Books, babe.
In “Anatomy of a hit movie: “The Hunger Games”’, Scott Myers essentially appeals to the public as to why The Hunger Games (which hadn’t yet come out at the time this was written) is such a hit movie. And for him, I have an answer. It has nothing to do with the cinematography, or promo, or anything like that. Promo helped, sure, but the movie would’ve been a massive hit anyway. Why?
The books! “The Hunger Games” trilogy is one of the most successful book series of this decade, with a fiercely loyal fanbase. Even if there had been no promo by Lionsgate, the movie would’ve grossed tons of money and been attended by many. Maybe not as many as with promo, but the movie would’ve still been considered a great success.
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I remember running into the theatre, sprinting up the stairs, and vaulting over the handicapped seat bars out of excitement for the premiere. I had to have the BEST seats, even though I didn’t know exactly how the movie would play out. I was like 14 at the time, and about 60% of my class went to see the movie opening weekend, if not opening night. My friend made us home made posters in anticipation of the movie’s release. The book made such a huge impact on me that, even if the movie wasn’t that good (which, tbh, it was the weakest of the four movies), I was going to hail it as the best movie I’d ever seen to anyone and everyone who would listen.
In the digital age, the power of a fandom is unparalleled. Suzanne Collins wrote a story that we were undeniably infatuated with, and that’s why the movie was a hit. The infatuation. We as people took that story and ran with it. We wanted the movie to change our lives in the way the book had, so we saw it in theaters, bought it on dvd, and maybe even bought merch. The actual movie had almost nothing to do with its success- it was the idea, the feeling. We wanted to recapture the magic.
Ultimately, the movie was successful because Lionsgate wasn’t selling a movie- they were selling a feeling. We wanted that feeling back. I don’t know if we got it, but it got us in the door, didn’t it? No matter how much money we throw at something, how heavily we promote it, it will never be successful as playing on people’s emotions.
Of promising the return of that feeling.
