They're sent to the decadent Capital district in preparation for the Games and after much pagentry and minimal training in combat and survival tactics, the heart of the intense, if somewhat confusing, teen thriller The Hunger Games begins with Katniss and Peeta joined by 22 other tributes from the twelve districts. 

Being a teen romance, however, there's got to be a third person in the triangle, and that's Gale (Liam Hemsworth), who has been a childhood friend to Katniss and is only just realizing that he loves her. He's stuck back in District Twelve and has to watch her blossoming relationship with Peeta during televised game coverage. Is her romance with Peeta real or just a ploy to gain fans and sponsors during the games?

Thrilling in parts, The Hunger Games is a faithful adaptation of the best-selling novel of the same name, and that's both its greatest strength and weakness: if you've read the book, you'll understand the story and motivation of the different characters and quite enjoy how brilliantly even complicated scenes from the book are realized on screen. If you haven't read the book, expect to be confused by the story and what motivates the different characters. It's also sappy and cliché at points, but when the film ends with an obvious sequel in mind, you'll find yourself looking forward to Catching Fire, the second book in the series, sure to be filmed after the inevitable success of this first movie in The Hunger Games trilogy.