ENDER'S GAME - Trailer Announcement & Preview

[king3pj]

Listen, I really liked Ender's Game myself and totally see where you guys are coming from on Ender's age. It will change the tone quite a bit to have a teenager play a part that was supposed to be a 6 year old. I will still give the movie a chance though.

The book gave us a reality where a few 6-year-old kids could be geniuses to bet the fate of humanity on. The problem is that real 6-year-old kids aren't that smart. I can't imagine trying to make a big budget movie like this and using a 6-year-old as the star actor. It's just not practical. How is someone that young supposed to be able to act well enough to give the character the same depth as the book did.

This movie just isn't possible without using an older kid unless it is animated like someone mentioned earlier. I get where you guys are coming from but I also see the reasoning behind the choice. If they were to release this as an animated movie it never would have gotten a wide theatrical release. It most likely would have been a direct to DVD movie. It's too violent and graphic to market as an animated kids movie and animated movies for adults don't go to theaters.

 

[John Kotches]

Not that it is a big difference, I though he was closer to 8 in the end when we was working with Mazer Rackham. Regardless, you raise perfectly valid points on making a live action film.

I'm willing to give it a try based on the last trailer I saw, and I have to tell you, it's a much better looking vision than I painted in my head when I read the book for the first time ;-)

 

[jayn_j]

Well, there have always been kids who can play younger. Haley Joel Osment in the Sixth Sense comes to mind. He was 10-11, but did a good job of playing 7-8.

I always thought Ender was closer to 10-11 when he got bumped to command school. Had the impression with his story and Beans that he had been there for 4ish years.

 

[king3pj]

He was a little older when he went to command school. I guess I don't know what the scope of the movie is compared to the book but he was only 6 when he went to battle school. Unless you use multiple actors it would be tough to make the same kid look 6 and 10-11 in the movie.

Regardless, I'm going to give them a pass on the age of the actor. 13 is obviously still ridiculously young to be trusted with the military. I think people will get the idea and enjoy the movie even if Ender is 13 instead of 6.

 

[rockymtnhigh]

Well, there have always been kids who can play younger. Haley Joel Osment in the Sixth Sense comes to mind. He was 10-11, but did a good job of playing 7-8.

I always thought Ender was closer to 10-11 when he got bumped to command school. Had the impression with his story and Beans that he had been there for 4ish years.

He was closer to 10-11, and was probably 12 when he fought the Buggers. Yes, I'll say Buggers and not "Formics."

Just saw the latest poster, barely focuses on Ender, but has Ford and Kingsely prominently featured, of course. I know I will see it, but I remain bothered by the need to turn them all into teenagers. Fundamentally changes the nature of the book; I still think this would have been a great animated film.

 

[jayn_j]

He was closer to 10-11, and was probably 12 when he fought the Buggers. Yes, I'll say Buggers and not "Formics."

Just saw the latest poster, barely focuses on Ender, but has Ford and Kingsely prominently featured, of course. I know I will see it, but I remain bothered by the need to turn them all into teenagers. Fundamentally changes the nature of the book; I still think this would have been a great animated film.

Well, it took them over 30 years and several false starts to make it. I've never had high hopes that it would turn out well. We shall see.

 

[mike123abc]

He was closer to 10-11, and was probably 12 when he fought the Buggers. Yes, I'll say Buggers and not "Formics."

Just saw the latest poster, barely focuses on Ender, but has Ford and Kingsely prominently featured, of course. I know I will see it, but I remain bothered by the need to turn them all into teenagers. Fundamentally changes the nature of the book; I still think this would have been a great animated film.

The problem of course is to find preteen actors that could handle the roles. Unfortunately I do not think that using 7-11 year old actors would have worked. Getting young looking teens to play kids is about as good as can be practically done.

 

[rockymtnhigh]

The problem of course is to find preteen actors that could handle the roles. Unfortunately I do not think that using 7-11 year old actors would have worked. Getting young looking teens to play kids is about as good as can be practically done.

THAT is why I said I think this would be a great ANIMATED film. I don't think you can use the same actor for a 6 and 12 year old kid.

 

[king3pj]

THAT is why I said I think this would be a great ANIMATED film. I don't think you can use the same actor for a 6 and 12 year old kid.

They probably could have made a great animated film. I doubt it would be a big budget theater release if they did though. The book is too violent to be a kids movie and animated movies for adults rarely get released in theaters. The best we could have hoped for with an animated movie is a straight to blu-ray release like DC and Marvel do with their more adult animated movies.

 

[rockymtnhigh]

Completely different from the film, OSC and Brilliance Audio (under the leadership of the amazing Stephan Rudniki and Gabrielle de Cuir) have produced an "audio play" -- think radio play like War of the worlds -- called Enders Game Alive. Something like 40 actors, special effects; new narrative; a new re-telling of Ender's Game; faithful to the plot elements of Ender's Game (i.e., he enters battle school at age 6); but yet fresh - and really a lot of fun. It is a mere 7 1/2 hours long, nowhere near long enough for me, but I am enjoying every minute of it. Available from Audible, and as an mp3 file from Amazon. If you like Ender's Game, this is worth the time.

And Rudnicki does a great Colonel Graff; de Cuir, who played Valentine in the original EG audiobook, has a more limited role as Theresa Wiggin, but the cast is well done. A virtual who's who among audiobook narrators.

 

[navychop]

This movie might actually get me into a theater again, probably IMAX. If SWMBO stays interested, that is.

As to Starship Troopers, with it's tenuous connection to the book: I'm sure the scriptwriters had a copy of the book in the room with them as they wrote. Of course, they burned it before reading it, just to ensure they wouldn't be contaminated by anything in there that might interfere with the movie they had already decided to make.

Puppet Masters was even further removed, but to be faithful it would be rated X or have the most fantastic angle shots and blurs everywhere. And still be at least R.

I'd love to see a faithful Stranger in a Strange Land.

Sigh. I'll take what I can get when it comes to certain authors.


Whatever happened to the movies that were to be made based on Anne McCaffery's Pern works?

 

[whitewolf8214]

Typical Hollyweird ruining another movie!! imo

 

[king3pj]

The reviews seem to be pretty positive. It's in the fresh zone on rottentomatoes.com. Using an older kid might make the movie stray from the book a little but it almost certainly makes it a better movie. Having your lead actor be a 6 year old kid would be almost impossible.


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[mike123abc]

It is getting fair reviews, a 64% currently on rottentomatoes.com is not an outstanding rating. I suppose I will see it this weekend during a convenient matinee. I read the book long ago, so I suspect I know how it will all end...

 

[navychop]

Young kids can only be worked a couple hours a day, right?

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[jayn_j]

Just saw it. Probably about the best they could do with the material. It couldn't possibly live up to the cult status of the book, but they really tried. The major problem is that everything had to be compressed to fit into a 2 1/2 hour movie. One battleroom battle as soldier, one as commander, etc.

 

[rockymtnhigh]

Just saw it. Probably about the best they could do with the material. It couldn't possibly live up to the cult status of the book, but they really tried. The major problem is that everything had to be compressed to fit into a 2 1/2 hour movie. One battleroom battle as soldier, one as commander, etc.

I was told that the whole story was compressed into a very short time period?

I want to see it, but know I have to go in trying to eliminate any expectations from the book. And just take it as a film.

 

[rockymtnhigh]

Heading out to see it. Hoping to have a good time.

 

[rockymtnhigh]

Ok, I saw it. I managed, for the most time to keep my "why isn't this here? why did they do that with that character? etc..." out of my view. i absolutely loved being immersed into the world of Ender's Game, and thought some of it was really good.

I think Asa Butterfield did a great job as Ender. Same with Ford and Kingsley. I loved seeing Mazer sitting in Ender's room, in that prostrate position. Just like in a drawing of it from the graphic novelization. I was sold. I have ONE casting issue that I could not get away from the book with. Ender was a stinking foot taller than Bonzo? Why on earth would Bonzo even be intimidating, other than that he was a bit muscular? I wanted, I needed Bonzo to be a foot taller, and intimidating.


But I tried to think, If I did not know this story, would I walk away understanding it, or persuaded by it?

For example, they move very quickly, it seems as if the whole story takes place in maybe a year. Ok, I guess... but did Ender do anything in that short time which would make him stand out as the one last great hope for humanity? I don't know. It seemed forced. WHY was Ender better than Allai? Or Bean, or Petra?

My son asked me when it was over - "what was that with Valentine and the dream?" I don't think they pulled off the ending very well. I got it; but I heard several people walking out kind of shaking their heads, "this is it?" "What happened there?"

I think the film-makers could have kept the film basically the same length and managed to spread out the story a bit. They could have made a transition with something like "two years later" or something like that. And still used the same actors. They were teenagers anyways. It might have made for a more compelling story on its own.

Did I enjoy it? Yes, was I disappointed? Not as much as I expected to be. Indeed, I'll probably get the Blu-ray. In many ways my criticism of the film is a lot like my criticism of the first JJ Abrams Trek (No, Not about the alternate universe, don't go there!) in terms of plot holes and plot devices that did not quite work for me (i.e., take a disgraced cadet and make him first officer of the flagship, yeah, that makes sense!). If I were to grade the film, I'd give it a low B. Still a good paper, but not quite where it could be.

 

[rockymtnhigh]

I transformed that into a blog. Only small changes.

http://michaelgizzi.tumblr.com/post/65887235633/the-enemys-gate-is-down-thoughts-on-the-enders


But one important one: I cringed with the hand holding between Ender and Petra. I was just waiting for them to have them kiss. When they did I would have thrown popcorn into the air and sworn battle school curses. Thankfully, it didn't happen.