novel into two films? Comment below.