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  • Ender's Game (2013)

    From Jack Bohn@21:1/5 to All on Sat Aug 12 06:51:00 2023
    I've only read the novella version, and closer in time to its first printing than to the release of the film. (Heck, probably closer to the Moon Landing than to today!) As such, I'm in a position to apply what I've come up with as fair judgement on an
    adaptation: does it recreate the general experience of the original work, the overall feeling and impression, and at least one memorable scene? Per that, yes I would say it is a faithful adaptation.

    Bonus that I detected nothing extraneous in it that might necessitate a "Speaker for the Dead" movie. I'm sure the studio was desperate for a series, if not a franchise, but this is its own movie, not an extended trailer for its sequel.

    That said, it could be a better movie. Humanity's military seems to have ideas about building a military genius personality by instilling a sense of isolation. We see this when Ender realizes that his colonel, in praising him, has made the rest of the
    class hate him, and are told it again later, as the Colonel tells a Major that Ender has to be unable to trust that anyone will be on his side. This could have been a stronger, if uncomfortable, segment to watch, especially with the face they have for
    Ender, but it is too quickly abandoned, and they quickly form a clique around him with every other recruit in whom we see positive aspects.

    --
    -Jack

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  • From Paul S Person@21:1/5 to jack.bohn64@gmail.com on Sat Aug 12 08:34:24 2023
    On Sat, 12 Aug 2023 06:51:00 -0700 (PDT), Jack Bohn
    <jack.bohn64@gmail.com> wrote:

    I've only read the novella version, and closer in time to its first printing than to the release of the film. (Heck, probably closer to the Moon Landing than to today!) As such, I'm in a position to apply what I've come up with as fair judgement on an
    adaptation: does it recreate the general experience of the original work, the overall feeling and impression, and at least one memorable scene? Per that, yes I would say it is a faithful adaptation.

    Compared to the novel (I missed the novella), it is missing a lot of
    stuff with his brother and sister. And compresses the timeframe a bit.
    The effect is to move it much closer to being a YA film.

    But you are correct -- it definitely covers the main story.

    Bonus that I detected nothing extraneous in it that might necessitate a "Speaker for the Dead" movie. I'm sure the studio was desperate for a series, if not a franchise, but this is its own movie, not an extended trailer for its sequel.

    By having him fly off on his own rather than stay around it makes it
    hard to see how "Speaker for the Dead" would work. IIRC, it took a
    long time just to get the /Ender's Game/ movie done.

    That said, it could be a better movie. Humanity's military seems to have ideas about building a military genius personality by instilling a sense of isolation. We see this when Ender realizes that his colonel, in praising him, has made the rest of the
    class hate him, and are told it again later, as the Colonel tells a Major that Ender has to be unable to trust that anyone will be on his side. This could have been a stronger, if uncomfortable, segment to watch, especially with the face they have for
    Ender, but it is too quickly abandoned, and they quickly form a clique around him with every other recruit in whom we see positive aspects.
    --
    "Here lies the Tuscan poet Aretino,
    Who evil spoke of everyone but God,
    Giving as his excuse, 'I never knew him.'"

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