Plot Summary
When sixteen year old Katniss Everdeen, takes her younger sister's spot in the 74th annual Hunger Games, she knows she has just signed herself up to a battle to the death with other children from Panem. Every year the Capital of Panem holds the annual Hunger Games and Katniss is the female tribute from District 12. Suzanne Collins utilizes fashion as a mechanism to contrast the way of life between the citizens who live in the Capital versus those from one of the twelve districts.
Description
The use of fashion is very calculated and is used to further highlight the nuances in the bigger storyline. In the picture above, we see Effie Trinket and Katniss Everdeen the day of the reaping. Effie's outfit is everything the Capitol represents extravagant, out of touch, and flamboyant. Whereas Katniss' outfit is muted in tones and a simple silhouette representing the District's lack of voice and simple lifestyle. In the movie and book, it is mentioned that Katniss' dress is one of her mother's that she has now passed down. This piece of clothing highlights the economic state of those living in the Districts and the importance of key relationships are. I personally feel that there is a double standard of family heirlooms currently in today's society. If you are well-off and have a piece of clothing or jewelry that belonged to a previous family member it is seen as vintage and highly valued. However, when those of lower economic status pass things down it is seen as "cheap" hand-me-downs.
However, when Katniss arrives at the Capitol in order to win the admiration (and resources) of Capitol sponsors she must conform to their standards of entertainment. Her stylist for the games Cinna, is very aware this and on multiple occasions makes Katniss unforgettable. During the interview phase, Cinna is able to fully capture who Katniss is not only as a person but what she represents to those watching from the twelve districts, all while putting on a show for the Capitol. Katniss' dress engulfs in flames when she spins catching the audience's attention and solidifying her role as the "Girl on Fire". To learn more about how this motif of fire is highlighted throughout the trilogy, here is an interview with the costume designer with Vanity Fair. I think this awareness that Cinna has of entertainment value can be seen today on a smaller scale. The societal pressure, on women specifically, to consistently look put together with their wardrobe, makeup and overall presence and the act of keeping up appearances for others is very similar to Katniss conforming to Capitol ideals in order to win favor.
Analysis
The fashion throughout The Hunger Games highlights the importance of nonverbal communication. A poignant example of this is at the very end of the first movie/book. After Katniss and Peeta are declared co-victors of the games (where there is only supposed to be a sole survivor), President Snow is enraged that Katniss was able to outsmart the games and force his hand to allow them both to survive. Cinna knows this and during Katniss' Victor Interview, he dresses her in an outfit that makes her look innocent and emphasizes her youth. Katniss describes the look as; "I look, very simple, like a girl. A young one. Fourteen at most. Innocent. Harmless. Yes, it is shocking that Cinna has pulled this off when you remember I just won the Games... This is a very calculated look. Nothing Cinna does is arbitrary." (Collins, 355). Cinna uses fashion to cast a veil over Katniss and persuade those in the Capitol that she meant no harm. She was just a scared child trying to survive who was deeply in love.
Throughout this series, fashion communicates many themes nonverbally: the disparity of socioeconomic status, suffering as entertainment value, hope, and the different forms of power. This article highlights the important color alone had when curating the fashion in The Hunger Games.
Conclusion
Fashion is as critical to the plot, character development, and impact to the story as a whole as any other component. The variety of unspoken words that are able to come to light through fashion help advance the subtleties of the themes mentioned above. The importance of fashion is seen throughout the trilogy as well. As I have gotten older and have rewatched/reread the story, more nuances come to light and the more connections I can make to society today. I feel this story is more important now more than ever before and the fashion in this film continues to add levels of complexity that make it exciting to watch every time. I would highly recommend this film.