The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is the second film in The Hunger Games film series. It introduced viewers to many new and interesting characters: Finnick, Johanna, Plutarch, Beetee, and Mags, just to name a few. It was, after all, a new Hunger Games. But it missed some characters.
It also missed some small but brilliant moments, and rich plot points that time didn’t allow for. Cinematic choices were made, changes that were better for the screen. So it makes sense that there are details only the readers would know.
Gale’s Whipping
In the film, Gale is punished for attacking Peacekeeper Romulus Thread as he preys on the members of District 12. In the novel, Gale is lashed for poaching.”Gale’s wrists are bound to a wooden post. The wild turkey he shot earlier hangs above him, the nail driven through its neck.”
He told them he found it in the Seam instead of what he really did, which was leaving to hunt with weapons. If he had revealed the truth of his actions, he would have been killed.
Twill, Bonnie & Darius
Twill, Bonnie, and Darius are three characters left out of the films. Katniss happens upon Twill and Bonnie during one of her hunting trips in the woods. They tell her they are seeking sanctuary in District 13. Darius is a young Peacekeeper who Katniss considers her friend. He tried to interfere with Gale’s lashing but was knocked unconscious.
He was later turned into an Avox for his actions. Darius died in the Capitol during Mockingjay in the presence of Peeta. He was one of two Avoxes with him in the prison.
Katniss Breaking Her Foot
Katniss continues her hunting trips after surviving the Hunger Games. In Catching Fire, she went to the lake only to return and find the electric fence is on. She falls badly from an overhanging tree and suspects she injured her tailbone and left heel. She doesn’t want her family to know she’s been hunting and decides to go to the shops to buy some alibies in the form of peppermints and white cloth.
Her mother tells her she has probably broken her foot and that she needs to rest. Peeta comes by every day with cheese buns, Katniss’s favorite, and together they work on Katniss’s family book of plants.
Training In District 12
After Haymitch, Peeta and Katniss learn the Quarter Quell tributes will be chosen from existing victors, they train.”Every morning we do exercises to strengthen our bodies. We run and lift things and stretch out muscles. Every afternoon we work on combat skills, throwing knives, fighting hand to hand; I even teach them to climb trees. Officially, tributes aren’t supposed to train, but no one tries to stop us.”
Haymitch struggles with his fitness but still manages to excel in his strength although the “shortest run winds him.” Gales teaches them about snares, Katniss’s mother creates a diet for them to gain weight and Prim tends to their sore muscles.
Haymitch’s Hunger Games Story
Haymitch won the 50th Hunger Games, the second Quarter Quell. Peeta and Katniss put in his tape during their preparation for the 75th Hunger Games, the third Quarter Quell, without Haymitch present. There were forty-eight players. The arena is described by Katniss as “the most breathtaking place imaginable.” Eighteen tributes died on the first day and nearly everything that appeared beautiful, and tempting was beguiling and deadly. A mountain became volcanic on the fourth day and players were forced into the woods.
Haymitch made an ally who died after they split ways. He found her after hearing her screams and held her hand as she died While on his own he discovered a cliff’s abyss had a force field that returned anything dropped inside. It came down to Haymitch and a girl from District 1. Haymitch drew her to the cliff, she threw her axe and missed him, it fell into the abyss but came back and struck her. He had turned the forcefield into a weapon.
Plutarch’s Mockingjay Watch
Katniss and Plutarch dance and have a conversation in the Capitol after the tour of the districts. This can be seen in the film. But in the novel, there is a moment that isn’t translated on screen. The two talk about planning the Quarter Quell and how Plutarch has to go to a strategy meeting to determine the flavor of the Games.
“Plutarch steps back and pulls out a gold watch on a chain from a vest pocket.” He sees the time and turns the watch to show Katniss the clock face saying it starts at midnight, but something distracts her. “Plutarch has run his thumb across the crystal face of the watch and for just a moment an image appears, glowing as if lit by candlelight. It’s another Mockingjay. Exactly like the pin on my dress. Only this one disappears.”
Katniss Doesn’t See Peeta’s Painting Of Rue
In the film, Katniss enters her Quarter Quell assessment and sees Peeta’s tribute to Rue. She becomes emotional and rage spurs her to create a replica of Seneca Crane. In the books, Katniss only learns about the painting after talking to Peeta.
“I think of how ruffled the Gamemakers were when I entered the gym for my session. The smell of cleaners. The mat pulled over that spot in the center of the gym. Was it to conceal something they were unable to wash away? “You painted something, didn’t you? A picture.”
Bread Code
During their time in the arena, Katniss and her alliance received bread several times. Katniss often thought why there was so much being sent and why Finnick and Beetee seemed to be obsessed with it.
When Katniss is taken from the arena Haymitch tells her it was part of their plan. “The bread we received in the arena was code for the time of the rescue. The district where the bread originated indicated the day. Three. The number of rolls the hour. Twenty-four.”
Pregnancy Reminders
During the novel and film, Peeta reveals to Caesar that Katniss is pregnant in an attempt to stop the games. Although it sparks outrage in the Capitol citizens, the Games go ahead. In the films, nothing more is said about the baby until Katniss is asked about her pregnancy in Mockingjay.
In the novel, the tributes remind Katniss and viewers about her baby during the Games. “It’s OK. It’s just her hormones,” says Finnick. “From the baby.” Katniss thinks, “I’m glad Finnick keeps playing the pregnancy card for me.”
Pranking Peeta
In the novel, Finnick, Peeta, and Katniss’s fog sores start to scab and itch. “Hey, Haymitch, if you’re not too drunk, we could use a little something for our skin.” A parachute soon appears with unsightly ointment inside and they lather their skin. Finnick and Katniss share some banter about their looks.
“Poor Finnick. Is this the first time in your life you haven’t looked pretty?” to which Finnick replies, “It must be. The sensation is completely new. How have you managed it all these years?” They decide to scare a sleeping Peeta by waking him up with their faces centimeters from his. “Finnick and I fall back in the sand, laughing our heads off.”
