The heavily anticipated film adaptation of the first book in Suzanne Collins’ trilogy The Hunger Games hit theaters at midnight on Friday, March 23, and it was definitely worth the wait.

The Hunger Games follows a girl named Katniss Everdeen, one of 24 boys and girls called tributes who are forced to compete in a twisted reality show where there is only one rule: kill or be killed. Complications arise–to say the least–when she realizes a fellow tribute is in love with her, and she just might have feelings for him, despite the knowledge that there can only be one winner.

Going into the movie, I’ll admit I had my doubts as to whether or not it would live up to the unbelievably high standards set by the books. However, my worries were all for nothing. I was extremely impressed by the way the it was done.

Each actor was perfect for his or her role. Jennifer Lawrence became Katniss, the beautiful and strong female tribute from District 12. Every girl in the audience fell in love with Josh Hutcherson as her fellow tribute Peeta, the lovable baker’s son with a glass-half-full outlook on life. Liam Hemsworth convinced me he was Gale, Katniss’ longtime friend and hunting partner, with his protective, revolutionary personality. Elizabeth Banks captured the essence of Effie with her well-meaning, yet shallow comments, and Woody Harrelson played the role of Haymitch, Peeta and Katniss’ usually drunk but surprisingly caring mentor, to a T.

Stanley Tucci was the perfect host of the Games as Cesar Flickerman. Wes Bentley’s beard transformed him into Seneca Crane, the Head Gamemaker, the way Lenny Kravitz’ gold eyeliner made him District 12’s stylist, Cinna. From Amandla Stenberg as sweet little Rue to Alexander Ludwig as the gorgeous but lethal Cato, each of the tributes was represented almost exactly the way I imagined them.

I was also very impressed by the way the director wove the subplot into the film. These scenes gave the audience more insight into the effect certain events had on those who weren’t in the Games. By allowing the audience to see District 11’s actions following Katniss burying Rue, Cesar’s commentary, Seneca’s manipulation of the tributes and the arena and President Snow’s reaction to Katniss and Peeta’s final interview, the director was able to show the effects of the Games on both the Capitol and the people in outlying districts. These scenes also helped to set up the plot of the second book-turned-movie, Catching Fire, which comes out next year.

While the movie is capable of standing on its own, I would definitely recommend reading the book, as it provides more insight into the characters’ backgrounds. I felt a stronger attachment to certain characters in the movie because I had read the books prior to seeing the movie. This is not to slight the movie in any way; it is simply because books are always able to go into more depth than movies.

The effects were surprisingly realistic (I screamed when the mutt jumped out of nowhere), and the action was brutally convincing. The cave scenes were heart-stopping and painfully beautiful, fully satisfying hopeless romantics such as myself.

My one complaint is that whoever converted the book to a movie script left out Peeta’s “Here to finish me off, sweetheart?” line, but since every other aspect of the movie was absolutely perfect, I really can’t be upset.

Overall, The Hunger Games won me over completely. I cried and laughed and smiled and sighed throughout the movie, and despite the fact that it was close to three hours, I found myself captivated the entire time. I connected with the characters; I felt their sorrow and happiness, their confusion and relief, their pain and fear and love right along with them. I highly recommend this movie to anyone and everyone. It truly was the movie event of the year.