Ender's Game

Enders-Game

The human race faces annihilation.

An alien threat is on the horizon, ready to strike. And if humanity is to be defended, the government must create the greatest military commander in history.

The brilliant young Ender Wiggin is their last hope. But first he must survive the rigours of a brutal military training program – to prove that he can be the leader of all leaders.

A saviour for mankind must be produced, through whatever means possible.

But are they creating a hero or a monster?

This is the multiple award-winning classic ENDER’S GAME – a ground-breaking tale of war, strategy and survival.
 
 
 
 
 
So after The Ender’s Game Panel last night (with Harrison Ford, Sir Ben Kingsley, Asa Butterfield, Hailee Steinfeld in conversation with director & writer Gavin Hood and the producers Bob Orci and Gigi Pritzker) I thought I would revisit Ender’s Game, the novel.


Created with flickr slideshow.

Sir Ben Kingsley looks amazing as Mazer Rackham, the soldier whose actions during the Formic War saved humanity. Harrison Ford’s portrayal of Colonel Hyrum Graff the man tasked with creating the next generation of warriors at Battle School is equally fantastic. Asa Butterfield and Hailee Steinfeld are also excellent castings, I have only seen Asa in Hugo and Hailee in True Grit and am looking forward to seeing how they handle Ender’s Game.

The panel discussion was incredibly interesting, sadly I was too interested in listening to what they were saying so I did not take notes but what I can remember is that it took two hours for the make-up department to apply Mazer Rackham’s facial tattoo to Sir Ben Kingsley every day and the first time Hailee used a wire harness she was unable to keep upright… oh and Harrison Ford said that for special effects during the filming of Star Wars they actually built model space ships rather than using green screen technology.

Gigi Pritzker spoke of her joy that the book had been adapted for the big screen as she had read the novel after her nephew had suggested she read it an event that united two generations in a love for the story.

As a writer Orson Scott Card is brilliant, sadly his views on homosexuality and same-sex marriage make him a failure on being a decent human being. Ender’s Game is one of my all-time favourite science fiction novels; I read it when I was about 14 years of age and although I have not read it since the story has remained with me to this day.

Ender’s Game – the story of Andrew ‘Ender’ Wiggin a boy raised to save humanity in a battle of extinction with the Buggers (also known as Formics in later novels) an alien race that almost succeeded in destroying the human race in previous battles.

Using children as soldiers is nothing new – the stories of child soldiers that have been in the headlines over the past few yeas makes this story just as relevant now as it was when it was first published. The parts of the novel in Battle School show his progression from a withdrawn boy into a warrior and leader are brutal and can make brilliant discussion points about the psychological effect war has on children and the moral aspects of turning human beings into weapons.

It is telling that Ender’s Game, along with Robert Heinlein’s Starship Troopers are on the United States Marine Corps recommended reading lists.

Comments are closed.

Post Navigation