In a movie that’s essentially about throwing a bunch of people into an arena and having them kill each other, there’s a lot more to notice than the clothes they’re wearing. Maybe you were focused on Catching Fire’s Peeta-Katniss-Gale love triangle, or maybe you were focused on how the tributes were planning on off-ing each other, or maybe even how well the movie followed the book.

That’s what I was focused on, for the most part. But then Effie Trinkett stepped out in that butterfly dress. And then those heels. And then Katniss’ wedding dress took stage. When that happened, I (ashamedly) forgot the plot. I went into a full-throttle clothes-envy tailspin. The movie was peppered with the hottest designers money can buy- Alexander McQueen, Juun J, Tex Saverio, and Nicholas K.

The wonderful thing about the clothes was that they subtly added a ton to the movie. Take Effie, for example. Her clothes are tight and uncomfortable. She never really looks completely at home or relaxed; she is exactly in character. She goes for fashion over comfort without fail, every time, like she’s supposed to.

The wedding dress. It was perfect, it was wonderful, it was just how I pictured it. Actually, no, it wasn’t. But as soon as I saw it I knew that it was the right dress. I just hadn’t been able to come up with that in my own head. It had elements of silver that resembled branches, calling in the woods so associated with her character. The bottom was like feathers; mockingjay. And even though the mockingjay dress was CGI, the wings worked really well.

The outfits the other tributes wore were equally exciting. Finnick (being a girl, I really liked his costume) had on the shells and the fish net half-tunic from his district. Johanna’s “wood” dress- actually made from cork- was both wonderful and stupid, just like it was meant to be.

And those suits! The ones worn by Caesar, President Snow, and Heavensbee were mostly things that you don’t see worn very often. Caesar’s and Snow’s were shimmery and flashy- very out there and capital-centered. But Heavensbee’s was understated, more like what a normal human would actually wear. Their characters became directly reflected in what they were wearing.

Maybe I’m shallow for noticing the clothes while a movie about people dying was playing in front of me. But the way they were designed was thoughtful, fierce, powerful, and elegant: all themes that are incredibly important in the story itself.