Hunger Games director Gary Ross will adapt and direct "CATCHING FIRE"

Continuing with the Hunger Games countdown, Kyle Buchanan has an interview with Gary Ross in Vulture. Ross adapted Suzanne Collins' book AND directed the movie. Here's a sample of the article's q&a proving he's a fan ; there's a link to the entire piece at the bottom of the page. And a question. Don't forget to come back:)


But did you ever think to yourself, I may end up spending five to seven years of my life on this series?
Oh, no, no, no. I didn’t think about that at all. I really didn’t. I love the book, I loved the story, I loved the narrative. I loved that it was a nuanced character story, at the same time it had this very big canvas. I got to light the woods on fire and I got to investigate the subtleties of acting with Jennifer Lawrence. I got to stage this tribute parade — I mean, you talk about wide shots, it’s hard to get wider than that. So there’s a huge canvas for a director to sink his teeth into, and at the same time, there’s nuanced acting, which always interests me, and this story has a lot on its mind, politically, thematically, and emotionally. I just dug it and I just wanted to do this movie. I hadn’t really imagined my life beyond this movie, but now I have, obviously.

So how is it that a film with this very bleak subject matter, where kids kill kids, is now projected to be one of the biggest movies of the year? What’s the special ingredient that Hunger Games has?
Well, I think that that’s kind of the same question as "What’s made these books take off?" And I think one of the things that’s made them so popular is that Katniss finds and maintains her own humanity in the face of a culture that wants to take it from her. I really think her character is at the heart of this. She begins this thing as somebody who has to fight for her own survival and by the end of it, she’s willing to die rather than take an innocent life. She finds her own moral center, she finds her own ethical center, and it asks kids, "How human can you be? How do you preserve your humanity in the face of something like this?" So in that respect, she’s a phenomenal hero and she’s willing to defy authority and she’s not going to play their game or be complicit in their game anymore and she draws a line for herself that's so clear. I think that’s very inspiring and redemptive and I think it resonated with kids that read the book and now adults who are reading the book. Kids are giving it to their parents, you know? It’s that kind of thing.

Before you READ THE REST OF THE Q&A with GARY ROSS HERE  ...

I have a question. Is the Hunger Games, considering the nature of its violence ie children killing children, appropriate for children? The movie has a PG-13 rating and is apparently not quite as gory as Collin's book.  Check out this article also at Vulture and please come back and tell me what you think.

25 F*ed up Things that Happen in the Hunger Games