---
title: "The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes"
year: 2023
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes"
fi1m_id: "the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes"
imdb_id: "tt10545296"
tmdb_id: 695721
wikidata_id: "Q96377121"
fi1m_score: 61
critics_score: 63
critics_reviews: 18
published: "2026-09-12"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:38:04.439716+00:00"
region: "PL"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023)

Directed by Francis Lawrence · 2h 37m · Science Fiction, Action

## Identity

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes
- **IMDb ID:** tt10545296
- **TMDB ID:** 695721
- **Wikidata ID:** Q96377121
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10545296/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/695721, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q96377121

**Fi1m score: 61** · Critics 63 from 18 reviews

*In a sentence:* Rachel Zegler sings, Viola Davis strokes a snake, and the last hour wanders out of the Capitol looking for an ending

> Francis Lawrence’s prequel gives the young Snow a face, a cracked concrete arena and a singer to fall for, and for two acts it holds. Then it leaves the Capitol, and the last forty minutes cost it much of what it earned.

## Synopsis

Decades before Katniss Everdeen, the Capitol is preparing its tenth Hunger Games, a punishment so drab that few in Panem bother to watch. Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth), eighteen and the last of a once-powerful family, is broke and hiding it, and the Academy has just changed the rules: its students will mentor the tributes and be judged on how many people tune in. Snow is given the girl from District 12, Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler), a travelling singer who turns her reaping into a performance. Around them, Dean Highbottom (Peter Dinklage) waits for Snow to fail, Dr Volumnia Gaul (Viola Davis) runs the Games as an experiment, and Lucky Flickerman (Jason Schwartzman) hosts them for a nation that has stopped caring. Directed by Francis Lawrence from Suzanne Collins’s novel.

## Review

Francis Lawrence, who directed the last three Katniss films, goes back to the tenth Hunger Games and to a Coriolanus Snow who is eighteen, poor and hiding it. Tom Blyth plays him as a Capitol boy with a good coat and nothing under it: the family money is gone, the flat is cold, and his grandmother (Fionnula Flanagan) carries on as if none of that were true. The Games are a shabby, poorly watched affair, and the Academy assigns its brightest students to mentor the tributes and make them worth watching. Snow draws the girl from District 12, Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler), who answers her reaping by dropping a snake down a rival’s dress and singing to the cameras. He is told she is his way back to money, and the film watches him work out what else she might be.

That is a good setup, and for two acts the film honours it. Michael Lesslie and Michael Arndt, adapting Suzanne Collins’s novel, keep the Capitol scenes short and unkind, and the unkindness is domestic: a dean who despises his pupils, a head gamemaker who feeds them to her ideas, a best friend (Josh Rivera’s Sejanus Plinth) whose conscience is a danger to everyone standing near him. Uli Hanisch builds a Capitol that has not yet learned to enjoy itself, grey stone and long tables and one gilded hall, and Trish Summerville dresses it in reds and blacks cut like uniforms. The arena is the film’s best idea: a bombed sports ground with the concrete still cracked, rubble in the stands and no camera clever enough to follow the killing. Jo Willems shoots it in flat daylight, so we see everything and none of it looks arranged.

Blyth is good at the hard part, which is being likeable and untrustworthy in the same shot. He listens with his whole face and you can watch him file what he hears for later. Zegler sings several times, in a clear country voice with nothing behind it, and the first time she did it we noticed we had stopped taking notes. It is a plain, unguarded thing in a film where everyone else is guarding something, and it is the reason the romance works for as long as it does. Viola Davis plays Dr Gaul as a scientist who gave up on other people some years ago and is cheerful about it, and Jason Schwartzman’s Lucky Flickerman hosts the Games like a weatherman filling airtime, checking his notes to see how many children are left. He made us laugh, and then we heard ourselves laughing and stopped. Peter Dinklage’s Dean Highbottom drinks and glowers and has one scene of real bitterness that the film does too little with.

James Newton Howard’s score is quieter than the series has trained us to expect, brass held back for the arena and strings for Zegler, and it leaves room for the songs, which is the right call. Mark Yoshikawa cuts the fighting clean and fast; you always know where the tributes are and which of them are hurt.

Then the film leaves the Capitol. Collins wrote the novel in three parts and the film keeps that shape, so the third act takes Snow out to District 12 and slows to a walk. What had been a study of a boy choosing what he is becomes a run of conversations in which people tell him what he is. The romance, built on a handful of sharp scenes and a song, is asked to carry an hour it was never written for. We looked at our watch, and then felt bad about it, because the actors were still working. Snow arrives where the older films tell us he must, but the road is so heavily signposted that arriving is a formality.

At 157 minutes it is half an hour longer than it needs to be, and the spare half-hour is all in one place. Against the series’ own record it sits below the 2012 original, which trusted its arena more and its speeches less, and above the two-part *Mockingjay*, which had a worse case of padding and nobody to sing through it.

We would send anyone who liked the books, and anyone who enjoys watching a good actor be quietly awful. Watch it at home, with the kettle on around the two-hour mark; a cup of tea will not hurt the third act and may help your patience. It carries a 12A, which given what happens in that arena is about right.

*Fi1m score 61, published 12 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics find this prequel a respectable return rather than a triumphant one, and the reviews lean mixed rather than warm. Where they agree is on the cast. Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler’s chemistry is praised almost everywhere, and Viola Davis and Jason Schwartzman are singled out so often for their supporting turns that they come close to being the consensus highlight. The costumes and architecture earn approval too, and several reviews credit the film with taking the villain’s origin seriously rather than treating it as franchise filler.

The reservations cluster on length and pacing. Many find the first half sturdy and the final third overstuffed or rushed, and doubt that Snow’s slide into darkness is made to track on screen. Some miss Jennifer Lawrence. The spread is wide: IndieWire calls it the best film in the series, while The Hollywood Reporter finds it dour and lumbering, with Empire and the Evening Standard closer to the latter.

## Straight answers

**Is The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes worth watching?**

*The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes* is worth watching for anyone who liked the books or enjoys watching a good actor be quietly awful, and we scored it 61. Tom Blyth's young Snow, Rachel Zegler's songs and the cracked concrete arena carry two strong acts. The last hour leaves the Capitol and slows to a walk, and it costs the film much of what it earned.

**How long is The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, and what is it rated?**

*The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes* runs 2h 37m. It is a science fiction and action film.

**Where can I watch The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes in Poland?**

*The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes* is not on any streaming or rental service in Poland at the moment. It is available in 1 other country; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily.

**How violent or frightening is The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, and is it suitable for children?**

*The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes* carries a UK 12A, which given what happens in its arena is about right: children kill each other in a bombed sports ground, shot in flat daylight so you see everything. There is no gore the certificate would not allow, but the tone is unkind and the deaths are treated seriously. Fine for teenagers; younger children may find the arena scenes distressing.

**How does The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes compare to Battle Royale?**

*The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes* is the glossier, longer and gentler film; [*Battle Royale*](https://film.one/film/battle-royale) is the blunt ancestor, with schoolchildren on an island, no mentors and far more frightening cruelty. Fukasaku's film is the better of the two, though its flashbacks labour the point. Choose the prequel for a Capitol villain's origin and a romance with songs; choose *Battle Royale* if you can take the genre without cushioning.

**Is The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes based on a true story or a book?**

*The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes* is not a true story; it is adapted from Suzanne Collins's novel of the same name, a prequel to her Hunger Games trilogy. The film keeps the book's three-part shape, which is why the third act moves out to District 12 and slows. You do not need to have read it, but readers of the books will get the most from it.

**What should I watch after The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes?**

After *The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes*, try [*The Hunger Games*](https://film.one/film/the-hunger-games) (2012, Fi1m 70): The original arena, handheld and frightened, before the series learned to spend money. Then [*Battle Royale*](https://film.one/film/battle-royale) (2000, Fi1m 83): Japanese schoolchildren, one island, no mentors; the blunt ancestor of the whole genre; and [*Cabaret*](https://film.one/film/cabaret) (1972, Fi1m 88): A singer performs while a state hardens around her, and nobody gets out clean.

### Reviews we read (22)

- **IndieWire**, David Ehrlich (A): The critic calls it the rare Hollywood prequel that towers over the rest of its franchise and the best dystopian YA movie, praising its attempt to trace President Snow’s sociopathy back to its roots as making this intimate epic stand out. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/hunger-games-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-movie-review-1234923868/)
- **Radio Times**, Dave Golder (4/5): This bleak prequel impresses as a committed character study of young Snow's rise rather than a standard YA blockbuster, with a strong cast and emotional core. Pacing and tone issues, plus an uneven final third, prevent it from being fully satisfying. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movies/hunger-games-ballad-songbirds-snakes-review/)
- **Variety**, Peter Debruge (80/100, inferred): The critic finds it a compelling backstory that expands the canon, balancing blood sport, young love, and political commentary, with strong chemistry between leads, though the film is half an hour too long. [Read](https://variety.com/2023/film/reviews/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-review-1235785564/)
- **Screen Daily** (65/100, inferred): The prequel offers a muddled but grimly compelling portrait of young Snow's turn to darkness, with fetching leads and thoughtful execution of its villain origin story. It lacks the magnetic presence of prior entries but enlivens the universe with new narrative turns. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-review/5187565.article)
- **The AV Club**, Eric Francisco (C+): The critic describes it as a sappy Romeo and Juliet riff that squanders a potentially rich premise on a stock-issue tragic romance, though it remains semi-competent as fluff with believable chemistry between leads and deft direction in places. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/hunger-games-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-review-1851001265)
- **The Guardian** (60/100, inferred): The critic finds the prequel visually striking with impressive costumes and architecture, but considers the story undercooked and the central characters underdeveloped. Supporting turns by Viola Davis and Jason Schwartzman are highlighted as highlights. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/nov/19/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-review-viola-davis-tom-blyth-jason-schwartzman)
- **Time Out**, Elizabeth Weitzman (3/5): The film is a propulsive but formulaic origin story that showcases new leads effectively while feeling the absence of Jennifer Lawrence. Strong action and cultural parallels are undermined by a rushed, unfocused transformation arc for Snow. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-2023)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Katie Walsh (50/100, inferred): The film feels like too many movies crammed into one overstuffed installment; while the first part works, the character development in the second half doesn't track well, though performances by Blyth and Zegler are strong. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2023-11-17/hunger-games-ballad-of-songbirds-snakes-review-prequel-rachel-zegler-tom-blyth)
- **Little White Lies**, David Jenkins (3/2/1): The prequel is serviceable in its first half but becomes a turgid, overlong slog in the final act due to excessive lore and soul-searching. Supporting turns from Davis and Schwartzman provide some liveliness amid the uneven execution. [Read](https://lwlies.com/reviews/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-snakes)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, David Rooney (30/100, inferred): The critic finds the prequel dour and short on excitement, missing Jennifer Lawrence's charisma as the central draw, and criticizes its lumbering pace, lack of emotional power, and predictable plot mechanics around the young Coriolanus Snow. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-review-1235639233/)
- **Empire**, Hanna Flint: The film is a disappointingly shallow and edge-free villain origin story that fails to breathe new life into the franchise. It singles out scene-stealing turns from supporting actors like Jason Schwartzman and Viola Davis amid otherwise superficial world-building and character work. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-snakes/)
- **Evening Standard**, Simran Hans: This prequel is unappealingly lukewarm and drab, failing to ignite with leaden exposition and a hard-to-root-for protagonist. It singles out the chaste, unconvincing romance and dull concrete arena action as key disappointments. [Read](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-review-b1120593.html)
- **Financial Times**, Danny Leigh (★★★☆☆): The critic notes the film is sturdy and sometimes very good, recapturing the franchise's epic groove with respect and tension. Supporting cameos from Viola Davis and Jason Schwartzman add fizz to the revival. [Read](https://www.ft.com/content/3a50da90-c3e6-49c0-b909-e5219d8b6939)
- **The Times**, Kevin Maher (★★★☆☆): The critic praises muscular central performances and a strong finale that elevate the prequel beyond typical franchise weaknesses. The games sequences are seen as the weakest element, but the psycho-romance storyline is gripping. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/life-style/article/the-hunger-games-prequel-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-review-xgtrrr0zg)
- **Polygon**, Petrana Radulovic (85/100, inferred): The critic calls it a sharp, exciting movie that gives the YA dystopia genre the ending it deserves by reminding viewers of the series' brilliance in world-building and its sharp take on inequality and authoritarianism. They single out how the film strips away the spectacle to focus on propaganda and the evolution of the Games themselves. [Read](https://www.polygon.com/reviews/23952899/hunger-games-ballad-songbirds-snakes-review/)
- **Digital Spy**, Ian Sandwell (80/100, inferred): The critic calls the film a brutal, winning return that retains the series' impact and offers a fresh perspective through its setting and focus on young Snow. They single out the strong chemistry between Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler and the visceral games sequence for praise, while noting a slight dip in the final act. [Read](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a45762204/hunger-games-ballad-songbirds-snakes-review/)
- **Film Stories**, Maria Lattila (80/100, inferred): The critic praises it as a satisfying villain origin story with phenomenal casting, especially Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler, and timely themes. The main praise is for the character study of Snow's descent and strong performances. [Read](https://filmstories.co.uk/reviews/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-review-a-thrilling-tantalising-villain-origin-story/)
- **Den of Geek**, David Crow (3.5/5): The critic finds the prequel a strong, entertaining return to the series that succeeds as an origin story for Snow while building a bleak yet plausible world. They single out Rachel Zegler's charismatic and melodious performance as Lucy Gray for particular praise. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-snakes-review-rachel-zegler/)
- **The Ringer**, Zach Kram (60/100, inferred): The review deems it a worthy addition to the franchise with strong world-building details and supporting performances but finds it falls short of the originals due to an emotional disconnect in the villain origin story and a rushed final act. They single out the strong work from Viola Davis and Jason Schwartzman while noting the lack of humor and relatable emotional core. [Read](https://www.theringer.com/2023/11/16/movies/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-review)
- **Deadline**, Valerie Complex (50/100, inferred): The critic praises the visually stunning production and standout performances, especially Viola Davis, but criticizes the uneven narrative, pacing issues in the third act, and an unsuccessful attempt to humanize the protagonist, resulting in a mixed overall verdict. [Read](https://deadline.com/2023/11/the-hunger-games-ballad-of-songbirds-amp-snakes-review-a-tale-of-power-1235613182/)
- **/Film**, Jeremy Mathai (5/10): It's a half-decent but overstuffed prequel that struggles with pacing and doesn't fully justify its existence, though Zegler's performance stands out. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/1428884/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-review/)
- **The Wrap** (40/100, inferred): The critic finds the prequel overlong and clumsily paced with mixed results, lacking real insights into human nature despite strong performances from Zegler and Blyth and impressive visuals. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-snakes-review/)

## Details

- **Director:** Francis Lawrence
- **Director:** Francis Lawrence
- **Screenplay:** Michael Lesslie, Michael Arndt
- **Novel:** Suzanne Collins
- **Cinematography:** Jo Willems
- **Editor:** Mark Yoshikawa
- **Music:** James Newton Howard
- **Production design:** Uli Hanisch
- **Costume design:** Trish Summerville
- **Producer:** Francis Lawrence, Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson
- **Cast:** Tom Blyth as Coriolanus Snow; Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray Baird; Peter Dinklage as Dean Casca Highbottom; Jason Schwartzman as Lucky Flickerman; Hunter Schafer as Tigris; Josh Andres Rivera as Sejanus Plinth; Viola Davis as Dr. Volumnia Gaul; Fionnula Flanagan as Grandma’am
- **Runtime:** 2h 37m
- **Release (Poland):** 17 November 2023
- **Genres:** Science Fiction, Action
- **Budget:** $100 million
- **Box office:** $337 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxW_X4kzeus

## Where to watch in Poland

Not streaming, renting or buying in Poland at the last check.

Also available in: GB. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *The Hunger Games* (2012), Fi1m 70: The original arena, handheld and frightened, before the series learned to spend money — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-hunger-games.md)
- *Battle Royale* (2000), Fi1m 83: Japanese schoolchildren, one island, no mentors; the blunt ancestor of the whole genre — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/battle-royale.md)
- *Cabaret* (1972), Fi1m 88: A singer performs while a state hardens around her, and nobody gets out clean — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/cabaret.md)
- *The Running Man* (1987): Richard Dawson hosts death as light entertainment; Flickerman’s grandfather, in effect
- *Series 7: The Contenders* (2001): Killing as reality television, shot to look exactly like it, on almost nothing

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes