Samuel K. (Solvanda)
Reviewed on 9/23/2019...
This followed the book (from 1985) quite closely, although the bullying in the book was much more severe, and you don't see much here, it being alluded to instead. As well, a bit of a subsequent book is mixed in: "Ender's Shadow". This movie literally took decades to make it to the screen. At one point Jake Lloyd (the young Anakin Skywalker) was roped in to star.
Ender's Game is generally listed as the second most popular Science Fiction series of all time. There are a lot of novels which follow this movie, the most important (in my mind) being the next: "Speaker for the Dead". In fact, the author, Orson Scott Card, said he wrote Ender's Game simply so he could write the next novel. I do not imagine they will ever film Speaker for the Dead. People might run screaming out of the theaters.
There has been some talk of one of the other novels being made into a film, or perhaps a series, but that was 5 years ago. I'm getting the feeling nothing is going to happen in the near future, which is a shame. Subsequent books in this series are still being written.
0 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.
Steve P. (StampJockey) from DAVENPORT, IA
Reviewed on 1/14/2015...
As a long time fan of Orson Scott Card I have to say that, as another reviewer wrote, it is very hard to translate the book Ender's game into a two hour movie. However, I have to say that the finished product is as close to what it should have been as it could be. True there are some scenes we would have loved to see, such as an in depth look at the way Battle School and the Armies were described in the book. It gives so much more detail about why they train the way they do.
One of the most important features we lose is the in depth look into the thougth processes of the characters, giving us the ability to delve deep into their psyche and see just what it is that motivates them.
The special effects are superbly done and the acting is spot on with what we have come to expect from some of these actors, although Ben Kingsley comes across as a bit unbelievable in his role as Mazor Rackum (I know I've probably spelled that wrong). All in all I would give this a solid 3, even though I am tempted to give it a 4 because I was so enthusiastic when I heard it was coming out.
1 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.