Preview Of Monsters and Men's "Silhouettes"

MTV has a feature up of the new song Silhouettes by Of Monsters and Men (my favourite band! -mc) for the upcoming Catching Fire soundtrack! There's also a brilliant little writeup with the band discussing where they got their inspiration for the song's lyrics - which may surprise you.

You can listen to it here! (Go! Do! Now! -mc)

Of Monsters and Men may have never been cast into a brutal arena and forced to fight for their lives — but they have been on tour. And according to band member Ragnar þórhallsson, the band was able to draw on that experience to pen their contribution to "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" soundtrack, "Silhouettes." A preview of that track premieres exclusively Tuesday (October 22) on MTV News.

"We had been traveling for a long time and away from our family and doing something we had never done before, so that was kind of how we related to the story," þórhallsson told MTV News. "So this is all based on our experience."

Although they are fans of the "Hunger Games" series, the band chose to write "Silhouettes" not to match any specific scene in the book/film, but more the overall feeling of the second tome in the series, in which Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark are cast back into the Hunger Games arena to fight against former victors in the midst of a burgeoning revolution.

"I think that's stronger than digging into and dissecting the book and writing a song about one scene or something," þórhallsson said. "It's more about the feeling of the whole story."

A bittersweet song that's delicacy hides a kind of throbbing tension, it's easy to see how the tune could fit into the film — or serve as the inner monologue running through Katniss's head as she recalls all the people she has lost in her dystopian world: "A thousand silhouettes/ Dancing on my chest/ No matter where I sleep/ You are haunting me," sings the band's Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir over an increasingly tortured beat.

That feeling of being displaced, yet carrying one's homeland within, is one that Of Monsters and Men knows too well. After releasing their hit debut record My Head is an Animal in 2011, the Icelandic band hit the road, playing more than 200 shows in this past year alone.

"Being away from your home and your family and your girlfriend and stuff like that [is hard]," þórhallsson said. "I think this song touches on that. Definitely."

The song and the band's lengthy touring experience could factor into the band's sophomore record — the song serving as a bridge between the first album and the next. "The first album was a lot about escaping," þórhallsson said. "Writing about what's out there without knowing what's out there. I think now that we've seen what's out there... and how we feel about being away [from home], it kind of turns around a bit. I'm not sure what the next album will sound like....but we know more about the world, so it's probably going to be a lot different from the first, I think. Maybe a bit more personal."

Still, lest you think that Of Monsters and Men equate touring wholly to the terrors of the Hunger Games, þórhallsson is quick to point out that the journey wasn't all missing friends and loved ones. "Definitely best two years of my life, I think," he said of the band's first-ever tour.

"The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" soundtrack drops on November 19 — before the film premiere on November 22.

'Catching Fire' Featured in Total Film December

   Total Film has ANOTHER feature on Catching Fire in their December issue! Last month Francis Lawrence talked about the movie (check it out here) and in the December issue, Francis, Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Sam Claflin, and Jena Malone open up about the movie and their characters.

Check out the excerpts from the issue below, and be sure to pick up Total Film on your newsstand!

Jennifer Lawrence:

"I've been working ever since, so I don’t feel anything has changed. Well, I definitely get more death threats." (on her life post Oscar win)

"In my opinion, it's such an important statement in these movies, what one voice can do. I mean, all of these people, they only need one person to do something different and then they can say, 'OK, we're not alone, we have a leader.' Also, what I like about her is that she never set out to be this Joan of Arc. She got into the games in the first place to save her sister, and then made it through just to save herself, and that turned into saving Peeta, and now, in the second book, she's got a much larger body of people that are depending on her." 

Josh Hutcherson:

"'Catching Fire' is about the slow tension building beneath the surface, with the relationships as well as the rebellion. In this movie you see more of Peeta and Katniss together than you ever did in the first one. It intensifies, the feelings become stronger.

"He's got a fire inside of him in this movie, different to the first. As the Victory Tour goes on, Peeta sees how horrible it is, and when he's put back into the games, he has an anger. This time he's a much more active person in the physicality of the arena." (on Peeta)

"We took the p--- out of each other all day long, just f---ed around," Hutcherson says, before adding, promptly, that everyone was professional and "focused on making the best movie possible for the fans."

In this movie, you see more of Peeta and Katniss together than you ever did in the first one. It intensifies, the feelings become stronger."

"We're so comfortable with each other, such good friends, that there's really not that much romanticism to it. But yeah, she's beautiful and it's a passionate moment and you want to feel real in that moment, so..." (on Jennifer Lawrence)

Sam Claflin:

“My character specifically spends the majority of the film carrying an old woman on his back, in the jungles of Hawaii. When we were in Atlanta doing the cornucopia stuff, all the fighting erupted. I’d been training for months, learning these different fights, and then all of a sudden I was kicking someone really hard into the water! You’re like, ‘Yes! I did that!’ Not that I’m a violent person…”

"Jennifer's very generous and kind, a great role model." (on Jennifer Lawrence)

Click to read more ...

Bruno Gunn Talks Brutus And 'Catching Fire' at the Dignity Gala

Bruno Gunn was out last night at the Dignity Gala in Beverly Hills supporting RedLight Traffic (a great cause - check them out). He talked about Brutus and Catching Fire on the red carpet. Check it out! 

US Weekly Reveals Their 'Catching Fire' Edition Cover

US Weekly has finally revealed their Catching Fire Special Edition magazine cover. The issue will be out November 1st, but you can pre-order you copy on BN.com now. We'll have issues to give away as well. Stay tuned! 

'Catching Fire' Article in Sci Fi Now

Sci Fi Now Issue 86 has arrived on newsstands in the UK featuring The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, and thanks to ThePeacekeeper's keen eyes, we have some of the article for you! The issue includes interviews with Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Sam Claflin , and Francis Lawrence and a really cool guide to the layout of the Quarter Quell arena and a Hunger Games survival guide. We'll update with HQ scans when available. 

Here are excerpts from the interviews. Read Josh Hutcherson, Sam Claflin, and Francis Lawrence's interviews after the jump:

Jennifer Lawrence on signing on as Katniss:

"When I first signed on to it, I expected to have a lot of regrets," admits the 23-year-old on her decision to break out of independent movies for a big studio spectacular. "But fortunately I haven't. I am happy I did take the role. [If I hadn't] I would still probably be able to go to restaurants without becoming a nervous wreck or go to Starbucks and get my own coffee - that would be different. That would be lovely."  

"Originally it was just reading scripts, talking to directors and making movies," she recalls, "and then all of a sudden it was like, 'Oh yeah, you have to wear high heels and make people like you.' So when I read the book, I was laughing at that, going 'Yeah, I know how that feels.'"  

On Katniss in Catching Fire:

"She's suffering from post-traumatic stress from the first Games, and she's trying to get her life back. She is living in the Victors' Village now, she doesn't have to hunt any more - which makes her feel useless and bored - and there is part of her life that Gale will never understand. Peeta is the only one that truly knows what she went through. And when she has to go back to the Capitol, it's not a foreign world to her anymore. Not that she likes it, but she understands it now and how to work it."

"The wedding dress was incredible because it's stunning, but I'm not good with big dresses - and stairs. I'm so bad"..

On being a role model and body image:

"In the first movie, when it was obviously being talked about, like, 'It's The Hunger Games, you have to lose ten pounds.' I said 'We have control over this role model. Why would we make her something unobtainable and thin?' This is a person that young girls will be looking up to, so why not make her strong? Why not make her beautiful and healthy and fit? I was very adamant about that, because I think that our industry doesn't take enough responsibility for what it does to our society. I remember what it felt like to be 14 years old, looking at a Victoria's Secret model and thinking, 'I'll never look like that.' I don't want to make someone feel like that."

Click to read more ...

Katniss & Gale Cover Cineplex Magazine

Cineplex posted a sneak peek at their November issue (on newsstands 10/25) to their Instagram account today. The issue features Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss and Liam Hemsworth as Gale on the cover. The issue will feature an interview with Liam. Here's a bit of it:

Catching Fire’s Liam Hemsworth on what the franchise has meant to him:

"Hunger Games absolutely changed my life. It’s brought up so many different questions about my own personal growth and where I was heading."

We'll get you the full interview as soon as we get it into our hands.

Jennifer Lawrence's Family Will Host a Special Charity Screening of 'Catching Fire'

Jennifer Lawrence's mother, sister-in-law and her special friend Andy Struck spoke with WHAS-TV Friday morning about a special screening of Catching Fire that will be held in Louisville, KY on November 20th to benefit St. Mary's Center.

St. Mary’s offers day training for adults with intellectual disabilities and the screening will help fund the newly opened campus on Aiken Road.

Lawrence’s friend Andy will be attending St. Mary’s and their friendship goes way back. Lawrence and Andy became friends at Kammerer Middle School and have stayed buddies ever since.

The screening was Jennifer's idea, and is one of Lawrence’s ways of giving back. Her mom said that she's most proud that her daughter is still grounded in a heady place called Hollywood.

Tickets run from $125 to $1000 for 8 reserved seats. Each ticket will get you different things. All of them will come with a gift bag full of movie memorabilia.

If you are interest in attending you can call 502-855-6942.

The most adorable thing:

Jen's mom: "She just loves Andy."

Andy cuts in: "Yeah."

Mom Lawrence: "They've been friends a long, long time."

Andy cuts in: "Twelve years."

UK Cinemas' Catching Fire Giveaways

Several UK cinemas have some fabulous contests available to those who pre-order their tickets to Catching Fire.

Odeon Cinemas:

Win from a holiday in Hawaii, signed merchandise and more.

We are offering every one who pre-books their Hunger Games: Catching Fire tickets online with ODEON the chance to win from a holiday to Hawaii, signed soundtracks and posters and more!

All you have to do for your chance to win is book your tickets online before the film is released on November 21st!

Cineworld:

We’ve teamed up with our friends at Lionsgate to offer a weekly prize of an iPad and Catching Fire goody bag for all those who book online for the film.

Each week, one lucky winner will be entered in to a draw for the chance to win! 

 
 Vue: Showing a double feature of both The Hunger Games and Catching Fire! Click here to order tickets.


Thanks to QuarterQuell.org for the tip.