Blu-ray Exclusive Reveals Why 'Catching Fire' Looks So Different From the First 'Hunger Games'

Breanne L. Heldman
·New York Bureau Chief, Yahoo Entertainment
Updated

It’s pretty widely accepted that "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" was superior to the first “Hunger Games” movie, but that’s not just because the sequel introduced a new director.

In Yahoo’s exclusive first look at one of the bonus clips from the “Catching Fire” Blu-ray, which hits stores next week, we get some good insight into the changes made to the look of the film.

While Hollywood is shifting more and more towards digital filmmaking, “Catching Fire” director Francis Lawrence (who replaced Gary Ross) went old school, electing to shoot “Catching Fire” on film with Panavision cameras with lenses from the 1960s. The result was a more intimate, flawed experience.

"I think there’s something very human about shooting with film," says director of photography Jo Willems, whose previous work includes the Bradley Cooper vehicle, "Limitless." "It feels less machine-made … I find digital always a little bit clean."

[Related: 'Hunger Games' Casting Shakeup! Author Demands Star Change for 'Catching Fire']

The choice of “old glass” lenses was intentional, meant to offset the super-modern look of Katniss Everdeen’s journey, especially in the Capital.

"It’s at times slightly flawed, it’s not perfect, it’s not super sharp. But it’s all to kind of get away from the modern sterile look," Willems says.

And if you felt like you were right in Jennifer Lawrence’s face throughout the film, that, too, was intentional.

"We were pretty intimate with the characters in all their scenes. There [were] no long lenses," notes Willems, who is already hard at work on "Mockingjay" Parts 1 and 2. "To shoot handheld, to be close to the actors, really gives it an intimate feel, and the audience will notice that. The audience will experience it that way rather than being in the back of a room with a long lens trying to record something."

You’ll be able to get up close and personal with Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and the Capital crew on March 7, when “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" arrives on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD.