HG Black Carpet Winners and Losers

As we inch closer to the magical March 23rd theatrical release of The Hunger Games, my HG hysteria grows ever stronger. Last night the cast hit the black carpet for the Los Angeles premiere. Guess who obsessively watched the Yahoo! Movies live feed and squealed like a 12-year old girl when Josh Hutcherson arrived? Yep, that would be me. But let's not stand on circumstance. Let's talk winners and losers!

Winner: Jennifer Lawrence in Prabal Gurung

Photo courtesy of FabSugar

Jennifer Lawrence is a tough girl not to like. For starters, she's absolutely gorgeous. She's also sassy, sarcastic, incredibly talented, and crazy smart. And then she laughs. And she kind of sounds like Beavis from Beavis and Butthead. Love that! So I may be a bit biased, but I thought she hit this look out of the park. I wish she wasn't slouching in this picture because her posture makes the dress look like it was pulling across her hips, which it wasn't (quick tip: stand up straight when someone is taking your picture!). Jennifer's dress is both on trend (Prabal Gurung sent a lot of gold down the runway this February in NY's Fall Fashion Week) and reminiscent of the Mockingjay pin Katniss wears on her tribute outfit in the arena. Foreshadowing Katniss' impending transformation into the Mockingjay, perhaps? My HG partner-in-obessession, F, found Jennifer's hair to be a bit on the prom-y side. I thought it tied into the cutouts in her dress perfectly. To each her own. Jennifer Lawrence's red carpet fashion history has been admittedly spotty; she either gets it entirely right or entirely wrong, but she goes all-in and I appreciate a girl who commits. Last night was JLaw's night, and she got it entirely right.

Loser: Shailene Woodley in Honor 

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Oh, COME ON, Shailene! Really? Are you doing this just so that I have something to write about?! I applaud you for not trying to upstage Jennifer Lawrence on her night, but that is where my applause stops. I'm not saying that you have put all of your goodies on display (Miley Cyrus, I will deal with you later!), but you don't have to wear a printed potato sack either. I'm not trying to harsh on Honor, which showcased a brightly colored, but mostly covered, collection at Fall Fashion week last month. Honor sent some beautiful dresses with sheer lace overlays down the runway, any one of which would have been perfect for this premiere and beautiful on Shailene (if you have seen The Decendants, you are well aware that Shailene's body is sick, so that's clearly not the problem here). Shailene, I understand that you are only 20-years old. We all make fashion mistakes at 20 (see that phase I went through in undergrad when I was certain that tube tops were the last word in evening attire). But please, try to find your aesthetic. And if you can't find it, hire someone to find it for you.

Winner: Elizabeth Banks in Atelier Versace

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Representing the over-30 set, Elizabeth Banks was a winner in her orange, one-shouldered Atelier Versace mini dress with nude peep toe pumps. This dress had just the right amount of futuristic avant garde-iness for Banks, who plays Capitol fashionista and District 12 escort, Effie Trinket. Obeying the cardinal evening attire rule, that you may showcase your cleavage or your legs, but not both, and not neither, Banks elected to put the gams on display. If, like me, you have not been gifted with lengthy stems, a nude heel will provide you with the almost Copperfieldian illusion of longer legs. It's all smoke and mirrors, friends.  

Loser: Miley Cyrus in Emilio Pucci

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Miley, we get it. You can't be tamed. You could, however, stand to be a little more covered. There is a lot of cleavage and a lot of midriff going on here. As if that were not enough, the bottom of the skirt is sheer. Cleavage or legs, but not both. And if you are not standing on the beach with your toes in the sand or in front of someone's tailgate barbecue, your midriff should not be showing. Elegant is the new black.

Winner: Amandla Stenberg (Rue) in Colette Dinnigan

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Okay, how cute is Amandla Stenberg?! This is exactly what a 13-year old should wear to a movie premiere.  This ombre seafoam green confection is simply beautiful and has just the right amount of sparkle. Bonus points for the 40's hair and strappy kitten heels.

Loser: Kalia Prescott (District 3 Tribute Girl) in Cengiz Abazoglu

Photo courtesy of FabSugar

Why does little Kalia Prescott make my "loser" list? Because she wore white to Jennifer Lawrence's wedding, figuratively speaking. This is a beautiful, if highly involved, dress and Kalia looks stunning in it; but this is an Oscar dress. It is not particularly appropriate for this premiere, nor is it appropriate for someone playing an unnamed character in said premiere. Had this dress been cocktail length rather than full length, I probably would have been all over it. Maybe. Kalia, I'm not saying that you shouldn't try to look your best, but it was Jennifer's night. You shouldn't try to be the belle of someone else's ball.   

So there you have it. Just over 9 days until The Hunger Games is released in theaters. If you are watching in the U.K., your film will be exactly 7 seconds shorter than the U.S. release. British censors required that 7 seconds of "blood" footage be cut from the film in order for it to maintain its 12A rating (12A is the U.K. equivalent of the MPAA's PG-13 rating). 

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