“The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes” is an excellent orgin tale showing the rise of President Snow.  Watching this movie really draws out Snow’s backstory, adding a story to the character who soon became a villainous president. It’s not necessary to see the original four movies beforehand, but those movies definitely will help you understand more about the plot and recognize references to future events.

As someone who grew up watching “The Hunger Games” I didn’t think I would enjoy this movie as much as I did. I have always liked the original movies and I didn’t think anything had to be added. This movie, which is set about 64 years before the original movies, really puts into perspective why President Snow is the way he is.  No one knew why President Snow found so much enjoyment in watching innocent people kill each other for entertainment in the original films, but “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” reveals that Snow was heavily influenced by Dr.Gaul, the game maker at the time. She changed Snow’s view of the world and games.

 At the beginning of the movie, 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) and 23 other academy students are picked as mentors for the 10th Hunger Games. Winning the games will result in the ability to attend a university. Snow was assigned Lucy Gray (Rachel Zegler), who had already charmed the audience with her beautiful singing. During the games, the other tributes fought and hid to survive. Snow and Lucy broke one of the rules they were given as a result of her winning the games.

The acting in this movie from Zegler and Blyth is fantastic. The connection and chemistry they had together made every scene they shared amazing. I enjoyed Zegler’s entire performance, not just her acting but her singing, which brought the movie together, showing an emotional side to the games. Everyone who listened to Lucy Gray sing was brought to tears.

The suspense throughout the movie was amazing. It had you thinking if Lucy Gray and Coriolanus Snow were ever going to see each other again, and even where Lucy herself has gone. Watching this movie was an experience. The music, acting, and the references were all wonderful.

One thing I have always liked about “The Hunger Games” was the costumes.  They were always beautiful and different from outfits you would usually see. We didn’t get to see as many costumes now as we did then but based on what was shown the costume designers did a great job. Especially with Dr. Gaul’s costumes,  they were colorful and creative. Which matched her personality because you would have to be an extremely creative person to create the things she did.

This movie truly exceeded expectations. I had a wonderful experience watching it, and I encourage others to do so too.