It’s the Things We Love Most that Destroy Us

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is the inevitable prequel of a once successful franchise. Lionsgate wanted to make spin-offs, but Suzanne Collins gave them inspiration when she wrote The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Despite only coming out in 2020, the movie was released 3 years later. I wasn’t exactly excited after the lackluster finale Mockingjay – Part 1 & 2, but I was willing to return to Panem. I’m just glad returning director Francis Lawrence didn’t split the prequel in parts like The Hobbit or Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Even if it does make The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes an overly long 2 hours & 38 minutes. It is however split in parts that feel like separate movies. The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes takes place 64 years in the past during the 10th Hunger Games. Series villain President Coriolanus Snow is controversially the protagonist. Unlike Anakin Skywalker becoming Darth Vader, Snow’s moments of evil feel more random than earned.

Newcomer Tom Blyth still feels worthy of Donald Sutherland’s role. Coryo is the son of a Capitol war hero living in poor conditions with his cousin Tigris and Grandma’am. The transgender Hunter Schafer is Coryo’s voice of reason and Fionnula Flanagan expects a lot from the family. Part 1: The Mentor reveals the 10th Hunger Games to be the first time mentors were implemented to make the show more entertaining. Turns out Snow fell in love with a girl from District 12 long before he met Katniss Everdeen. Unlike Katniss, Lucy Gray Baird is more of a lover than a fighter. The far less likable Rachel Zegler is essentially a coal miner’s daughter from a traveling group called Covey. Zegler’s singing is put to good use with songs like a new rendition of “The Hanging Tree.” Lucy Gray stands out with her colorful dress and defiance. Fellow West Side Story co-star Josh Andrés Rivera is also defiant as mentor friend of Coryo, Sejanus Plinth. Respected cast members with silly character names include Viola Davis, Peter Dinklage, and Jason Schwartzman.

Davis hams it up as sadistic gamemaker Dr. Volumnia Gaul. Dinklage is more reserved as original game creator Dean Casca Highbottom. Schwartzman is the sole comic relief TV host Lucky Flickerman who channels Stanley Tucci. Part 2: The Prize is more interesting since it focuses on a primitive version of the Hunger Games. They fight in a small Capitol arena that’s ruined in a rebel bombing. Regardless of how many Tributes stand out, it’s still uncomfortable to see their fates play out. Coryo falls for Lucy Gray and helps her cheat by directly interfering in the games. If Lucy Gray is the songbird, then rainbow colored muttation snakes fulfill the rest of the title. Part 3: The Peacekeeper can’t live up to what already felt like a climax. Snow is forced to work as a peacekeeper under Burn Gorman’s ruthless Commander Hoff. The District 12 romance between Coryo and Lucy Gray feels natural until he ruins it by accepting who he is. The ending makes sense if you’ve seen The Hunger Games, but it is disappointing as a standalone conclusion. The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is better when the Hunger Games are a focal point.

Coriolanus Snow protects Lucy Gray Baird

Followed by: The Hunger Games