Ender's Game (2013)

[Archivist]

True to form, I managed to see an anticipated movie in the first weekend of opening.  Ender's Game did not disappoint me.  While I haven't read the original book, I've read a number of others in the Ender series including Speaker For The Dead, and others.  From what I gather, the movie follows the original plot fairly closely, although a few things were changed to make it more dramatic.

The acting was excellent, and the portrayal of Ender Wiggin as a very slight, introverted boy was a nice touch.  Too bad that the aliens were not called 'Buggers' as they were in the books, although that may have been a touch non-PC.  The special effects were superb, realistic without being overtly 'manufactured', if that makes sense. 

What surprised me was the number of small kids who were watching this movie.  A young boy as the lead character does not make this a childrens' film.  Quite a few kids were talking and laughing in the first part of the film, but after the first beatdown, they were silent.  I like that in a movie!

I wasn't blown away by it, but I wasn't disappointed.  It will become part of the blu-ray collection, but I won't be hankering for it, like I did with The Avengers (2012) or The Dark Knight Rises (2012).  Check it out in the cinema if you want, or wait for your usual delivery format in time.

[Neville]

It's been years since I last picked up the book, but I thought it was a pretty good / almost great adaptation. It was also great to get more of the "behind the scenes" stuff with Harrison Ford's character, without those parts it would have been a bit hard to follow what they were trying to achieve with Ender's training. And those scenes have some of the finest acting Ford has done in a while, too.

I'm sort of shocked this wasn't the smash hit that would allow film adaptations of the following Ender books, but I guess the source material isn't as well-known outside the USA as I expected.

BTW, also heard recently that the first book is one of the recommended readings for the Marines. I really don't know what to make of that. This one and "Starship Troopers" (specially since the movie was released) can drive the readers to completely different interpretations.

[Bushma]

Just got back from the local $3 theater where the family and I went to see this.

It was an enjoyable movie, a lot of wonderful effects and some good acting from the kids. I would definitely recommend, but be warned calling the movie rushed is a huge understatement. However if you are a fan of the book be prepared to be disappointed. The movie tries its best to get the plot of the book across but rushes through things so fast and skips so much the only reason you know what's happening is from the book.

Also one thing that annoyed the hell out of me...

Bonzo Madrid pulling Ender down to eye level.

[Trevor]

The only thing I liked about the film was that a South African directed it.