I've read the book more times than I can count so I was naturally excited, if not a little apprehensive about the movie. I have tried to like this movie and see it outside the confines of the book, but it's falls so short of what it could be and still makes me mad years later. The special effects were admittedly decent, but the directing and script were filth. Hood talked about wanting to stay true to the novel but he changed really critical elements. Also, I love the cast but they didn't do the film any favours. I feel like Hood cast Academy Award Winners/Nominees in hopes of riding their coat-tails and covering up his abysmal script and lack of vision. The only redeeming qualities is the visual effects.I know everybody always says this, but you're really better off reading the book - or better yet, listening to it. As for me, I'm going to try my best to forget this trash pile even exists.

The novel Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card, may just be the best work of fiction ever produced. The motion picture on the other hand, does what it can do to translate a nearly unflimable movie.A lot of the other reviews do accurately capture the quality of the movie. The adaptation does remain very faithful to the book, unlike examples. (such as World War Z, The Bourne Identity, V for Vendetta). The things that they do change make a good deal of sense. Omitting Locke and Demosthenes, making all the characters older, and combining other characters (Crazy Tom, Fly Molo, and those guys are absorbed by Alai and Bernard) were all good decisions. The visuals do a heck of a job, and most of the performances are up to standard.However, while greatly capturing the plot, the film falls short in recreating the heart, but this is consequence of the nature of the novel itself. You see, the main character isn't so much Ender Wiggin as it is the mind of Ender Wiggin. The movie just isn't able to make the complete translation, and can be somewhat stale (somewhat analogous to Watchmen). In addition, iconic lines, such as "The enemies gate is down", are delivered with a certain staleness, and only seem to be there just to be there. The movie is indeed too short, and it would have been nice if they showed the passing of time (respects to other reviewers).If you've read the book, then this movie will be a decent 100 minutes of your time, and will bring back lots of great memories. If you haven't read the book (read it!), you're not missing too much.

After Earth has barely managed to defeat an alien force who attacked by surprise, a recruitment committee was formed in search for brilliant kids who may one day lead our forces to victory. Ender, a highly intelligent teenager, is selected for the program and must prepare himself, working hard day by day, for an imminent war. It's a very exciting story of a boy which must evolve through work, commitment but also self control, in order to help Earth defeat the enemy who once tried to eradicate humankind. Through intense simulations, he will be able to understand the enemy and be all the time one step ahead, but the question remains how will he manage in the real life scenario. It's a film full of thrill and suspense, managing to transmit many emotions through Ender's superb character, which is, by the way, excellently played. We are made to feel and think that all is a game but the harsh conditions and difficult colleagues will prove to be another challenge for the young Ender which seems to have a solution for almost anything that could have been thrown at him. Besides the captivating plot, we are also faced with a completely unexpected finale, which brings much amazement to the viewer, while also leaving some space for a future sequel. The visuals are also top notch, bringing delight to the eye with every attempt.It's that type of movie which manages to create an unique atmosphere with the enormous help of one particular character (Ender's) which keeps you captivated throughout its entire length and provides an impressive and unexpected finale. It's an excellent movie overall which I cannot recommend enough.

A fairly boring movie with fairly bad acting. Ridiculous superiors pretty much every one of them. Useless training method for the war taking up most of the screen time and not developing the story to the point where it feels it's almost nonexistent. The movie is too short to develop the story, but it's actually a good thing since it's quite boring.Plotwise there is only one good point. Harrison Fords acting wasn't bad, even though his their logic for Ender is a stretch at best. Visual effects are good. All in all a B class movie which might as well have been made with under 1/100 of the cost. A real shame.