“Catching Fire” cannot even be compared to “The Hunger Games.” The second in the series was 20 times better and even I, who’s not terribly interested in the series, was sitting on the edge of my seat avidly watching.

Director Francis Lawrence did a fantastic job in showing the restlessness of the people who are preparing for an uprising. The first movie, directed by Gary Ross, set up this upset when Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) changed the rules of the game to save both herself and Peeta. Now, President Snow (Donald Sutherland) is out for revenge.

What really helped “Catching Fire” was that Katniss was so much more alive than in the first. In The Hunger Games she lacked animation so much, she might as well have been a piece of cardboard. Yes, Katniss is meant to be stalwart, hardened, unemotional, but I felt Lawrence could have made an interesting character out of that instead of becoming a cutout.

While watching, I absolutely loved that I didn’t give much thought to the love triangle between Katniss, Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), and Gale (Liam Hemsworth). Of course, the love story was portrayed throughout the movie with all the kisses and the especially profound “I need you,” but the movie was more about the corrupt society and the beginnings of rebellion.

I was also impressed by Prim (Willow Shields). She went from this weak, pathetic little girl to a reliable, strong young woman from “The Hunger Games” to “Catching Fire.”

However, I would have liked a bit of a shorter beginning and more of the actual games. There was just a tad too much political play and chess match between Katniss and President Snow. Other than this minor detail I truly have no complaints. “Catching Fire” was by far one of the best movies I’ve seen this year.