Geek Syndicate Issue 5 | Page 42

Geek Syndicate
Archery On Screen
Over the past few years the world has slowly been let into the secret that Bow and Arrows are cool. Being a qualified archery instructor I have known for a while about this little secret but am now very happy that the rest of the world is now embracing what is very much the coolest weapon out there. In 2012 the London Olympics had people mesmerised watching the talents of the worlds greatest archers competing for that elusive Gold medal. Whether it is in books, comics, TV shows, video games or on the big screen you can see the Bow and Arrow being used more and more, but why now and what has changed? The earliest evidence of a bow and arrow dates back about 64,000 years ago in South Africa and through the ages has been used in a variety of ways from hunting to warfare. It is also one of the few weapons that can be created from natural resources. Nowadays we get to see the bow used by superheroes, teenage gladiators, vampire hunters and Elves.
Image © Lionsgate, 2012

Bows are cool!

The Hunger Games
In 2012 we saw three big movies that featured a Bow. The first was The Hunger Games, based on the best selling trilogy of books. Having read the books I have to say that

although Katniss does have a bow in the books, it is really the visuals from the film that make the weapon stand out. Katniss Everdeen at first uses the bow to hunt using its speed and stealth to kill animals for food for her family and to use for trade. During the early scenes we see how good Katniss is with the Bow and how confident she is by the number of kills she has made. As the film progresses and she is chosen to participate in The Hunger Games where she has to rely on her skills with the bow at first to impress the sponsors and then in the arena to hunt and also as an offensive weapon against the other participants. In the later books, her bow is also used as part of her image and a sign of the warrior that she is to become. Actress Jennifer Lawrence trained with Khatuna Lorig

(four-time archery Olympian) to ensure she was competent with the weapon and it really shows on screen with how she handles the Bow. The Hunger Games has also had a direct impact on the number of girls who have signed up to archery lessons which has increased by about thirty per-cent throughout the UK.

Brave
While in the past it has generally been male heroes to wield the bow, with Katniss things are changing. This is also evidenced in last year’s other female strong Bow wielding heroine: Merida in Disney’s Brave. Before the film came out it was clear that here was a female who could stand toe to toe with the men. Her weapon of choice? why the bow of course and the trail-

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