Song: Can’t Catch Me Now
Artist: Olivia Rodrigo
Film: The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes
There is a lot going on in this song. If you have read the book, you will connect with it even better than if you have only seen the film.
The lyrics describe how this person is going to haunt you forever—in everything you do and everywhere you go—because that face just won’t fade from your mind.
It captures the essence of being haunted by someone you can never truly escape. They are everywhere, in everything, yet forever out of reach.
The Post-2:27 Magic: Soft Angst Perfected
The part after the 2:27 mark is my absolute favorite. The tempo picks up, feeling like a “soft angst.” Even though the same lines are being repeated endlessly, the growing beat builds an amazing atmosphere that amplifies the haunting feeling the song already has.
Perfect Placement: End Credits That Hit Different
talking about its use in the film, it plays during the end credits. While I wish there were visuals to go with it, the placement was actually perfect.
They brought the song in right after those iconic final words from President Snow: “It’s the things we love most, that destroy us.”
Snow’s Torment: 65 Years of Lucy Gray
I sometimes wonder about this from Snow’s perspective. After the end of the 10th Hunger Games, we know he went on to live until the 75th Hunger Games.
In all those years, how often did he think of Lucy Gray? How many times did he feel guilty before his dark side pushed that feeling away, convincing himself he never did anything wrong? Surely, Katniss wasn’t the only time he was badly reminded of Lucy.
Why Can’t Catch Me Now is an Underrated Masterpiece
That is just the power of this track. It may not have won any awards, and it didn’t even get an Oscar nomination, but it is the one song I still listen to a lot.
It says more about the story than the film sometimes could. A true lingering masterpiece.
Want to know what I thought of the film itself? Read my full review of The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes here.
