There’s a new soundtrack taking over the iPods and iTunes accounts of students at AHS, proving that audiences have been hungry for more than just The Hunger Games movie. While the film has already racked up the third biggest opening weekend in history with $155 million dollars and continues to sell out theaters, its soundtrack has also taken to the top of Billboard’s charts.
Featuring songs from artists such as The Civil Wars, Taylor Swift, Maroon 5, Arcade Fire, and others, the album creates the somber, but at times hopeful mood that the film portrays: a headstrong girl thrown into the turmoil of a corrupt tournament controlled by the government in order to save her younger sister. Though none of the lyrical songs featured on the album are actually played during the duration of the film – not even Taylor Swift and the Civil Wars popular song, “Safe and Sound”, which most audience members thought would be played during one of the tribute’s dramatic death scenes – the movie is still carried by Jennifer Lawrence’s impeccable acting and the perfectly tuned underscore composed by composer James Newton Howard.
“I really loved the [instrumental] music played throughout the film because it didn’t take away from what was going on in the film,” junior Safiya Isman said. “I only wished that they had played more of the popular songs from the soundtrack during the movie.”
Though some were disappointed that the more admired, lyrical songs were only played during the credits of the movie, this hardly seems to matter as soundtrack sales skyrocket to 175,000 copies sold in just its first week, pushing One Direction’s Up All Night to No. 4 on the charts while Adele’s 21 still holds the spot for No. 2. With the number still growing, the album becomes the first theatrical soundtrack to top the Billboard’s charts since 2009’s Michael Jackson’s: This is It.
“I really love the album,” junior Patricia Webb said. “It’s just something you can’t stop listening to and even when you do, the music still keeps playing in your head.”