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Why Lenny Kravitz?? Because he was perfect!

Posted by kimhuston on Mar 29, 2012 | 0 comments

After hearing all the buzz yesterday about the racist comments made by some fans of The Hunger Games, I felt the need to comment. I know I’m not the only one commenting but I just wanted to say what I wanted to say! I don’t feel the need to even respond about the comments made regarding the actress that played the part of Rue. They are just ignorant, narrow-minded and miss-informed! Seriously, if you can’t read a book completely and really absorb what the story and images that the author is trying to show you, then you are NOT a fan and not a great reader at all. Rue was supposed to have dark skin and eyes….enough said! So was Thresh so there is really no need to even dignify comments made by people that are so absorbed in their racist, shallow world that even when a description of someone is given to them on paper, they NEVER would expect strong and powerful or cute and innocent as being anything other than looking like themselves or their own family. Shame on you…and welcome to 2012. Wake up!

Now to the point I wanted to make. Yes, Susan Collins never mentioned the appearance of Cinna. I’m sure it was intentional. His appearance isn’t necessary as far as was he white, black or even blue or green (because there are really people that correctly can be referred to as ‘colored people’ in this story, they cut them from the movie ;o)) because he’s more of a presence. He’s calm, quiet but strong and has a quirky style. Now that in itself should make the decision an obvious one. Lenny is all of that!

Another thing that bothers me is their lack of understanding when it comes to casting. Being that I have worked behind the scenes on film projects for the last 5 years and have seen everything from casting, to camera work, to makeup and production design I know a little about what goes into it. Okay, I’m no professional but even though I am not a PAID stylist, I can tell you that when I do set or costume design for a movie I put everything I can into it. It’s about telling the story and really thinking about what your viewers EXPECT to see but also keeping in line with what the writer and director imagined in their mind. I can only imagine that sitting around and discussing casting, with a larger budget on their hands, they started really thinking about Cinna. He has style and charisma, he is strong but isn’t rebellious or too loud unless it fits the moment, he is attractive and his eyes speak to you, he can wear something weird and no one things anything strange about it. He has people who believe in him and follow his direction. If I was in the room, I would not have been surprised if someone blirted out, ‘Wouldn’t it be awesome if we could get Lenny to do it?’ Sure he fairly new to acting but he has been in bigger projects like Precious, but that should tell the misinformed fans that he was picked for a reason! When they thought of Cinna, they thought of Lenny! Lenny became Cinna to them and that should be enough for the fans to believe in him too.

So if the story tellers are the ones who originally thought up the idea or are bringing it to life in this case with Director Gary Ross, should it not be up to the reader/viewer to them see if for the story it was supposed to be? I think so!

Just a quick Google gave me this information!
Lenny Kravitz was recruited by director Gary Ross for the role of Cinna in the big screen adaptation of THE HUNGER GAMES starring Jennifer Lawrence. After Gary Ross saw him in Precious, he told CineMovie recently that he knew Lenny would be perfect for the role and called him while he was on tour to recruit him. Although he wasn’t familiar with the Suzanne Collins novels, he researched the books and immediately said yes to the project.

http://cinemovie.tv/cinemovie_new/videos/2093-lenny-kravitzs-cinna-comforts-katniss-in-the-hunger-games