TRAVIS BYRAM'S MOVIE REVIEWS

In the eighth grade I, to no one's surprise who knows me now, was involved in a book club at my middle school, where you could take your lunch to the library (I can't even do that in college!) and discuss newly released books or popular books coming out; you didn't even have to read a book a week. It wasn't a club, it was an excuse for outcasts to get out of the cafeteria. But a memory that rests so vividly in my mind is hearing about "The Hunger Games" for the first time. It was in 2009, "Catching Fire" was set to come out in the proceeding weeks, and in anticipation of that they described the premise of "THG": in a dystopian world (isn't that always how books we read in middle school started?) a girl takes her sister's place to take part in a deadly series of "games" her corrupt government has set up to keep the 99% in their place. Honestly I thought it sounded ridiculous. Then my freshman year in high school I gave it ...

This isn't so much an announcement like the MTV Movie Awards post was.  This is more of an area to vent my frustration for awards shows like this.  Apparently teens vote (14-17) on these ridiculous categories, which is mostly broken down by genre, sci-fi actor, drama actress, etc.  At the time recieving a massive surfboard might be cool, but in theory, it sounds extremely lame.  Since they have about 3 million categories for film, I'll just list the ones that were of a particular note of interest to me: BEST ACTION MOVIE: Abduction Wait what? Hold up.  Let's stop the list right there.  "Abduction?" "ABDUCTION?!?!?!  The movie with a 4%  approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes?  A movie so bad critic Steve Newall called it "...like watching Pinocchio with abs." Said abs must the only logical explanation a movie like "Abduction" got a best action nomination. Act of Valor Mission: Impossible- Ghost Protocol Red Tails Sherlock ...

Since there are rather obscure categories (Gut-Wrenching Performance? Best Kiss? And now Best Villain is referred to as "Best On-Screen Dirt-bag?" Geez) in the MTV Movie Awards, I'll only cover a few major categories.  "Hunger Games" and "Deathly Hallows: Part 2" appears so often it's almost ridiculous, but here are the big categories ("*" indicates my prediction to win): BEST CAST: Bridesmaids Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 The Hunger Games* 21 Jump Street The Help It's good to see actual Oscar movies nominated for this awards show.  The only movie actually in theaters right now from this list is "Hunger Games" and "21 Jump Street" (barely).  You want to know what was nominated last time they had a Best Cast award? "Fantastic Four" and "The Dukes of Hazzard."  Yeah. That's real. BEST ACTOR: Joseph Gordon-Levitt- 50/50 Ryan Gosling- Drive Josh Hutcherson...

Not since "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" and the last few "Twilight" films has a film generated such a massive buzz as "The Hunger Games."  And that is where the comparisons end. There's no need to rehash what you've already heard: Jennifer Lawrence is hot, kids kill kids, and it's "Battle Royale 2012."  I've yet to see "Battle Royale," but the two things aforementioned are true.  The books are one of the best young adult series....published. Ever.  That's why it's necessary to read the books to fully get the movie.  This won't be a chore, you breeze past the first book and are halfway through the second before realizing you haven't gotten out of your chair to take a break. The movie is a complete success, both as an original action film and an adaptation of its source.  It starts out with Katniss comforting her little sister Prim, as she awakes from a nightmare.  It's curious to s...