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Ender's Game Trailer Released
The first trailer has been released for the movie adaptation of Orson Scott Card's sci-fi classic Ender's Game. It gives us a good look at Harrison Ford as Colonel Graff, Ben Kingsley as Mazer Rackham, and Hugo's Asa Butterfield as Ender. It also demonstrates just how much money they put into the special effects for this movie.
i think some one forgot the 'B' at the beginning of the first word.
I can't stand the thought of giving Orson Scott Card a dime. Sigh. Maybe I can bittorrent.
Provide a link perhaps?
FX spaceships are cheap. The effects are no better than Iron Sky. Since this has Big Name Actors, they probably spent too much.
In the book, the adults barely appear. But if they paid for Harrison Ford, they probably let him talk too much.
looks like shit
SWEET! Now we can properly bitch about how much it sucks compared to the memories of something we read when we were younger and more impressionable!
I mean, we could do that before, but now that the trailer's been actually released, we can put up a false air of authority as we do so! And we don't even have to watch it, either!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vP0cUBi4hwE
Hideki!
If my kids haven't downloaded this by Nov 1, I'll know they weren't paying attention when I read them the book.
This is one book that I couldn't see Hollywood doing justice to. The trailer doesn't really leave me feeling any better about it. Lots of nice effects, but I think it's going to come out all bubble-gum.
Sometimes boldness is in fashion. Sometimes only the brave will be bold.
Were those F22s at the beginning?
Looks like it might be good and not just another action movie in space.
PS what's the deal with Kingsley's makeup? Was that in the book? I don't recall.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
Just in case anyone didn't know how it all ends, they were kind enough to put the climax directly in the trailer. I'll withhold judgement on the film itself, but that trailer didn't do it for me.
On the one hand, I really did enjoy Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow as a kid (and to a lesser extent the other books in the series). On the other hand, art does not exist in a vacuum and I really do have a hard time separating Card's homophobic views from his works; especially since, in retrospect they do creep into his books at least occasionally.
On the gripping hand, this will almost certainly be a dud. It won't live up to the expectations and hopes of those who wanted the movie made 20 years ago and it won't have much appeal to the others.
well, it has to be better than starship troopers movie.
Card has consistently attacked homosexuals and fought against gay rights, including some damn awful language. Before you see this movie in the theater, google "Orson Scott Card" and "gay rights", and decide if you want to give your money to someone who will actively use it to promote hate speech.
They finally make an Ender's Game movie and it gets 34 some odd replies on Slashdot? Wow, the audience here has really changed...
--"You are your own God"--
Bean was more badass
I think the hero would sound more intelligent with a British or South African accent.
Ender's game is a fine bildungsroman, one of the best I read. This movie looks like yet another action movie saturated with high-contrast detail and grim color theme. It doesn't even look realistic.
I do not care about his opinions - I just like to read what he writes.
And I am fed up with gay activists concentrating on someone's opinions instead of works.
Such actions make me vote anti-gay any time.
Gays can have their parades, he can have his blabbing - this is a free country.
Before I saw the last name, I read it as Asa Akira. Now THAT is a movie I would go see!
Sorry...
It's the perfect length....
Just have to lay the music over it.
She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
Looks to me (based on this trailer alone) that the book got hammered and bashed to fit into the current Hollywood "sci-fi" form factor, lots of shiny graphics/scenery and some fractions of elements from the book (similar to I robot).
Children trained as soldiers? The film Soldier already did that very well, and I got a feeling it is closer to the book than the Ender's Game film will ever be.
Carbon based humanoid in training.
The one book would at the least be a trilogy itself.
This already has too much of the adults in it. not enough of the trials he went through at Academy in it. Hell they are flat out telling him what they are doing. When did they ever admit to their goals in the novel?
This movie already fails. I'll watch it anyways, but only cause it'll be on Epix or Starz or something 6 months after its released.
orson scott card is a lunatic homophobic asshole and comparing him to thomas jefferson is like comparing erotic star trek fan fiction to douglas adams. your tirade about the founding fathers reeks of disingenuousness. . . they were conflicted, especially jefferson who made a slave his partner and ... washington who freed his slaves in his will. not to mention john adams or the fact that they didnt kick him out of the group.
orson card has no self doubt or conflicts. he knows he is right about the 'evil gays' and uhm. yeah. he's not afraid to shit on people who disagree with him. as though its some kind of fucking virtue.
the ONLY reason this film is getting made is because the cinematic bolus called Hunger Games managed to make hundreds of millions of dollars. another film based on the exploitation of children.
annnnnnnnnnnnnnd thats why its getting made. not because of its grand artistry or whatever the f**** excuses people use.
and lenin and a bunch of other douchebags who painted the 20th century in blood.
so fuck him and fuck you too
Ooooo. Good enough to get spine tingles here:
Start the john carter inception style video,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ED4k_yn85-o&list=PL140490028A81BE64
then immediately flip to the enders game and start it. John carter good because it doesn't have many words- just lots of imagery.
She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
if she/he copy pasted bullshit about joyce into a blog its their responsibility. he could sue them for lible if he was still alive.
this scott card apologia is bullshit. the movie is hunger games 2.0 and there are many, many, many more worthy SF stories to tell in film
First and second invasion were fought in the outer solar system, IIRC.
This is a great book, but I don't think a movie can do it justice. Lots of books make great movies, but this book is great precisely because of its subtlety, emotions, and the mind tweaks. I see how you can get a lot of great action sequences out of the story line but they were never even close to the meat of the book, and I am sure the real meat will be lost in the action sequences of the movie. So it will have some cool scenes but will otherwise be just another sci fi movie.
that covers the similar themes, similar ideas, etc etc etc.
if you want to read about sensations of oppression pick any writer shut down under soviet rule, like akhmatova or zamyatin
or maya angelou and other black writers from the south
honestly ask yourself. what the fuck does card know about oppression?
if the answer is not much, then he is the biggest fraud of modern literature. . .
I read the book and it was just ok. Orson scott card is a bit over rated really. He has good idea but they are always half baked.
That trailer bored me. It looked like just another big budget sci fi summer action movie and nothing else. Not to mention movies where every character is only allowed to express grim determination I find horribly overdone and boring. It just stinks of being generic and sterile. The whole "your our only hope" package got old a decade ago. Or if you will that kid is basically Keanu reeves.
I would certainly not tip an openly and blatantly homophobic bartender, waitress or any other service professional.
It is their job to serve the customer, not spout political or social views, especially not reprehensible ones.
Likewise, it is an artist's job to create art. And like it or not, that art INHERENTLY represents the artist, and thus their views.
One thing Enders Game is rife with is authoritarianism, and that is certainly in line with Cards objectionable views.
The will to power manifests in funny ways, doesn't it, friend?
If disagreeing with someone makes you an authoritarian, how can you disagree with authoritarianism without hyporacy?
Sophistic cunt.
what book is this? i read it as a short(ish) story. good read but as a movie... not so much!
Card doesn't just have beliefs; he is politically vocal about them. He funds multiple organizations that campaign against gay marriage including the LDS and the National Organization for Marriage... which has no purpose other than to oppose gay marriage. He funds them with money earned from creative works like this movie, and even cares enough to become a member of their board of directors.
Card has also said that people engaging in homosexual acts should be imprisoned. His more recent "clarification" of what he meant when he wrote it doesn't change anything. A careful reading reveals it's merely a passive aggressive attempt to deflect attention away from the comment without actually disowning or modifying it in any way.
But no, according to people like you, people who believe that this kind of oppression is immortal are not justified in boycotting card. We're never justified in boycotting card, apparently, because if we did that then, why, we'd have to familiarize ourselves with the life histories of every single person we gave money to.
I don't buy it. The slope is not that slippy. This is someone who has been outspoken on this for decades and is actively using his celebrity and royalties to fund his cause. You speak of tolerance and diversity? It's not fucking tolerant in any way, shape or form to give money to a politically active man who believes homosexuals should be imprisoned.
Being a nerd, at one time, I wanted to catch up on the classic sci-fi/fantasy novels. I read a few top listed ones and must say I was highly disappointed. 'Dune', 'Ender's game', 'Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy' to name a few. These are books ranked at the top by nearly all such lists, but I wasn't impressed by any of them.
Dune was sort of ok. It has a grand setup, and the first half leads you to expect it will develop into something grandiose, except it failed to deliver in the end. Writing style is dry, and a bit pretentious, but overall the story is interesting enough to keep going. But no where would I say it's the #1 sci-fi novel of all time, as claimed by many.
'Ender's game' is a feel good story for teenagers. Has anyone not guessed the ending just from the first few pages? The whole story is basically to say "this kid Ender is a born genius. We'll just see how great he is for the rest of the book!"
'Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy', well, is really not a novel, but a collection of cute humor, and the story seems more like an excuse to put them together. The humor gets tired very quickly, however, and some of it are more on the bizarre side than humorous. The first 2 books' story has some interesting spots, but I finally ran out of stamina after book 3 and never wanted to pick it up again.
One of the few high-ranking novels that I felt lived up to its fame, is Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series. Maybe it's because Martin is such a masterful writer, that even boring stuff gets interesting when he writes it. I'd only hope there's more magic and fantasy ingredients in the future stories, and that he can work a bit faster and we don't have to wait every 5 years for the next installment!
Just remember that Card is a person motivated by what he thinks is right not a corporation motivated by money. While you have the right to legally spend your money as you want what you are effectively saying is that you are trying to do is to force someone to change their beliefs or lose their job. So, while you might be acting within your rights, just remember that by doing so you are going against those ideals of free speech and belief that the US was founded on...and if you can't follow them is is any wonder that your government can't either.
By all means disagree with the guy but disagreeing, even vehemently, with him does not mean that you can't admire his skills as an author (although to be honest I'm not impressed with those either).
aliens attack earth - its been overdone. Wake me up when a decent sci-fi comes around. Elysium?
Read the author's notes sometime. This film has languished for years because Ender's game itself was just a series of short stories he adapted into a real book, with a final intent that he could have established characters with which to launch Speaker for the Dead.
The movie will probably be some fun special effects and a thoroughly good adaptation of the Ender/Bean books...but remember that the story is meant to be way more than this.
He believes fags should go to jail? Maybe I'll go see this film in that case... twice.
Looks more like a summary of the book to me.
The entire movie was shown in the clip. I don't even need to go pay to watch it.
And the book wasn't about the special effects and the space battles. It was about Ender. This would've been much more interesting to see filmed on a tight budget, with all the focus on acting, not graphics (which look the same as all of the last space movies released within the last two years).
Yes I read the book, I thought it was garbage pulp fantasy for those of limited breadth and imagination.
At the time I read Ender's Game as an adolescent, I thought it was awesome. Years later I picked it up again, and came to the same conclusion you did.
On the other hand, I didn't take much note of "Speaker for the Dead" as a young reader; it seemed a rather ho-hum sequel. I've since since changed my mind -- as a work of Science Fiction literature, it is the superior work. OTOH, Children of the Mind is still crap, Full Stop.
Yes, that's exactly what I said.
um, not. Funny how your authoritarianism. Mr. Fellow Anonymous Coward, extends to telling me what I think and wish. Talk about a will to power!
Talk all you want. However, speech has consequences, and when you are on your employers time (including the self-employed like Card), then you get to live with those consequences.
OTOH we all have our small amount of power. If we don't exercise it, in the services of good and self-protection, might as well be dead.
If our saying these things interferes with your enjoyment,
well then, perhaps something is going on deep in your mind or soul that is bothering you.
Let it out, think on it. I promise it will be good for you.
Oh, and taking it up the ass? Don't knock it till you've tried it. Several times. Preferably with an expert.
Ender's Game ought to be more war-worn than shiny: less Deep Space Nine and more Saving Private Ryan
This trailer looks like they've turned the book into an action film - which the book most definitely was not. The things I remember most about it (and it's been some ten years since I last read it) was the relationship Ender had with his strange brother and sister, that he was bred for the job, and throughout he has no idea that what he's doing is not a test or an exercise. He also kills two of his fellow children whilst growing up, albeit somewhat accidentally. And he ends the story has a haggard and worn out child who is at the end of his tether.
This looks like yet another film with climatic space battles and lots of special effects - an action film rather than a science fiction film. I'm disappointed they've lost all of the mystery and pathos. The central part of the story was about Ender training in zero gravity, to be able to lead large groups of people and to innovate tactically. That seems to have been lost as the main element of the film.
I'm not going to go see this, based on this trailer, it's lost all elements of the story that I really liked. Ender never screamed commands as a world exploded. I don't need to see Harrison Ford and Ben Kinsley, both excellent actors, wandering about looking serious (again) and telling Ender he has to save the world. Ender did, but he didn't know it at the time.
"Remember, the enemy's gate is down".
You apparently missed the part of the book where due to overpopulation, it was only legal for most couples to have two children. Ender's parents were given special permission from the government to have a third child because they hoped it would be a super-genius. To secure that permission, they had to agree to give up custody of him to the government if it wanted him. They hoped that he would wash out, but he didn't.
Mr. Card has a long and well-established history of homophobia and attacking gay rights. He's been a board member of the anti-gay marriage National Organization for Marriage for years, and has written far more than, "one article for a Mormon audience". Here are some examples, more can easily be found with a quick google search.
"I find the comparison between civil rights based on race and supposed new rights being granted for what amounts to deviant behavior to be really kind of ridiculous. There is no comparison. A black as a person does not by being black harm anyone. Gay rights is a collective delusion that’s being attempted. And the idea of ‘gay marriage’ — it’s hard to find a ridiculous enough comparison." Interview with Salon
From his article for the Deseret News, "The first and greatest threat from court decisions in California and Massachusetts, giving legal recognition to "gay marriage," is that it marks the end of democracy in America." That's not directed at a Mormon audience, it's a local paper.
From People For the American Way, "Laws against homosexual behavior should remain on the booksto be used when necessary to send a clear message that those who flagrantly violate society's regulation of sexual behavior cannot be permitted to remain as acceptable, equal citizens."
in middleschool they teach you to reference sources....the slashdot post has no link to the actual trailer, nor does the crappy article it links to... crappy because it has no link to the trailer....
"what you are effectively saying is that you are trying to do is to force someone to change their beliefs or lose their job... remember that by doing so you are going against those ideals of free speech and belief that the US was founded on"
Logically inconsistent. This is what passes for +5 these days?
TL;DR: It's not his personal beliefs that we're objecting to, it's his attempts to force them on the nation as a whole. That's directly counter to the ideals of the USA, incidentally.
First of all, none of the people I've met who have stated their goal of avoiding giving Card money have said it was because they don't agree with his beliefs, it's because they don't agree with how he spends his money. It's more akin to not giving money to a wino who spends every cent he acquires on turning himself into a human-shaped puddle of urine and rags in an alley. That said, there are almost certainly some who would nonetheless boycott his works even if he announced that henceforth he would have nothing to do with, nor provide any funding to, the National Organization for Marriage or any similar group, yet stood by the beliefs he had expressed, so that's a relatively weak point.
On to "force somebody" in paricular: if a street preacher or televangilist shouts at me about sin and hellfire and damnation for anybody who doesn't donate to his particular church, and I choose not to donate, would you claim I am attempting to "force somebody to change their beliefs"? Not at all! I don't care whether his beliefs change, but I'm not going to pay him after he shouts them in my face and attempts to indoctinate me in beliefs that are contrary to my own. People whose beliefs are in line with his will take care of him, or perhaps not, but it's not my job to ensure he has a job!
Of course, that's really the crux of the issue: "forcing" somebody to do something by voting with your wallet. Hypothetically, is OSC gets blacklisted by all major publishing houses and all bookstores refuse to carry his works - an extremely absurd hypothetical, but that's pretty much what it would take for an author to "lose his job", he can still self-publish and start his own distribution system. Nobody is stopping him from authoring books. The decision of whether that's worth doing when nobody will buy them is on him, but nobody is forcing him not to.
Oh, and while we're discussing "forcing somebody...[to] lose their job", bear in mind that people lose jobs as a consequence of actions which are unappreciated by their employers (and for an author, one's "employers" are really "the people who purchase your books") all the time. If somebody breaks into a house and steals a TV, they can be fired for that. "Thief" is not an employment-discrimination-protected category of person. Nor is "homophobe". Incidentally, in many states, "homosexual" is, though that's not really relevant here.
That brings us to the "ideals of free speech and belief" part of your post. Exactly which ideal upon which the US was founded indicates that we should financially support people who use their wealth to push for institutionalized discrimination against a minority population, again?
Card is allowed to talk all he wants. The government isn't going to shut him up (unless he starts threatening violence against people). Any citizen who tries to shut him up will be committing a crime, and be prosecuted for it. Nobody has to give him a podium, though. The podium Card uses is the money he receives in return for his writing. Why do you imply that he is entitled to that podium? "All men are created equal" certainly doesn't suggest that just because one person writes good science fiction, that person's opinion on civil rights should be given more weight than those of a pauper in the streets!
I could also turn your argument right back on you: a boycott is a form of speech. Why should Card be permitted to preach hate and prejudice, and the rest of us not permitted to tell him that we refuse to support his position?
As for "... and belief", that's really the crown on the
There's no place I could be, since I've found Serenity...
Would you PLEASE mentions in ADVANCE that those are MASSIVE spoilers for the book?!?
You just ruined Ender's Game (the book) for me. GO FUCK YOURSELF!
I don't understand why clips on /. require Flash... Common guys, you can do better than this.
Does anyone here actually want to talk about the movie? :-P
Modern copyright is theft of culture from everyone and it retards the progress of the useful arts and sciences.
"It also demonstrates just how much money they put into the special effects for this movie."
Because that's always a guarantee of quality.
To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
I wouldn't call it a "hymn to violence," exactly, but it definitely focuses on the conditioning necessary to make soldiers who are capable of doing what is necessary to win at any cost. Part of the premise is that humanity's survival is at stake, and in order to survive, they need a leader who is not inhibited by conscience. As they explain to Ender, he must "end them or end us," no middle ground. It's painted in black and white.
When Ender discovers he was lied to, it's a turning point for him. Not only does he find he's done unspeakable evil, but he has to live with the knowledge that it wasn't even necessary. That sets the stage for atonement. When you trust the people in charge, don't be surprised when they use you for their own purposes. In every war, each side demonizes the other so the soldiers will have no doubts about their mission. Look at how the Germans and Japanese where characterized in American media during WW1 and WW2.
And in his Ask me anything he is coming across as both someone who knows and cares about the book, and as a pretty cool guy.
Yes, anyone who disagrees with gay marriage is a bigot and a homophobe.
“I remain opposed to same-sex marriage. I believe marriage is an institution for the union of a man and a woman. This has been my long-standing position, and it is not being reviewed or considered.” - Bill Clinton 1996, just before signing DOMA, which denies Federal benefits to married gay couples.
"I believe marriage is between a man and a woman. I am not in favor of gay marriage." - Barack Obama 2008
How about letting people disagree without name calling?
Oh no... not what you think. All of the opinions about the trailer (movie.trailer != movie), the rants about Card's personal views, the woe and despair over how bad everything is and the doom of sci-fi... 100% conjecture, categorically unprovable.
What this thread does prove is how pivotal and evocative Ender's Game, as a work of literature, is and will continue to be for the science fiction genre. This thread would not be so controversial if this wasn't already true.
I read the novel right after HS graduation. (yeah, go fig'... I'm a "seven digit"... how did that happen!?) There's more strong opinions here than there were at the NRA conference-nay-coronation-ceremony, and in the same light, the same tones are struck about the same old flawed arguments. Despite that, or rather because of it, this is clearly one of the greatest works in all of science fiction!
I'm going to see it, and pay to do so—in theaters and in 3D—not because I think the trailer depicts a good movie, but because I don't believe that a trailer is always an accurate synopsis of the film. (e.g., remember the Matrix trailer? How about any of the M. Night Shyamalan works? Those didn't reveal the entire plot, either.) Just because we know how it ends doesn't mean we know how the movie gets there.
No piece of cinematographic work can be measured by how it ends, for it is the journey that entertains. Anyone who claims that their judgement is certainty is only upholding the theory of self-fulfilling prophecies. Plain and simple; you don't know until you've seen the whole thing.
As for Mr. Card's personal views, I may not agree with them, but I will defend to the death his right to have a different viewpoint. In the meantime, if he can continue to create and imagine deep characters and interesting plots, then I will continue to appreciate his work. Doing so does not–in any way–validate Mr. Card's personal views, saying "I agree with Mr. Card's views," does.
In the same sense, paying to see Tom Cruise in Oblivion is not supporting Scientology in any way. I just happen to believe that The Last Samurai was the absolute last movie wherein Mr. Cruise played a believable character. Also, I'm not going to pay to see another movie with Morgan Freeman having to explain everything to a clueless protagonist; although I do love Morgan Freeman as an actor... and titty sprinkles.
This post © Copyrite Duggeek, all rights reversed.
My memory is that Ender was told that they were looking for someone to lead the fleet that had departed for the alien frontier decades before. They simply neglected to tell him that they made their decision and the fleet he was leading in the training exercises was the actual fleet.
Freedom to fear. Freedom from thought. Freedom to kill.
I guess the War on Terror really is about freedom!
The military command lied to Ender by pretending he was still in a training exercise, but they did not lie about the need to "end them." Without communication with the aliens, there was no way for the humans to know that the queens had realized their mistake and were perfectly willing to live in peaceful coexistence. Given the sheer luck that allowed Razer to win the previous battle for Earth, they were reasonably certain Earth would never survive another attack.
It was only later that Ender was able to communicate with the remaining queen and learn the full story. He was upset about being lied to and having caused so much death, but I think he understood why they lied to him. He didn't like it, mind you, but he understood it was the only way to get him (or anyone) to do what he did.
Freedom to fear. Freedom from thought. Freedom to kill.
I guess the War on Terror really is about freedom!
TL;DR:
Ah, I see you have a sense of irony.
if a street preacher or televangilist shouts at me about sin and hellfire and damnation for anybody who doesn't donate to his particular church, and I choose not to donate...
I would hope that you can see that there is a difference between a person asking for donations to support a cause and say, selling PCs. If I donate to a political party X then I am specifically supporting that party. If I happen to buy a PC from someone who supports political party X I there is zero implication that I support that party. Do you really think that everyone who watches a film with Tom Cruise in it supports scientology?
Exactly which ideal upon which the US was founded indicates that we should financially support people...
Again you utterly miss the point which is that you should make your purchasing decisions based on quality of service/product not whether the creator has acceptable political beliefs...at least if you want to have any sort of effective free speech. Why not just accept that if his ideas are wrong then people will not listen to him and he will be ignored: why should you even feel the need to silence him by denying him a livelihood? It's far better to let him have his say and then engage in a debate as to why he is wrong. This way others can learn both sides and decide for themselves and that is how a free and open society is supposed to operate!
And I though it was about Endermen or Slender! Ha! Silly me!...