Entertainment: Starting as a Succubus, Taking Hollywood by Storm

Mainstream North American media largely praised The Hunger Games.

Of 43 outlets, the aggregate score was 71/100. New York Daily News gave it a perfect 100, while Entertainment Weekly and Box Office Magazine awarded 90+, deeming it Hollywood's best sci-fi action film since The Matrix, excelling as action, fable, or straight cinema.

Rolling Stone, Los Angeles Times, Empire, and Total Film scored it 80+. Los Angeles Times credited Jennifer Lawrence for nailing the lead, perfectly embodying the novel's heroine.

Chicago Sun-Times, The Village Voice, and Hollywood Reporter gave 70+, with Hollywood Reporter lauding Lawrence while noting Gary Ross catered too much to book fans.

Variety scored 60, praising its entertainment value but critiquing its flaws.

Time and Miami Herald gave 50: the former said Ross failed to capture the novel's essence, the latter called it too safe.

Wall Street Journal's lowest 30 criticized the execution but still commended Lawrence's standout performance.

Jennifer Lawrence, the young actress once Oscar-nominated for Winter's Bone, proved her mettle again.

The White House even rode the wave. President Obama, in a State Dinner speech, used The Hunger Games to jab Republican rivals, likening them to the film's tributes slaughtering each other for elite favor until one remained.

Even more intriguing: after the film's global release, a protest erupted in Bangkok, Thailand, against the military. Demonstrators mimicked the three-finger salute from The Hunger Games, voicing discontent with a coup.

With feminism's rise, female-led films gained traction, and "girl power" tropes thrived pre-Hunger Games. But the film blended "strong female lead" with "girl power," offering a youthful female Robin Hood—tough, leader-worthy, yet capable of tender romance—winning hearts from age 13 to 43.

Of course, it wasn't flawless. Like teen novels, it fell into the love-triangle trap: one a budding romance with a fellow tribute, the other a childhood sweetheart, the burly "backup."

Our heroine wavers, pondering the ultimate dilemma: Which guy do I choose?

For female viewers, though, it was a plus. If men can have theirs, why can't we?

…

By mid-November, The Hunger Games wrapped its run with a stellar $412 million in North America and $713 million globally.

Meanwhile, major U.S. events unfolded.

In September, the U.S. embassy in Benghazi was attacked, killing four Americans, including the ambassador. Initially blamed on a "protest," it was later confirmed as terrorism. The scandal rocked politics: Susan Rice, U.N. ambassador and frontrunner for Secretary of State, withdrew after "misstatements." John Kerry ultimately got the nod.

Rice was seen as "hawkish"; Kerry "dovish." The incident indirectly shaped U.S. foreign policy leadership.

Late October, Hurricane Sandy battered the Northeast, killing 125, displacing hundreds of thousands, leaving millions without power, and causing over $60 billion in damage—America's second-costliest storm after Katrina. Unlike Katrina's blow to Bush's approval, Sandy boosted Obama, earning endorsements from New York City Mayor Bloomberg and New Jersey Governor Christie, a Republican heavyweight.

Mid-October, CIA Director David Petraeus resigned over an affair with his biographer, becoming the agency's shortest-serving director. A tale of sex, power struggles, CIA-FBI drama, modern espionage, and even Supreme Allied Commander Allen's involvement, it rivaled Hollywood thrillers.

November's headlines were dominated by Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes' divorce. In 2006, the couple with newborn Suri graced Vanity Fair's October cover, selling 713,776 copies—second only to Jennifer Aniston's 2005 September issue.

Suri was pampered from birth. Tom doted on her everywhere. Her wardrobe was dubbed "ABC"—Armani, Burberry, Christian Louboutin. Western media called her Tom's "heart's treasure."

But love fades. In October 2012, Katie filed for divorce after six years.

Within a month, they were done. Post-divorce, Tom cut ties with mother and daughter. Katie, a Scientologist handpicked for Tom, divorced over the church's grip: kids faced lie-detector tests at six, constant monitoring, and rejection of medical care for "soul therapy." When Suri fell ill, Tom insisted on church methods over hospital treatment. Katie, prioritizing her daughter's happy childhood, left swiftly.

She was right. Though Suri grieved the split, clinging to Katie and hiding from cameras, freedom meant a normal life: friends, sports, and gradual ease around the press.

Tom, bound by church rules, severed contact—even missing Suri's birthdays.

(Author Note's.: Suri, inheriting her parents' genes, grew into a stunning beauty.)