8. Don't Forget Crucial Plot Details
In the books, Peeta is unfortunate enough to lose a leg. Ouch! Some people might think that the version of events shown in the film is better. For a start, after their reconciliation in the caves and the end of the Games, Peeta is lucky enough to be saved with no - or very little - lasting physical injuries. While this view might for some be preferable to details of teenage mutilation, it doesn't really fit the theme of the books. As one fan recently remarked to me: "What is the magical healing potion in the film?" Magical healing potion. That phrase makes you think: how is it possible for Peeta to recover so well? If that were possible - if such quality medication were available - then how come the issue of food isn't better addressed in Panem? Surely if places like District 12 weren't starving they'd be so much less likely to rebel. This one simple change, likely done because of financial constraints on effects or length of the film, makes a lot of difference to the overall meaning. If Peeta loses his leg, then the effects of the Hunger Games on the survivors is easy to see. In a film that has already lost a lot of depth through simple cuts and omissions, something as simple as that would be an explicit link to the suffering caused by the Games. When it is clear that a victor isn't safe, it adds a brutal reminder of the true cost of the regime in Panem. The psychological effects of the Games on Katniss, which are addressed in the later books, would be much more believable if there were a permanent physical reminder of their suffering that remains evident throughout.