"Hunger Games" Mania: Weeping, Costumed Teenagers Mob Midnight Screenings

So maybe you have a niece or a younger brother or a cousin or something with a birthday coming up, and you fancy yourself a cool, older role model, so you want to buy them something the kids love these days, like a Twilight book or a Hannah Montana or something? God, you are so stupid, that stuff hasn't been cool for months now. No, it's all about The Hunger Games, the über-bestselling young adult novel and movie adaptation, which began its methodical annihilation of all box-office challengers last night by taking in a staggering $19.7 million in midnight screenings last night. Like it didn't suck enough already to be the guys who made John Carter.

I confess, I have not read these books, mostly because I caught this story the first time around, but I'll probably see the movie. Hell, Jennifer Lawrence does more acting before she has her morning coffee than Kristen Stewart's capable of in a lifetime of sullen pouting, so that's gotta count for something, right? And besides, based on these crazy photos, my $13.50 (seriously, $13.50) isn't going to make a lick of difference one way or the other.

[all photos via and via @TheGroveLA]