Two new images from The Hunger Games take us into the action

Thefirst couple of images we've seen from The Hunger Games have been a little...blah? I understand that, though, as Gary Ross wanted to ensure the very rabid fans of Suzanne Collins' novels that these actors were the perfect fit for the characters they'd be playing. So we got a few shots of Josh Hutcherson, looking all beefed up as Peeta Mellark, and Liam Hemsworth as Gale Hawthorne. Peeta and Gale will play the two principle male figures in the life of Katniss Everdeen(Jennifer Lawrence), both carrying a torch for her as she battles her way through the cruel competition against 23 other tributes.

Lionsgate has released two more shots from the film, and these look to be taking place in the midst of deadly competition. The one of Katniss could be of her putting her hunting skills to good use, which she does often in the story. The other appears to be of Peeta, during a pivotal scene where he's injured. Or he's just dirty and about to take a nap. Either way, these are the first glimpses of any action, and I'm assuming there'll be a lot more. I'm still most curious to see how the rest of the expansive cast looks by comparison.

The Hunger Games takes place in a future version of North America known as Panem, where one ruling Capital dominates over 12 districts. As punishment for a decades old offense, the Capital demands each district present two of their youths, a boy and girl, to compete in the annual Hunger Games, a battle to the death where there can be only one survivor. Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Donald Sutherland, Wes Bentley, Stanley Tucci, Lenny Kravitz, Toby Jones, and many more are set to star. Gary Ross(Pleasantville) is directing, with an assist by Steven Soderbergh(Traffic). Shooting is currently taking place, with the film's March 23rd 2012 release date rapidly approaching.