The Hunger Games marketing machine is in full swing. No doubt you've seen something about it online (and if you haven't, you might want to make sure a rock hasn't fallen on top of you). From emails from Seneca Crane to not-so-subtle
I mean, heck, you can even get nail polish.
And just like everyone else, I'm totally buying into it. My husband reminded me to get tickets today. I've been officially assigned to District 7: Textiles (the irony isn't lost on me), and I've seen the trailer more than once. But can I be honest for a second? This was my reaction when I first saw the film announcement:
My husband came home from work the day the news broke, and I told him, horror dripping from my voice, that there would be a Hunger Games movie, and he said:
"Cool."
Wait, what? Isn't that book kind of all about the disturbing relationship between violence and entertainment? If I went to see it, did that make me better than the Capitol ninnies? He disagreed. We discussed. I remained unconvinced.
Then we watched as they chose the actors.
We peeked at the stills coming out of production.
We breathlessly watched the trailer. We cried. We shared it on twitter, facebook, blogs.
We clicked to be assigned districts.
We chose Team Gale or Team Peeta.
So clearly, we're nothing like the Capitol.
Wait.
But really am I the only one unsure how to feel about nail polish and computer games based on this book? Am I the only one wondering if this is an elaborate extension of the novel's themes and core message? Is Suzanne Collins sitting, head in her hands, judging us somewhere?
Or did grad school warp my brain?
Regardless, I know I'll be there on the 23rd with a mockingjay pin, nails lacquered up in Cinna-mon, loving every minute.
Maybe I'm more like the Capitol than I like to think.
Honey, you're not the only one. I'm gonna see the movie, of course, but it does make me wonder what's next from the merchandising extravaganza that is the death cult we call Hollywood: An Anne Frank fashion line? A Killing Fields line of gardening products (herbicides maybe, get it?) Maybe Lolita themed underwear for little girls?
ReplyDeleteI'm totally going to see the movie, but I don't plan on buying any nail polish based off of the book (and I love nail polish). Truth be told, I WOULDN'T be going to see the movie, if they hadn't put people who can genuinely act - not just portray characters but LIVE those characters - in the movie.
ReplyDeleteI LOVED the books, even while I disliked a lot of what happened in them. I, too, was dubious about a movie. I *think* it's going to wind up being awesome. But I'm not buying into the idea that all this merchandise can be laughed off tongue and cheek style. Smiling about it, does not mean that it isn't blatant money mongering merchandising.
And after all that, I'll say that I'm not CONDEMNING anyone who DOES buy stuff like the nail polish. For goodness sakes if you want 'Heat of the Moment' on your fingers, you go on with your bad self. I just won't because I felt like it's a betrayal of the entire message within the books. A message I thought was important.
As long as your pleasure isn't coming at the expense of someone else's DEATH, I'm pretty sure you're alright. Celebrating great books (even if they get made into big blockbuster movies) should always be something to get excited about.
ReplyDeleteOMG, nail polish, really?!
ReplyDeleteI have a friend who works for a packager and he's been cranking out Hunger Games T-shirts, coffee mugs, you name it for months. His brain has turned to mush and his eyes are like pinwheels on fire.
I did have a WTH moment when I saw the nail polish and then the fashion couture page. Anybody who has read the books knows that the only people concerned about fashion aren't really the type of people you're rooting for. Twilight also has a makeup line, which I also thought was strange since Bella was made out to be natural and the type that doesn't care about style. There was even Edward body glitter, which I thought was hilarious. That said, I'm not going to judge anybody who buys these products. To each their own :-)
ReplyDeleteI think it is hilariously ironic that they are marketing so much about the Capitol, when we hate the people there. I hadn't thought about the fact that making the movie is in opposition to what the book teaches. Oh, we are such a bunch of media addicts :)
ReplyDelete