The Hunger Games official trailer from Lionsgate debuted this morning, and it looks awesome!! If you didn’t already sit down and read straight through the thriller book series by Suzanne Collins, you have until March 23 when the first movie comes out. Or at least to get the first book under your belt!

The trailer introduces us to the main character, Katniss Everdeen (played by Oscar nominee Jennifer Lawrence), when her little sister’s name is drawn to enter the Hunger Games, a televised event where the chosen youth fight in an enclosed and moderated environment until the deaths of all but the last man (or woman) standing. Our hero Katniss valiantly volunteers herself instead and is quickly thrown into the games of physical and psychological warfare.

In this future world, we see a dissolution of current society and a more polarized existence; half of the people are living off the land in monetary poverty while the other half are living in highly technologically-advanced cities where the political scene is run, AKA the Capitol. This provides a perfect cinematic landscape to showcase visual extremes and keeps the preminent theme on the ability to survive.

It looks as though screenplay writer and director Gary Ross has done an excellent job of lifting the story and landscape straight from the pages of the book. Can’t wait to see more of the main characters and some of the futuristic clothing choices!!

The movie also stars Stanley Tucci, Liam Hemsworth, Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Banks, Woody Harrelson, and Donald Sutherland.