The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is a 2013 American science fiction adventure film based on Suzanne Collins' dystopian novel,Catching Fire, the second installment in The Hunger Games trilogy. The film is the sequel to The Hunger Games, and the second installment in The Hunger Games film series, produced by Nina Jacobson and Jon Kilik and distributed by Lionsgate. Francis Lawrence directed the film, with a screenplay by Simon Beaufoy and Michael Arndt. Francis Lawrence took over from Gary Ross as director. Adding to the existing cast, the supporting cast was filled out with Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jeffrey Wright, Sam Claflin, Lynn Cohen, Jena Malone, Amanda Plummer, Alan Ritchson, and Meta Golding.
The plot of Catching Fire takes place one year after the previous installment; Katniss Everdeen has now returned home safely after winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games along with fellow tribute Peeta Mellark. Throughout the story, Katniss senses that a rebellion, against the oppressive Capitol, is simmering through the districts. Filming began on September 10, 2012, in Atlanta, Georgia, before moving to Hawaii.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire was released on November 15, 2013, in Brazil, November 20 in Finland, Sweden and Norway, November 21 in the United Kingdom, and in IMAX on November 22 in the United States. The film set records for the biggest November opening weekend and biggest three- and five-day Thanksgiving box-office totals, surpassing the first film's box office grosses. It ranks as the tenth highest grossing film at the domestic box office[5] and the highest-grossing film at the domestic box office of 2013, becoming the first 2-D film since The Dark Knight in 2008 to top the yearly box office as well as having a lead female top the box office since 1973's The Exorcist. The film has grossed over $864 million worldwide and is currently the highest-grossing entry inThe Hunger Games.
Like its predecessor, Catching Fire received positive reviews from critics, with the sentiment being that it's "a more-confident, more-polished movie", and praise also going to Lawrence's performance as Katniss. The film also received numerous nominations, with a nomination for the Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Action Film and a Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film. For her performance, Lawrence was nominated a second time for the Empire Award for Best Actress as well as the Saturn Award and Broadcast Film Critics Association Award. The song "Atlas" was also nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media and a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. A sequel, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1, is scheduled to be released on November 21, 2014, in the United States.
