is anyone else concerned as to whether this movie will be altered from the book like most movies are?... im hoping that OSC has enough common sense to make sure this movie holds up to the high standards the books have set for it. for the books reputation to be diminished becuase of the profiteering of the movie business isnt a fair trade in the least.
[ January 13, 2004, 06:38 PM: Message edited by: laraem ]
Posted by Julie (Member # 5580) on :
Obviously the movie is going to change things from the way they happen in the book. I think I read something about ***SPOILERS*** I think Graff and Mazer being the same person. Also because it's combining EG and ES you're bound to have to leave a ton of stuff out. But I'm fairly confident that with OSC in on it it won't get screwed up too badly. Posted by blacwolve (Member # 2972) on :
I think as long as people keep in mind that you can either have every detail from the books correct and have an awful movie, or have some thing's changed and have great movie, they will like it. This is just based on what I've heard. I think OSC is planning on making it a good movie, rather than a slave to the books.
Posted by laraem (Member # 6103) on :
i must be sadly uneducated on the matter of the movie i had no idea ES and EG were combined for it... i wonder who they are gonna make out to be the main character...
and im aware that for any movie certain changes must be made to adapt to the fact that it is a movie... im just hoping they dont destroy the story, which has obviously happened in some books remade into movies
Posted by Kama (Member # 3022) on :
Anakin is going to play Ender.
Posted by St. Yogi (Member # 5974) on :
Yeah, and instead of having the battleroom, the kids are gonna be fighting with lightsabers. And colonel Graff has been renamed: Darth Principal
Posted by laraem (Member # 6103) on :
haha, i think that the anakin kid is a pretty good fit for the role
Posted by St. Yogi (Member # 5974) on :
Actually he's too old. I mean, he's like 15. Ender was five or six at the start of the book, and he was supposed to be small for his age.
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
He's 11 at the end of the book. NOT to say I think that with a stretch they could still use Lloyd. Darth principal. That was good. It would actually be a very satisfying twist to have Graff turn out to be Mazer. And it would alleviate at lot of my amivalence about Graff, if he already blew away a queen when they really were attacking.
Posted by laraem (Member # 6103) on :
well obviously he's not going to fit the role perfectly ... i mean who could? there arent many living enders around the movie world today that would be good candidates for it...
Posted by Princess Leah (Member # 6026) on :
I'm not too worried about the adaptation from book to movie since OSC is on the project. I mean, he is the author. He knows what kind of feeling he wants in the story. And also, if you read his articles on LotR, especially the books vs. movies kind of ones, he seems to not be afraid to change things from the original if they don't work with the new media. I really hope this movie will be good!! This seems to be the era when my favorite books are converted to movies, and so far it's been one FABULOUS success (LotR) and one absolute failure (Harry Potter). I maintain that the reason Potter was a failure was that they were afraid to change the book too much. They tried to change medias without adapting plot and character to make the attitude of the book find its way into the movie. JK Rowling didn't do the screenplay though, did she? And OSC is. Right? So it should be okay. If the child actors don't ruin it.
Posted by Xaposert (Member # 1612) on :
quote:I think OSC is planning on making it a good movie, rather than a slave to the books.
That's what they all say, though.
Posted by Princess Leah (Member # 6026) on :
No, no, no one said it about Harry Potter. What they said was that they were going to be true to the books. They didn't say anything about sacrificing the exact story of the book in order to be true to the SPIRIT of the book.
All those comments about Annikin playing Ender are just jokes, right? Right!?!?!?
Posted by laraem (Member # 6103) on :
Haley is too old... iv been told for years that i look very much like that kid as well... kinna annoying when everyone comes up to you and goes... " i see dead people>"
Posted by Bean Counter (Member # 6001) on :
It will be hard to not have Ender come off as monsterous if the movie starts with him kicking another little kid to death in the playground.
The IF will be watching and saying "Thats him, that viscious little cobber there is what we need!"
Most people will not have the insight to look deeper into his motives. Yet without his ruthlessness all you would have is a video game prodigy like two or three other movies. Boring.
I will be interested to see how it is handled.
BC
Posted by Da_Goat (Member # 5529) on :
quote:It will be hard to not have Ender come off as monsterous if the movie starts with him kicking another little kid to death in the playground.
I remember reading somewhere that that scene has to be nixed for timing. I'm pretty sure it was OSC who wrote it, and that it was on the main site somewhere.
Posted by Julie (Member # 5580) on :
If they keep that scene in then I'm sure they would also keep the part where Graff specifically asks Ender why he did it. Some people still might not believe it, but there you are.
Posted by laraem (Member # 6103) on :
yeah, i figure in the end they'll understand his motives for it. if not. then their just not fit to comprehend the story.
Posted by Bean Counter (Member # 6001) on :
I remember a post about Robert Jordans last book on Amazon. "Crossroads of Twilight" was the most dissapointing book I have ever read. This yokel headed his review with "Some people get it" I shudder to think of the kind of mentality that tries to sell a mass market movie on the premise that "Some will get it, the rest don't deserve to watch it!"
Shakespear is full of blood, sex, incest, betrayl and love, all cattering to the mob as it were. to quote Heinlien "A grant supported artist is a clumsy whore"
If OSC cannot write a screenplay that makes Ender's game into a hit with the mob then he is not the author we all know he is. Should he do it? Absolutely!
If I want to see a book made into a movie that will put me to sleep I will watch 2001 a Space Oddessy.
I thought the Harry Potter movies thus far were fantastic, they have made a billion dollars. The only praise that counts is green and folding. I thought the LoTR story was actually better then the story line in the books, (once the extended DVD version of RotK comes out with all the promised stuff) I am sure Ender's Game with the visual reality of Battle School and the fights between the armies can be better then the book in many ways.
BC
Posted by laraem (Member # 6103) on :
movies and books appeal to different senses... books work the brain much more than a movie and yes i think osc will do a great job with the movie iv never had any doubt on that one... the movie and the book will have different effects on the individual. i dont see how the movie could possibly surpass the books in my mind. i will watch it. and i will enjoy it im sure. just in a different area, for different reasons.
Posted by Taalcon (Member # 839) on :
From what I understand, the Graff/Mazer twist is out in the latests drafts.
And I believe OSC has completed his contractural Draft of the script, and now it's being handed off to a professional screenwriter to tweak and rewrite.
Posted by FSUFanatic (Member # 6129) on :
I think that the Graff/Mazer thing, personally, is retarded. That is bending the story too much for me, and also, Mazer happend like 80 years before the happenings in Ender's Game because I remember it saying so having read it again recently, and Graff has been the head for some time, although you can argue with me, there is no way I can make sense of this. Maybe its just me.
And please no Haley and Osment. Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
I tend to like movies better if I see them before I read the book they're based on. I will forever be grateful that I saw LotR first because, not only was my RotK experience incredible because I didn't know how the story ended, but I've thankfully missed out on the disappointment at the inconsistencies that has plagued the more die-hard fans. However, I am somewhat apprehensive about Ender's game. Mainly I'm afraid that OSC will be met with opposition and either have to make compromises or forfeit the project. Provided he maintains creative control, I have every faith that the movie will be fantastic. I said earlier that, when it comes to movies basedon books, I tend to prefer whichever medium I was first exposed to. Disregarding LotR because of the sheer epic nature of both the books and the movies, there is one exception to my rule: The Abyss. I saw the movie countless times before I read OSC's "adaptation" and, yeah I know, the book is based on the screenplay, but the point is that both projects were equally successful because there was mutual respect and collaboration between Card and Cameron. My ultimate point is that, as long as OSC gets the same respect regarding the making of the Ender's Game movie, we have nothing to worry about.
Posted by shadowmaker (Member # 6155) on :
The movie idea has several problems: 1.Actors: Almost everyone in Ender's game has a complex personality, and you would need REALLY good actors especially for the kids. If they look like the "spy kids" on screen that's not gonna fit the book at all.
2.Rating: There are some parts of the story that can only be told in a pg13 movie, or possibly R. Of course they will change it around to make it appealing to teenagers, but if it's rated G or PG it'll be too kiddish.
3.Length: I am hoping this will be around 3 hours long, especially since they are combining 2 books. They should try to leave out little as possible.
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
quote: They should try to leave out little as possible.
I disagree. They should take out whatever is needed to make the best movie.
The movie can never be a replacement for the book.
Posted by Xaposert (Member # 1612) on :
I think almost all the details can be changed, but the one thing that must not be changed is the main idea of the story, itself. It has to be about Ender and his internal conflicts. If you lose that then you're really telling a different story, and although it could be a good one too, the odds are against it.
I am also worried that OSC's script might not be bold enough. Whenever rumors or statements come out, I keep hearing that OSC thinks X can't be done in movies, or Y just isn't feasible, or the audience just won't accept Z. I think a good movie has to be bold, and attempt things that are not so easy to pull off.
Posted by MidnightBlue (Member # 6146) on :
It sounded to me like they were trying to keep the time around 2 hours, though I could be wrong. And just because the books says certain things about the timeline (about Graff and Mazer) doesn't mean they can't change it for the movie.
Posted by mccoolcg (Member # 6180) on :
People may disagree with this, but I think that this script would be perfect as an animation production. Certainly not along the Disney/Fox/Pixar vein, or course, though borrowing some of the voice talents they use would be worthwhile. I would think that a CGI/Japanimation version of this script would end up being more pleasing simply because of it's ability "stick to the story".
Advantages: 1) Null G battleroom situations are much easier. 2) You don't have to find a massive amount of very talented kids who can or can't break the movie. You just have to steal voices. 3) The script can stay more true to the story.
Disadvantages: 1) People in this country just don't seem to like animation enough. 2) Part of what makes EG so great is the personality and realness the characters generate. Everyone relates somehow. Animation would sort of dehumanize the characters and may take away from that. 3) There are a lot of characters and complicated scenes which, when animated, are notorious for being poorly done in the end b/c of oversimplification of the graphics within the scene.
Posted by Earendil (Member # 1827) on :
The only real worry I have for this project is the combination of "genius" and "6-10 yr old". It reads very nicely in the book, and you do fine digesting the fact that these kids are using a broad vocabulary, and contemplating things that normal kids of this age group don't. But when transferred to film, I wonder how well that will hold up considering how hard it would be for a child actor to deliver such high language and emotions effectively. Will people in the audience be able to digest such a thing on screen? The sheer "adultness" of their behaviour contradicts their age, and genius or no, that's not going to be easy to get across to an audience, without some sort of..."tweaking"
~Earendil
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
There is no way that they will be portrayed as 6 years old. That's just way to young for what they'll need on screen. They'll all be pre-pubescent, but that's all I think you can count on.
Posted by TheClone (Member # 6141) on :
Why does the battle room have to be so hard? We are not talking about flying! The kids in the battle room, from my understanding, typically moved in straight lines with the exception of beans deadline. To me, it sounds as if some camera manipulation with some special effects could pull this off fairly easily.
But I have no knowledge of filmmaking.!
Now, my problem has always been, Bean caught on before the battles started that they were real... Ender didn't. How do they introduct that, in my mind, the perfect way if to hint at it, but never actually say anything until Bean quotes the passage from the bible, in the end battle. That always makes me tear up.
Also, if you do it with JUST CGI or anime, then you have to add in the horrible voices.
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