Escape to the Movies: Ender's Game

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

So wait, they got rid of the whole 'invented personalities pushing politics to the extreme for attention and gain, poisoning the well of public discourse' plot line?

You know, the one that's extremely relevant right now?
I guess they needed more time for CGI wanking.

That plot line is about a guy taking over the world via blogging.

It was silly in the 80's and time has not made it any less so.

Silly, yes, possibly relevant given the rise of the internet, blogs and the like, most likely. Regardless, looking around, quite a few people are calling the movie a hollow shell and I can somewhat agree. The political plotline, while not directly connected to Ender himself, serves as a part of a point about the government of the book and the training itself was a sting against military romanticism and the like.

I would say the issue is that a lot of works have been made since the book about these points. Movies about politics get made almost every year and, as an anime fan, I can count multiple shows that do the whole anti military thing as much as Ender's Game (the new Space Battleship Yamato comes to mind). The movie in this kind of environment would feel a bit dated so there were a lot of things going against it.

 

[ImmortalDrifter]

Orson Scott Card has a dissenting political opinion. That makes him a jerk? Meh. He's still above Harlan Ellison in my book. At least he didn't grope anyone.

As for the movie; it went exactly as I thought. They removed all of the parts of it that were actually morally challenging. The book's still good, the movie can be meh all it wants to.

 

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

Wait, THAT'S the twist?
When I read the book, I basically more or less assumed that.
The bigger shocker to me was

Spoiler

the bugs were just one big hivemind that didn't realize they were killing sentient creatures because of the scale difference, and had long since moved on living their own life, until the fleet that was sent decades ago by the humans arrives, and Ender is having these strange dreams because the hivemind is begging him to stop, as the bugs finally realize their errors as they all die, and leave a temple of apology imprinted with telepathic memories for ender to find in the future.

To me, THAT was the twist ending, not the stupid "gotcha" at the test.

That actually does sound like a good twist, a stinging criticism of people's want of vengeance and how the military can go too far. I doubt though that the movie would have done it well at all and if they did do it, they probably have been compared to other works that have been made.

 

[BreakfastMan]

I know it's not exactly on topic for a film review but the whole brouhaha around the author does amuse me. Did you think that because he wrote a book he'd be a nice guy?

It's amusing when contrasted against the Internet and nerds generally and their "ermahgerd curtherler omg lervecrerft" attitude. I guess some people haven't been reading the books they supposedly love. Maybe this is something that as a Burzum fan I've just have to come to terms with but you can like a product without liking the producer.

The difference being A: I can listen to all of Filosofem legally on youtube without giving Varg money, B: Lovecraft is freaking dead, and C: Card actually donates loads of money to hate groups, hence the reason people are hesitant to give him more money.

 

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

So wait, they got rid of the whole 'invented personalities pushing politics to the extreme for attention and gain, poisoning the well of public discourse' plot line?

You know, the one that's extremely relevant right now?
I guess they needed more time for CGI wanking.

When the book came out it MIGHT have seemed potentially feasible (You know, like how an AI going crazy and nearly starting nuclear war because it didn't know the difference between reality and a simulation, only to be defeated by making it play Tic Tac Toe with itself was potentially feasible back then) but now? Do you REALLY think such a thing is ANYWHERE in the realm of possibility?

Plus, it WAS kind of a side story. Ender was the main story.

fair enough but it probably would have given the movie a bit of weight even if it does seem ridiculous. Also, this is the age when posts, blogs, and certain sites have a fair amount of influence on certain people's lives. Will it be enough to incite revolution, not really, but it certainly can push people in concurrent directions

P.S. you can call me out if you want because I may be overestimating the effect of mob mentality and the internet on that mentality but I do think that Ender's game shouldn't have removed something as relevant and challenging as that.

 

[RJ Dalton]

This is about what I expected it to be. And I wasn't planning on seeing it anyway. Nothing to do with the controversy, I just was never that into Ender's Game. It was basically just an Alien Invasion story with unusually cerebral overtones and a twist ending. I didn't think it was bad, it just didn't engage me.

Now, Speaker For The Dead? That was excellent. But I won't go to a movie of that either, as what makes it excellent is something that wouldn't translate into screen very well, either.

 

[C.S.Strowbridge]

"Oh. November. Goodie"

Words never rang so true. I know this is an aside and I apologize for the indulgence. But I swear to anyone reading this, our Halloween merriment of last night was barely complete before I started seeing Christmas ads on some of the channels I watched as I tried to shake off last night's sugar high.

I review DVDs / Blu-rays as part of my job and this is the first year I can remember that I didn't get a Christmas release in September. I've gotten screeners for Christmas movies in August some years. I'm happy if they wait till after Halloween before they brought out Christmas.

 

[blackrave]

Looks at poster
"This is not a game"
Thank you for spoiling the movie, jerks

Anyway we need movies based on less known, but still good books
For example "Allies and Aliens" (by Roger MacBride Allen)
Leviathan assault is still one of my favorite moments in any book

 

[ben---neb]

I never realised the bar for being a "horrible human being" was so low.

Most horrible human beings I would name have killed thousands or committed some crime. All Card has done is disagree with the prevailing opinion on sexuality. Hardly a crime against humanity.

 

[Piorn]

Wait, THAT'S the twist?
When I read the book, I basically more or less assumed that.
The bigger shocker to me was

Spoiler

the bugs were just one big hivemind that didn't realize they were killing sentient creatures because of the scale difference, and had long since moved on living their own life, until the fleet that was sent decades ago by the humans arrives, and Ender is having these strange dreams because the hivemind is begging him to stop, as the bugs finally realize their errors as they all die, and leave a temple of apology imprinted with telepathic memories for ender to find in the future.

To me, THAT was the twist ending, not the stupid "gotcha" at the test.

That actually does sound like a good twist, a stinging criticism of people's want of vengeance and how the military can go too far. I doubt though that the movie would have done it well at all and if they did do it, they probably have been compared to other works that have been made.

Yeah, and it would propably have been too weird. The book had an entire subplot of a game that was generated out of Ender's Psyche, with weird fantasy stuff and gruesome deaths, where he digests the stuff that happened. Towards the end as his psyche degrades, his dreams get weirder and bugs start appearing in places he saw in the game.

Spoiler

In the end he finds the landmarks of his game on a new planet, and realizes it's a temple that has been built by the buggers, out of his memories, because he was mentally linked to the fleet with the same kind of signal the hivemind uses.
There, he receives a telepathic apology message, together with the last egg of their race, so he can decide their fate.

Personally, I found it a profoundly sad ending, but maybe that's just me.

My guess would be that they cut the fantasy game/dream sequences because they're too weird for general audiences.
And few people can cope with moral ambiguity, nowadays. Seems like they tried to keep that to a minimum.

 

[Falseprophet]

I, like many other Escape to the Movies fans, am definitely here for the snobbery. Screw low entry level entertainment, I want to be told which films are worth remembering rather than just re-chewing popcorn to like a certain wooly herbivore.

Me too. There are a hundred internet film reviewers who will tell me whether a film is good or bad. If I cared a whit for the whims of the masses I'd go to Metacritic. I go to Bob because he gives appropriate context, both in pop culture and the history of film.

 

[Ryan Hughes]

self-snip

There's a big difference between Card and Wilde, Pound, Elliot, Dostoyevsky. And it's that he's alive and funding hate groups while they're all dead. If I buy a volume of the Cantos then I won't be supporting fascism, If I go see a performance of The Importance of Being Earnest I won't be funding paedophilia on the other hand the more I consume Card's work the more resources and reach I'm giving him to spread his hate.

That is a good point, but I think Card's work with hate groups is simply null. Personally, I think we have 'turned the corner' on homophobia and there really is no going back. Card can fund these groups if he wants, but it will just waste money and likely will not even postpone the implementation of LGBT rights like the right to marry and the right to inheritance in America, much less in more progressive Europe and many Asian countries. Heck, Card is a Mormon, but the vast majority of the Mormons I know are actually pro-gay marriage and think it greatly damages their religion to adopt anti-gay policies. Really, we are at a generational shift here, and people like Card are on the way out, simple as that.

 

[Orcboyphil]

Have to disagree with Bob. The movie was fun enjoyable and the REAL twist ending was good. It could have done with more extensive scenes to actually showcase his tactical abilities and the implied Full Metal Jacket bootcamp didn't really go anywhere. But then films don't have the luxury of time that TV series and books have.
However Bob, thanks for wasting a minute and a half of this review for a "OMG Orson Scott card is worse than Hitler" rant. That's the precise reason you have the Big Picture and keep the politics out of the movie reviews. As your punishment I'm going to tell you that Captain America appears in Thor. There.

 

[DeaDRabbiT]

eck, just reading the synpsis of the book is enough to make me cringe, even now. the super miracle caucasian genius boy genre is just not my cup of tea

And you're missing out. The Ender books as well as the Bean series are some of the best books I've ever read, and it has nothing to do with "The super miracle Caucasian genius boy" slant either. The stories are just well written, interesting, and thought provoking; "Children of the Mind" was my favorite.

Anyway, I stopped watching this review 30 seconds in because I'm not going to listen to this guy in his ridiculous Bahstan accent touch on anything other than the content. I don't come here for your political views sir, nor your opinions on the political and social views of others. I certainly don't agree that Orson is the "worst human being" ever as I'm sure even you couldn't believe that.

This Escape to the Movies is simply Juvenile. Plain and simple. It's about as bad as Joe Neumaier's review on the film. Bang up job Bob...

 

[Orcboyphil]

Yeah, and it would propably have been too weird. The book had an entire subplot of a game that was generated out of Ender's Psyche, with weird fantasy stuff and gruesome deaths, where he digests the stuff that happened. Towards the end as his psyche degrades, his dreams get weirder and bugs start appearing in places he saw in the game.

Spoiler

In the end he finds the landmarks of his game on a new planet, and realizes it's a temple that has been built by the buggers, out of his memories, because he was mentally linked to the fleet with the same kind of signal the hivemind uses.
There, he receives a telepathic apology message, together with the last egg of their race, so he can decide their fate.

Personally, I found it a profoundly sad ending, but maybe that's just me.

My guess would be that they cut the fantasy game/dream sequences because they're too weird for general audiences.
And few people can cope with moral ambiguity, nowadays. Seems like they tried to keep that to a minimum.

Nope the dream sequence is in there.

 

[themilo504]

Maybe it makes more sense in the book\movie but training children to be generals seems like a terrible idea for so many reasons, either way the movie doesn?t look very interesting to me.

I do hate it when something I like is tied to a cause I disagree with, I?m looking at you domino pizza.

 

[Kittyhawk]

Saw it. Thought it was alright, but then I didn't finish the book. Like many will say it clearly better to read the books.

I can see why some would be skeptical about giving Card their money, mind. Shadow Complex was a cool game and still sold, though.

Choose what you want to watch, but choose carefully. Thor 2 and Part Two of The Hobbit are due soon.

 

[EmilShmiengura]

Look, OSC is a douche, yes. He wrote one unarguably good book (Ender's Game) and he's been writing spin-offs and sequels ever since(that are mediocre at best). But he already got payed for this movie. And even if he still has some money coming his way is that a reason to miss out on a decent movie? Seriously, if you start boycotting movies because awful people make money from them just how many movies a year do you think you'll go to?!

As for the review, yeah, totally agree. I mean any science-fiction movie that doesn't have heroes in costumes (preferably from the marvel universe) isn't worth it anyway. See this is exactly why we won't any have good SF that thinks outside the comic-book box.